Informed Decisions, Better Results

The most successful companies are those that utilize data and analytics as a supporting tool to adapt to rapid market changes, but how can you simplify Big Data to improve daily decision making? How can online services help you stay connected while safely doing business miles apart? There are innovative solutions that offer a combination of tools that boost profitability, efficiency, communication and even security. Read on to discover four ways asset intelligence (AI) technology can help CRE operators understand how to navigate market shifts and emerge with a competitive edge. 1. Use data to enhance asset performance On average, more North American organizations have been using big data for benchmarking and prescriptive analytics over the past few years. In fact, according to KMPG’s 2020 CEO Outlook, 92% of Canadian CEOs fast-tracked their transformation to meet COVID-19 challenges, with 76% believing that investments in tech tools such as automation, artificial intelligence and cloud systems are critical to unlocking long-term growth. As a result of the tech adoption, the CRE industry is seeing AI enable teams to identify patterns and recognize trends by easily visualizing broader pools of data that influence KPIs, all within a customizable dashboard. With the assistance of automation and machine learning, the data becomes more refined over time facilitating more informed decisions on everything from marketing spend to concessions and leasing velocity. Having ongoing access to distilled real-time reporting encourages team collaboration, a data driven culture and empowers departments to stay on track of projects – it can even give individuals the latitude to go beyond their day-to-day responsibilities. During challenging times, this refined data also gives operators better insight into deals and key early wins that can reassure and even excite stakeholders. 2. Forge a clearer pathway to success with cloud-based data management Cloud-based asset management platforms offer key insights into portfolio health including revenues, debt, risk, occupancy and sales. Such data helps asset managers make more strategic decisions and set stakeholder expectations. Benefits also abound at the property level. Today’s asset management software seamlessly integrates with site-specific tools. Integrated, cloud-based technology supports facility and construction managers, leasing agents and property-level users. From online rent payments to digital procurement, users save time, decrease redundancies and improve accuracy within a single integrated system. With site staff connected to a single point of truth, they can efficiently make better day-to-day decisions. Structured dashboards enhance the value and practicality of data. “[Commercial clients] want a solution that’s designed for them and which connects them to the central data system with mobile applications and dashboards. That’s why we created a connected ecosystem for the operations side with Yardi Elevate,” explains Brian Sutherland, vice president, sales commercial at Yardi. He continues, “Expanding data access to the back office is tied to the larger issue of data management. The challenge is dissecting data and making it actionable for informed decisions. That’s the importance of role-based dashboards that remove guesswork for building operations people who need to control costs and work more efficiently.” Modern asset management technology platforms assimilate data at the property and portfolio levels and make it universally available. With a complete set of information, asset managers can evaluate pipelines, connect investors with appropriate deals and create an effective management plan. More strategic deal execution paves the way to increased revenues and overall success. 3. Gain greater efficiency and convenience throughout your organization with online services The cloud offers a unique opportunity to work with live data from anywhere with an internet connection. Executives can review reports, approve expenses and authorize payments when and where it’s convenient for them. Asset managers virtually present live reports to stakeholders with real-time data that is consistent throughout reporting systems. Whether in the office or a remote work environment, leaders across the organization achieve greater accuracy and efficiency with online services. At the property level, online portals make it easy to process rent payments,...

YASC Global

More than 17,000 participants from 64 countries collectively viewed 60,000 classes about Yardi products and initiatives from May 18-20 during the third virtual Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC) Global event held during the pandemic. Many of the spotlight sessions offered highlighted ways that Yardi technology has helped clients, their employees and customers adapt and thrive with technology during a time when limited contact has been a priority. The event again utilized the Yardi Aspire platform to deliver customized educational content. YASC attendees also enjoyed a virtual fundraising concert by guitarist/songwriter Jason Mraz. Each view of the performance generated a donation from Yardi, raising nearly $100,000 for COVID-19 relief initiatives. Meditation and mindfulness sessions were available for attendees to enjoy during short breaks between classes. Highlights from some of the featured spotlight sessions included: Marketing and automation solutions for residential Optimized marketing, automated chatbots and accessible self-guided tours were among the highlights presented in the residential spotlight session. These fully integrated Yardi solutions are among the ways multifamily clients have continued to see success during the pandemic. “I want to show you what’s possible when you have the right digital marketing strategy in place,” said Esther Bonardi, vice president of marketing at Yardi. “I bet you have a website. But do you have a comprehensive marketing strategy in place that can help you get your properties on page one of search results and get your customers directly to your website so that you can convert them into paying renters, faster?” RentCafe Reach helps clients attract qualified prospects with advanced search marketing services. The platform is currently optimizing more than 2,000 industry websites for organic search and driving rent-ready leads to managers. “This is the most cost-effective marketing channel,” Bonardi said. “And you can target exactly the traffic you need for the moment or availability you’re in.” Additional features like reputation management, search, and a new marketing analytics tool called Marketing IQ were also presented. “Marketing IQ is a one stop shop for all the data you need to make marketing decisions,” Bonardi said. “It’s really all for the purpose of improving your marketing ROI, which ultimately leads to a stronger NOI.” Once you’ve got a prospect on the line, engaging immediately to answer their questions is of paramount importance. But what if it’s after hours or your leasing office is closed for the weekend? That’s where chatbots come in. “Your prospective residents want and expect answers quickly, whether you’re open or not, or they quickly move on. This is especially true for popular new channels like text and chat,” said Paul Yount, industry principal for RENTCafé. “Bots and multiple touring options can really complement each other when they work together hand in hand.” Yount demonstrated a full conversation with a chatbot that answered questions about a property’s electric vehicle charging stations, pet policy, availability and pricing. He was able to schedule a self-guided tour via text and then showed how further AI automation can continue to answer questions even when the leasing office was closed during the tour. From a property manager’s perspective, the latest multifamily technology from Yardi not only solves for social distancing and accessibility but reduces staff time spent following up on prospect questions or even leading in-person tours. Proptech trends for the commercial sector Rob Teel, senior vice president of global solutions at Yardi, shared that for him, the most overwhelming CRE proptech trend in the last 12 months has been increased technical adoption. “That means paperless and contactless transactions, and online communication. When I think about paperless transactions, one of the best examples of innovation that helps eliminate that last piece of paper in the organization – which we’re all trying to do – is our e-signature capability for leases. You can now publish a lease for signature, there’s no exchange of FedEx documents and no meeting to get a wet signature. Paperless transactions and...

Tech Harmony

We’ve learned that most every company is a tech company: in the past year, companies that prioritized adaptability and tech innovation managed to thrive in the most unprecedented circumstances. At PM Springfest, two real estate industry experts shared their best practices for tech selection, implementation and creating efficient processes that scale. Their analysis offers insights and inspiration to prepare Canadian property managers for a harmonious future with technology. PM Springfest 2021 PM Springfest is a two-day online educational conference for decision makers and influencers of the property management industry. The event gave participants the opportunity to connect, network, learn and share insights on the industry’s most important topics including sustainability, legal and regulatory issues, resiliency and technology. Panelist Sandeep Manak, CFO, Wesgroup Properties, Brian Turpin, CIO, Greenwin and moderator Sam Amin, marketing manager, Yardi Canada led the webinar, “Hello New World: Are You Ready for the Future of Real Estate Tech?” The panel explored how tech facilitates business continuity, strategies for successful adoption and how they leverage data to thrive. Tech is essential for modern, successful business continuity The pandemic served as a catalyst for technology adoption throughout real estate verticals. Manual processes, paper-based filing systems, and face-to-face interactions came to an abrupt halt. Technology empowered companies to press forward and thrive in remote environments. Turpin says, “At Greenwin, we always had this digital mindset of being cloud-first. Our overall strategy has been focused on mobility, digital payments, online leasing, and virtual tours.” As a result, Greenwin was able to shift to remote work environments within a few days. The organization also accelerated disaster response protocols that were already in place. “Something that we specifically did around the pandemic was the deferred payments,” says Turpin. “A vendor like Yardi quickly stepped up and pivoted...

Future of Procurement in Canada

In the last year, we’ve witnessed accelerated implementation of web-based property management software, automated services and paperless transactions. We now know technology is here to stay and more businesses will continue to leverage technology to help improve efficiency and continuity throughout the organization. In the Canadian real estate industry, this uptake in tech is particularly true in procurement and payment processing. If you are looking for a solution to take your organization to the next level of efficiency, an end-to-end procurement to payment software should be on your vendor list. Unlock potential value Christine Williams, vice president of national operations and administration for QuadReal Property Group, is one of many Yardi clients that are leveraging paperless solutions. “Our internal initiative is to always stay current with technology and processes. We want to empower our staff to get the job done in the fastest, most efficient and the most accurate way.” Getting invoices on the desk and scanning them is a new safety concern, as well as an inconvenient task that takes many hours from staff schedules. Rather than handling high-quality tasks, your staff is stuck sifting through stacks of paper. This is when you need a solution like a third party digital invoice services to take the burden from your team to off-site specialists who can scan and key your invoices. By outsourcing this work you free up time for your team while leadership maintains control of all invoice approvals. Cheque writing is another drain on your staff’s time and in-office hours. Paper cheques require printing, signing, postage fees and can cause potential delays. Implementing an electronic payment platform permits efficient vendor payments and data. Offering a truly paperless invoice process is key for ensuring successful business continuity.  Williams says, “Historically, manual management processes have proven to be inefficient. We are big on automating workflows at QuadReal. Wherever we can put a user access control in place from a system perspective, we would rather have someone push an approve button than a piece of paper.” Simplify vendor management Maintaining open lines of communication with your vendors is important but staff can find themselves fielding dozens of calls and emails each day. A  self-service online portal for vendors enables vendors to submit invoices, check payment statuses, manage POs and work orders when they are off or onsite. When vendors can manage their own accounts, there is less downstream burden for your staff. Williams continues, “If there is a vendor that is going to integrate ordering to purchase orders to invoice submissions and payments, they understand the market’s needs. Having that functionality takes multiple steps out of our process, making it easier for all stakeholders.” Gain control of MRO spend With the recent increase in tech adoption, some businesses are seeing a disparate supplier base across their organization leading to errors, inconsistencies and cost variables. Without a streamlined approach to your procurement spend, your team is constantly adjusting to moving targets. To take the guess work out of procurement management consider what online catalogues can offer and how your organization can benefit from tracking and centralizing all procurement decisions in a single database. Two other major wins of streamlining your processes is that your operations team feels empowered to make better decisions and it helps create consistent policies throughout your communities. Williams explains, “Minimizing manual steps makes our processes easier for our properties, staff and vendors, and we embrace tech innovation. From a site user perspective, all our team needs to do is log onto Marketplace, place their order, the system will generate a purchase order, that follows our predefined workflow to get all of the necessary approvals. From a management standpoint, we have access to the analytics, from which we gain greater visibility into our working capital and budget.” Go beyond business continuity As organizations prepare for our post-pandemic reality, integrated technology remains a key determinate in the ability to...

Streaming Efficiency

Working in multiple locations need not hinder efficient record-keeping by nurses and other senior living community care staff thanks to the Yardi EHR Care Stream App. Yardi EHR Care Stream app lets care staff execute point-of-care charting and related administrative tasks on mobile devices. Previously users had to log in to Yardi EHR, a full service electronic health record solution for senior living, to perform order resolutions before charting orders in the Yardi EHR Care Stream app. “This faster, more efficient process for order resolution helps all senior care nurses and especially those who work in multiple communities or remotely. They can spend less time on record-keeping and direct more of their energies to their pressing care responsibilities,” said Ray Elliott, vice president of senior living for Yardi. See how Yardi EHR combines with the rest of the Yardi Senior Living Suite to create a comprehensive technology platform for senior living...

Fresh Upgrades

Yardi regularly works to foster product enhancements, develop new features and improve usability in the Senior Living Suite. From gaining client feedback to testing new ideas throughout the year, upgrades are crafted to make our software more valuable for senior living providers. These upgrades are then compiled into an accessible guide for clients. We’re pleased to announce that Yardi Voyager Senior Housing 7.14 is now available to explore. Here’s an overview of the upgrades included.       Yardi Voyager Voyager welcomes an array of exciting updates and new functionality. Namely, the enhancement of several reports such as the Portfolio Census, Resident Days and Resident Ledger. Other Voyager updates include: New trust fund accounting functionalityA Copy Resident tool for seamless community-to-community transfers Watch the overview video Read the Voyager new features guide RentCafe Senior CRM RentCafe Senior CRM provides complete visibility into your marketing and sales activities — and 7.14 is packed with upgrades to help. Included is an improved user interface. Equipped with redesigns of prospect profiles and activity list screens, the enhanced interface allows for a smoother navigation of prospect history. Additional upgrades consist of:    Ability to select checkboxes during digital lease signingCentralized pet information tableRevamped calendar integrationDisplay of time spent with leadsNew lead staging workflow with capability to create sales guides and action items Watch the overview video Read the RentCafe Senior CRM new features guide Yardi EHR EHR is full of new features, along with enhancements to several modules. Among these is a brand-new dashboard for infection surveillance and immunization monitoring, designed to help care managers track assessments related to vaccinations and infectious diseases — including COVID-19. Check out the rest, at a glance:  Function to copy resident records from one community to anotherTime-saving tools for incident reportingEnhanced Kno2 interfaceAbility to...

Lease Accounting Software

Implementing IFRS 16 lease accounting standards is a daunting task as it requires adhering to new policies, adopting new measures, and changing existing processes. As per the new lease accounting standards, assets and liabilities need to be recognized by lessees in the balance sheet. The aim is to make reporting more transparent and allow companies to ascertain the nature of lease transactions. Transitioning to lease accounting software will help your business achieve compliance without hassle. A lease accounting software is a great tool to do calculations, produce journal entries and automate reporting compliant with the new IFRS 16 standards.  The selection and implementation process for a software can be a time-consuming endeavor. There are, however, certain criteria businesses can investigate to determine the best lease accounting software for their needs. You should be clear on the software’s data gathering and reporting capabilities, its cost-effectiveness, and the different benefits you will enjoy after the successful implementation of the software.  Here are some of the features you should look for when reviewing lease accounting software providers. Compliance with IFRS disclosure requirements There are many software solutions on the market promising different sets of features to ease IFRS 16 implementation. However, you must choose a software that helps in meeting all disclosure requirements.  The new standards demand more disclosures in the form of right-of-use assets, interest expenses, and information regarding the outflow of leases. A good lease accounting software should develop all disclosure reports as and when the company needs them.  Look for maximum accuracy and flexibility of the software solution IFRS 16 standards are very complex. A manual fixing of such complexities would take a lot of time, resources and may lead to errors. To prevent this, software solutions should have configurations that support data features that make the process easy.  A company generally has a large lease portfolio. To maintain accuracy after every change operated by different stakeholders, internal control needs support. An advanced lease accounting software solution will help with the data entry validation mechanism and provide role-based access for optimal results. A centralized data repository for easy collaboration A large amount of lease data is one of the most difficult things to handle by account managers. A lease management software solution with a centralized data repository will not only save time but money, as well. It makes it easy for employees of different departments to access the information on the platform.  Additionally, access should be granted to only those who need it, with complex data security protocols and security standards. Notifications and alerts are key As mentioned before, the lease portfolios of some companies are large. Thus, manually managing each facet of the contracts is a tedious task. It may include payment dates, renewals, events, etc. With lease software solutions, you can send automated notifications and get alerts for every important date or event in your lease contracts. Making the transition to new standards takes time and effort. But it can be done at ease with a powerful lease accounting software solution and the right support. COROM Lease Management from Yardi is a great lease accounting software solution that can help you implement IFRS 16 standards. Visit www.yardicorom.com for more...

Grow Investor Confidence – And Your Business

The investment world historically has been an industry filled with spreadsheet reports and snail mail paper checks. Errors can arise when entering data in multiple spreadsheets and relying on disparate systems is inefficient , especially when sharing information between investment, investor and accounting system. Thankfully, technology is transforming investment management for real estate. Investors now expect on-demand service and self-service access to key metrics, capital transactions, important documents and reports. Having the right technology creates better value for investors, which leads to increased investor confidence. Investment management technology can improve communication, increase visibility and provide easy access to performance metrics. Top systems are mobile-friendly and available wherever, whenever access is required. Improve communication Managing the relationships with existing and prospective investors is a key part of growing any investment business and raising capital. Yardi Investment Manager provides a platform that makes communicating with investors more efficient, easier and error-free. Cohen Asset Management’s investor relations staff can log into Yardi Investment Manager and see the online tools their investors are using, deals they are involved in, contact information, returns, distributions and other information. Scott McGinness, principal and chief financial officer, shared: “By being able to deliver information when it’s needed, we don’t have to follow up with the investor later, which is easier on both parties, “ Organizations benefit from a single connected tool that helps: Centralize communications with existing and prospective investors Manage capital call and distribution notices with investors Easily send out correspondence, track activities and follow up tasks quickly Enable better collaboration with new investment opportunities Increase transparency and accuracy Yardi Investment Manager is a single source of the truth for investor and investment information. Provide access to portfolio and property metrics directly to investors. Automate the subscription agreement process for new investment opportunities with existing or prospective investors.. With an integrated solution, there is no need for disparate systems and manual transfer of data.  This allows you to provide timely access to information to your investors. By easily compiling and communicating accurate information, Yardi Investment Manager strengthens Cohen Asset Management’s investor relationships with superior service and allows the company to maintain a lean organization. Access information easily In addition to investment and property metrics, Yardi Investment Manager makes it easy to publish reports, tax documents, subscription agreements and more to investors through an online branded portal. This allows your investors access to information anytime, anywhere. And since the portal can take on your company’s personalized branding, it will offer offer a customized , highly professional experience for investors. Manage portfolios on the go Yardi Investment Manager provides access to investor and investment information on any device. It makes it easy to find and review every piece of information you need, from anywhere, so you can have informed discussions with your team and your investors on: Portfolio and investor data Risk monitoring Fundraising Capital transactions Investor communications Yardi Investment Manager is a single connected solution that brings investing partners together and instills investor confidence. Provide access to reports and detailed documentation so your investors feel an increased sense of connection and value with their partnership. Yardi Investment Manager is part of the investment suite of products, a fully-integrated platform available with Yardi Voyager, Investment Accounting or as a standalone solution. Overall, you’ll improve efficiency and boost visibility into investor activity and investment metrics, making portfolio oversight simpler than ever. Join an Investment Manager webinar to learn...

Shine On

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) have honored ENERGY STAR® partners from 39 states for outstanding leadership in reducing energy bills and tackling climate change. This year, Yardi has received the highest honor — the 2021 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award. For the third consecutive year, Yardi has excelled as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year in its ongoing commitment to help educate and support its clients through energy management software with a built-in dashboard for ENERGY STAR scores and benchmarking using ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager®. Ongoing Excellence “ENERGY STAR award-winning partners are showing the world that delivering real climate solutions makes good business sense and promotes job growth,” said Michael S. Regan, EPA administrator. “Many of them have been doing it for years, inspiring all of us who are committed to tackling the climate crisis and leading the way to a clean energy economy.” The 2021 ENERGY STAR Sustained Excellence Award acknowledges Yardi’s technology solutions and ongoing philanthropic efforts across a variety of real estate sectors including: Helping more than 140 clients benchmark energy in over 3,500 buildings Benchmarking water in over 3,000 buildings Promoting the importance of ENERGY STAR scores to clients through education, training and visibility Including ENERGY STAR in Yardi’s energy management software dashboard Publishing more than 32 articles on the benefits of benchmarking, energy management and other conservation topics Providing digital courses for over 36,000 attendees from more than 58 countries during its virtual user conferences Again earning ENERGY STAR certification for its Southern California corporate headquarters Akshai Rao, vice president at Yardi, sees the award as a reflection of the company’s clients and their impressive achievements in energy management and conservation. “We’re proud of our clients’ achievements using ENERGY STAR resources to meet their business and sustainability goals. Our benchmarking increased by more than 50% over last year. This is due in part to rapid adoption of ENERGY STAR benchmarking to better understand remote work environment impacts on building energy use during the COVID-19 pandemic. We look forward to helping our clients and the industry gain even more ENERGY STAR benefits moving forward,” said Rao. Your Turn to Shine For a complete list of 2021 winners and more information about ENERGY STAR’s awards program, visit energystar.gov/awardwinners. To learn more about getting support for your company’s energy management and sustainability goals, join a free energy management...

Let’s chat

Property management chatbots have been a hot topic lately, especially for multifamily rentals. A chatbot can meet renters’ increasing demands for digital communication and capture more leasing opportunities, but only if it’s used wisely. First, we’ll talk about why you should consider “hiring” a chatbot if you don’t have one on staff already. Then, we’ll show you three things your apartment rental chatbot should be able to do. Finally, watch a short video to get chatbot tips from expert marketer Drew Davis, who spent months talking to chatbots in different industries to see what works and what doesn’t. Why a chatbot? Employing a chatbot as part of your customer experience team can ensure you never miss an incoming leasing opportunity, day or night, and it frees up onsite staff to focus on assisting applicants and residents. If you don’t have a chatbot yet, you’re probably losing leases to competitors that do. That’s because customers expect instant and accurate answers to their questions. They hate waiting. In fact, in a survey on response times that included more than 3,000 customers, 88% of respondents expected a response within an hour, with 33% of them saying they expect an answer in 15 minutes or less. Is that realistic for your agents, especially when you factor in after-hours contacts? Probably not. That’s where a chatbot comes in handy. But do people really want to talk to a bot? Recent data says they do. The 2020 NMHC/Kingsley Apartment Resident Preferences Report found that 48% of renters say they would use a chatbot in their next rental search. That number is anticipated to grow as chatbot adoption becomes increasingly common across multiple industries. A 2019 report by Chatbots Life predicts that chatbots will handle 85% of human interactions online within...

GREEN on the Go

GREEN Real Estate is in the process of building a best in class organization that supports the entrepreneurship, growth and development of the company. One of the pillars of such an organization is continuous insight in data availability of business information. In this context creating more seamless leasing processes was a goal for GREEN Real Estate, a real estate investor and developer with numerous projects in urban areas of the Netherlands. Being able to access current transaction activity, company communication and approval workflows from an electrical car outside the property? Well, that’s just a cool bonus. We recently caught up with Steven van Ginkel, Manager of Finance and Control for GREEN Real Estate, who says that use of mobile-friendly Yardi solutions for the company has been a game changer. The GREEN team works continuously to improve the combination of living, working, mobility and shopping in the Netherlands. They have used the Yardi platform since April 2015. Yardi was selected to improve data accuracy and transparency, simplify workflows, provide executive oversight and access to information from any online device. Earning and approving new deals Yardi Deal Manager, the most dynamic leasing solution on the market, enables asset managers and their internal and external brokers to reduce unit turnover, improve communication, work with prospects and provide managers and executives with all the real-time insight they need. It also makes it very easy to submit available lease options to potential new tenants. “Proposals to prospective tenants are literally one mouse click. This creates time to improve quality to the offer and communication between leads and the asset managers,” van Ginkel said. Changes are also faster when made within the system. We save between 30 to 60 minutes each time we make any contractual change when using Deal...

Experts Unlock

What’s the formula for promoting a tech-friendly culture in an organization? We asked four leaders in Canadian real estate for their insights as part of the Yardi Canada “Canadian Trailblazers” series. Olivier Rocheleau, corporate controller for Groupe Petra, identifies showcasing upper management’s willingness to innovate, recruiting support within the company and instilling strong change management skills as the principal elements. “Everything starts with upper management understanding the need and benefits of technology, not just its cost. Business will see a decline in profitability and lose valued employees who are tired of working with outdated tools, if changes are not made during these times,” he says. At the same time, he notes, employees are usually the best sources of insight into the shortcomings of the current tech situation and processes. Sandeep Manak, CFO for Wesgroup Properties, concurs. “Get the president or chairman to use new tech” as the first adopters and to lead by example, he advises. Sarah Segal, director of real estate for Informa Connect, manager of the Canadian Real Estate Forums, considers formulating a strong vision for the future, nurturing cultural evolution and displaying a willingness to go the extra mile as the principal ingredients of successful tech adoption. “A team that sees potential in a pivot, expansion or improvement will dig in to see it happen,” she says. Creativity is another key attribute, she adds, with ingraining out-of-the-box thinkers in the company culture and openness to new ideas being among the top elements necessary to forge an environment that encourages constructive change to thrive. Michael Brooks, CEO of REALPAC, notes that the pandemic accelerated the adoption of technology, from new and pre-existing in the market. This includes videoconferencing platforms, messaging apps, digital contracts, paperless banking, shared creation and management of documents and...

Payment Processing

At Yardi, we are constantly exploring ways to help you and your team operate more efficiently. With additional conveniences and functionalities, our payment processing solutions have become even more robust. ACH Account Validation reduces fraud Skip the high cost of fraud. With the new ACH Account Validation feature, you can reduce fraudulent payments. It’s also a convenient way to decrease data entry errors that result in returns. Before initiating a payment, ACH Account Validation authenticates a resident’s bank account using a micro deposit. The resident must verify the deposit details before completing a payment. Residents initiate the process, eliminating the chance of staff keying errors. ACH Account Validation is in compliance with the WEB Debit Account Validation Rule which takes effect March 19, 2021. PayNearMe makes walk-in payments even easier Yardi has partnered with PayNearMe to take our walk-in payment system (WIPS) to the next level of convenience. The PayNearMe partnership allows residents make payments at more than 27,000 retail locations across the nation. These locations are as convenient as the local CVS or 7-Eleven. To improve ease and accuracy, residents can download a unique barcode to their phone which then allows them to easily connect to the RentCafe Resident app. Make payments and earn credit You know the satisfaction that comes with earning points on your credit card? Our new Bill Pay payment method is even better. When you pay vendors with a Yardi virtual credit card, you earn an annual credit. You can also dodge the per-transaction fees you used to pay with check and ACH transactions. The new Yardi virtual credit card makes vendor payments completely automated, seamless and contactless. Fee-free upgrades on Payment Processing Want the latest features in the Payment Processing platform? Upgrade now at no cost! Get the newest...

Paperless Made Easy

Did document management get lost in the shuffle as you shifted to a paperless office or remote work environment? Your team may now struggle to track down files and keep versions organized as they send copies back and forth. Fortunately, it’s never too late to achieve the level of organization, accessibility and security that you need. Paperless made easy Paperless documentation is an industry standard. Yet without the right technology, managing electronic documents can be even more challenging than paper files. Users face a series of challenges related to organization, access, storage, searchability, security and integration. Yardi Document Management for SharePoint integrates with Voyager property management software and Microsoft 365 to eliminate paperless documentation challenges. Centralized storage Centralized document storage can take place on local servers and in the Cloud. The latter permits secure access to documents for staff in office, in remote work environments and on the go. Work together from anywhere Improve collaboration without redundancy or version control issues. When combined with the power of SharePoint, interconnected document management software empowers users to collaborate. With Cloud syncing, each team member stays up-to-date with the latest developments. Document management also integrates with Microsoft 365 and other Yardi applications to improve accessibility to and security of your documents. Secure and accessible Managing permissions and end-user access can be a pain point for organizations. Skip the hassle of creating new profiles and credentials within your document management system with Voyager integration. SharePoint permissions will reflect your security settings in Voyager. As a result, users can access files quickly and securely with no VPN required. Intuitive organization Folder structures and hierarchy make organization simple. You can track version history of documents as well as individual contributions from users over time. Such tracking makes it easy to...

Learn Yardi

Yardi offers robust, configurable software to meet the needs of nearly 20 verticals. From students to seniors and parks to ports, property management runs on Yardi! But what do you do when you want to get more out of your user experience? There are many opportunities to attend Yardi trainings. Explore the list below for ways to learn Yardi from experts and users in your industry: Yardi Training on Aspire Yardi Aspire is the go-to learning tool for employees who want to become Yardi product experts. Users gain access to hundreds of in-depth courses taught by product specialists. Through learning checks and tests, you can assess your product knowledge. You can then review materials on demand and get help from the experts. With greater product knowledge, you will be equipped with the tools needed to optimize product usage, promote time and cost savings, and expedite ROI for your organization. YASC Global Digital Conference Yardi Advanced Solutions Conference (YASC) is one of the company’s largest real estate software events. It offers everything from product introductions to deep dives sessions on the latest innovations in real estate software. YASC Global, our digital event, brings the power of the conference to your fingertips. Log-on to learn more about the latest software and services, ask questions in our product lounges and connect with other Yardi users. In 2020, more than 20,000 industry professionals attended YASC Global, representing 2,500 companies in 58 countries. Attendees viewed over 12,000 hours of informative and engaging content. As our first virtual conference, we are thrilled that 98% of survey respondents said the sessions met their expectations! YASC Global digital conference offers CPE credits and is free for all Yardi clients. Current clients can access 2020 content through the end of April 2021 via...

Time for Fintech

Fintech emerged in the 21st century and the term was applied to the technology employed at the back-end systems of established financial institutions. These days, it includes multiple industries including education, retail banking, fundraising and the nonprofit realm, among others. Additionally, it includes the development and use of cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, and describes various financial activities including money transfers, depositing a check with your smartphone, applying for credit, raising money for a business startup and many other, generally without human assistance. The use of technology has increased significantly in the past years, but especially last year as the need for touchless interactions grew. As of now, businesses rely on technology for payment processing, e-commerce transactions and accounting. Contactless payments are now the norm. According to a report by KPMG, financial institutions have invested more than $27 billion in digital innovation and fintech since 2015. Tech giants such as Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple started with digital payments and moved on to more serious business. In 2019, Apple launched its credit card with Goldman Sachs which eliminates processing fee and also provides a layer of privacy and security. Last year, Google launched a checking account product in partnership with Citigroup, which will be available through the Google Pay app. As part of stepping up its fintech game, Amazon offers mature financial services across payments and lending to 100 million Prime customers, and in India the company offers Amazon Pay credit card with ICICI Bank. Earlier this year, Walmart announced that is launching its own fintech startup in a joint venture with Ribbit Capital. This partnership combines Walmart’s retail knowledge with Ribbit’s fintech expertise with the end goal of providing tech-driven financial experiences for customers and associates. The retail mogul already offers some financial products such...

Flexible Office Space...

Adaptability bolsters the longevity of any organization. Yardi commercial market experts have observed that many urban and suburban office owners are transitioning to more flexible site models. The smoothest transitions occur when they are supported by integrated technology. Brian Sutherland, vice president of commercial sales at Yardi notes, “We will continue to see a lot more flexibility in the future of office. There is increasing demand for flexible workspace. Clients seek asset management and construction products as their urban and suburban offices convert into more versatile, mixed-use spaces.” Office spaces embrace the transition to more flexible workspaces Among office spaces, suburban sites have remained steady during the pandemic. Though they were not as vulnerable as their urban neighbors, many suburban office owners are exploring flexible spaces to adapt to tenant demand. As many tenants implemented remote work policies for employees, the daily demand for office space declined. Months later and moving forward, many tenants have announced hybrid office models that permit occupants to share socially distanced workspaces on a staggered schedule. Common areas are expanding to accommodate healthy and flexible work conditions. Some urban offices are taking the shift to adaptable spaces even farther. “To leverage current conditions, owners transform office assets into mixed-use facilities including traditional offices, flexible workspaces, retail and even multifamily,” reports Robert Teel, vice president of global solutions at Yardi. Technology tools to support the transition to flexible workspaces The transition to more accommodating spaces has resulted in an increased demand for technology. Solutions for construction management provide visibility into projects and cost management as owners transform buildings to meet the changing needs of the market. Short-term leasing and space management solutions help owners drive revenue in any space while promoting occupant safety. Vendor management, vendor compliance and procurement systems...

Asia Tech Outlook

Real estate companies in Asia have ramped up investment in technology in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, finds a recent survey of major real estate firms by independent news source Mingtiandi. The research, which was conducted in collaboration with global real estate technology provider Yardi®, finds 70 percent of real estate companies are scaling up investment in property technology (proptech). The results of the survey, Tech Adoption in Asian Real Estate, builds on a similar report from Mingtiandi in 2017. “Our latest survey results unearth a major shift towards proptech adoption in our region,” says Bernie Devine, regional director of APAC sales for Yardi. “Change was underway well before 2020, but COVID-19 has heightened the urgency and amplified the risks of inaction.” Proptech, innovative technology that improves core processes and business models, is turning real estate on its head. Metaprop, one of the world’s largest early-stage proptech venture capital firms, predicts that proptech innovation will deliver $205 billion of new value to the global real estate industry over the next five years. “Real estate leaders are rolling out technology to support more frequent and accurate reporting, deeper data analysis, and technology that underpins safety and efficiency,” explains Devine. A total of 180 real estate specialists – more than a third with assets valued at over US$1 billion – took part in the survey in August 2020. Thirty-nine percent of respondents were from Hong Kong, 26 percent from Singapore and 12 percent from China. Among the key findings, 35 percent of companies said Asia was still trailing the West in terms of tech adoption, down from 56 percent in 2017. Thirty percent said the region was leading the way – up from 12 percent three years ago. “There’s a growing perception that Asia is closing...

Black Innovators in Tech

The technology that you’re using to read this blog post was created in part by a black innovator. The smartphone that’s beside you and the streaming service that you use for your favorite shows are both the contributions of black scientists and mathematicians. This is astounding considering that only 1% of tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley are black, per a recent report. African Americans made strong contributions to technological advancement throughout the Golden Age of Invention. They paved the way for, and participated in, the boom of Silicon Valley and subsequent tech hubs. We’ve compiled just a few tech powerhouses in this list, focusing on contributors to computing. Where would we be today without video conference calls? Better question: where would we be today without Marian Croak? Croak is the pioneer of Voice over IP, technology used to communicate via audio and video while using the internet. She holds more than 100 patents in VoIP technology with an additional 100 currently in review. Croak serves as vice president of Engineering at Google. High speed internet is also a household name thanks to Victor Lawrence, an electrical engineer and pioneer in global telecommunications. His contributions helped to bring greater accessibility to high-speed connections. Because of his work, small businesses and households have access to broadband, DSL, HDTV technologies and wireless data transfer. Additionally, his work has advanced data encoding and transmission, modem tech, chip design, ATM switching and protocols, as well as audio and video coding. In short, the U.S. economy might not have survived the pandemic without Lawrence. Ever heard of an electret microphone? You likely use one every day. James West invented the first practical electret microphone. It is used in many smartphones, cameras and digital recorders. What made his take on the electret microphone unique is that it uses a charged material instead of a cumbersome polarizing power supply. Inventor and engineer Otis Boykin was a tech master with range. He improved everything from common household items to military technologies. He held 28 patents and his electrical resistors are used in computing devices, missile guidance as well as pacemakers. His innovations resulted in safer and more efficient resistors, which promoted the mass affordability of electronic devices. Roy Clay stands among Silicon Valley’s earliest pioneers. His earliest notable work is as a research and development director with Hewlett-Packard (HP)’s computer division in the 1960s. He went on to create Rod-L Electronics, which is a world leader in developing electrical safety testing equipment. One invention includes dielectric withstand testers that protect personal computers from electrical surges. During the same time and practically down the street, Mark Dean was developing the earliest IBM PCs. He pioneered three of IBM’s nine original patents including the first gigahertz chip. We can also thank him for color PC monitors. (Do you remember when they were green and black? Yikes.) Dean and his partner Dennis Moeller created microcomputing systems with bus control for peripheral process devices. That means you can plug in speakers, disks drives and other peripheral items to ports on your desktop and laptop devices. As early as 1999, he launched development for a voice-activated tablet. Fast-forward and Dean is still a contributor to the industry as CTO for IBM Middle East and Africa. Paving the way for Clay and Dean was Frank Greene, a leading technologist responsible for high-speed computer systems in the early 1960s. He is also the founder of Technology Development Corp. and ZeroOne Systems, Inc. a venture capital firm for minoritized groups. Etta Falconer is another noteworthy technology trailblazer who dedicated much of her life to the advancement of marginalized groups. Falconer began her career as a mathematician and soon became one of the first black women to earn a master’s degree in Computer Science. She then dedicated herself to increasing the number of black women in mathematics and math-related careers by teaching at Spelman College, a historically black university in...

Senior Care Strengthened

Senior living community operators use portfolio-wide information compiled by Yardi Senior IQ to improve revenue, expenses, care and efficiency. The business intelligence solution contributes even more to fast, smart decision-making with the recent addition of Staffing Analysis. Staffing Analysis helps ensure that every work shift has the optimal number of care staff with the right amount of caregiving, nursing and other skills needed to meet care requirements. It does so by automatically drawing resident care information from Yardi EHR, an electronic health record system, then presenting the care staff, task time allotments and skillsets for each shift on a dashboard. If Staffing Analysis shows a shift is overstaffed or understaffed by care staff or skillsets, managers can transfer tasks or staff with drag-and-drop functionality. And when care plans change in Yardi EHR, the Staffing Analysis dashboard automatically resets task time allocations. As a streamlined staff efficiency tool, Staffing Analysis enables executive directors, lead nurses and others to leverage existing care records without interfaces and eliminates the inconvenience of compiling multiple reports, preparing spreadsheets or rekeying data. “Staffing Analysis combines the clinical aspects of senior care with finance and marketing to make Yardi Senior IQ a complete and fully integrated business intelligence solution for community operators,” said Ray Elliott, vice president of senior living for Yardi. Learn how Yardi Senior IQ and the rest of the Yardi Senior Living Suite create a comprehensive technology platform for senior living...