Military housing is falling apart. Here’s how we can fix it.
How we can modernize property management for our active-duty military.
It was “bank robbery at the corporate level,” said a former employee of the property management company, Balfour Beatty.
Reports of substandard housing for the US military and the alleged malpractice of Balfour Beatty — the property manager — furthers the “shady landlord” narrative and raises questions about property management as a professional service.
To uphold the standards of property management, I propose some key technologies and transparent processes to address key problem areas of military housing.
An investigative report from Reuters covered the story at Tinker Airforce base in Oklahoma where military families faced harsh living conditions. Balfour Beatty Communities is the property manager at Tinker and many other military bases. The company manages more than 15,000 homes. The report alleges that Balfour Beatty falsified maintenance records and “kept two separate books” on maintenance records. One book was online — the other, handwritten…
Balfour Beatty was receiving performance incentives for making repairs that either never happened or took much longer than reported. Stories soon emerged of homes falling into disrepair with shoddy construction, black mold, chipping lead paint, and sewage spills. Now the US Military is withholding $4 million in incentive payments until the problem is fixed. Senator and Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren is pushing legislation to increase inspections and transparency.
A more positive housing experience is critical to a stronger military. These are their homes — where the kids grow up. For many, it’s not a dream home, but rather where they need to live while on duty. It’s where you escape after a long day. The living experience must be upgraded to show our commitment to those who serve our country.
My experience comes from Onerent, where we’ve leased and managed over 10,000 homes on the West Coast of the US in the past 5 years. We manage homes occupied by active military, especially in the greater San Diego area. Technology is at the core of our rental experience and I make the case that tech can help the housing crisis for the US Navy and Army if properly deployed.
Digitize All Properties
There is plenty of valuable data to collect from a rental property that can solve future problems. For example, a 3d virtual scan of every home is a valuable addition to an in-person inspection.
At Onerent, we scan every home managed and then collect a 250-point property inspection and the specs of all appliances etc. This data is fed into our database where algorithms predict when appliances or property features need to be fixed or upgraded. Many times we can fix something before a resident reports it. If a maintenance issue is reported, either through a call or our mobile application, our 24/7 team is equipped with 3d scans of homes to help renters navigate and troubleshoot real-time before sending out a technician.
Digitizing an entire property gives a property manager a wealth of data to be more proactive and reliable to address issues promptly.
Provide an On-demand Experience to Residents
From first impressions, military housing should be faster, easier, and more comfortable. If you provide residents with a more on-demand rental process, you benefit all parties involved.
The current state of Balfour Beatty’s rental process is highlighted on its listings of homes for rent at Tinker Air Force base.
Browse through a vague listing with a collection of static photos of all the different homes that could be yours. Strangely, most photos are just exteriors and there is little information as to what is available for rent or where these properties are located and their features.
Many military families move from outside the area, so it’d be useful to have more informative listings and a 3d virtual tour of every home to view remotely.
The website also pushes people to just call in for leasing or maintenance information. What would be more useful is if the website featured an easy way to book a showing to view a home for rent or apply to rent the place. The current process adds extra friction towards securing tenants or collecting maintenance issues.
Technology plays a role in turning renting into an on-demand experience. We built a system and workforce at Onerent that starts with a virtual tour, then an option for an on-demand tour any day of the week. While visiting the home, renters can apply for free and qualify in a matter of hours. After move-in, our Home Services team is on-call, equipped with a mobile application containing your property’s details to ensure faster maintenance resolutions. Residents can report issues from their phones and receive real-time updates on the progress. All activities are automatically timestamped and technicians are monitored in an Uber-like fashion as they travel to and from homes making repairs. This data is immediately available to property owners.
With an on-demand rental experience, transparency and accountability for property managers increases.
Reduce Maintenance Costs & Fix Things Sooner
Property management is labor-intensive and most companies operate with thin margins. This leads property managers to squeeze revenue from additional fees — like performance incentives or markups on maintenance costs. Maintenance is a tricky and expensive part of property management. Tenants sometimes report issues that are actually requests for improvements to the aesthetics of a home. There are also times where issues can be resolved more easily by the tenant on-site. If you implement key technology and reliable 24/7 support teams, military housing will see lower maintenance costs and a streamlined process.
The 3d scan I mentioned earlier is a relevant example — it allows our team to navigate homes in real-time with residents on the phone and help them troubleshoot an issue before sending out a technician.
Using the data we collect from property inspections and our machine learning algorithms, we can identify and proactively address maintenance issues before they become expensive. For example, we know the expected lifetime of all your appliances so we can proactively upgrade or repair before the tenant even notices.
These tweaks of technology and process can save thousands per property in maintenance labor costs and create a better living experience.
Key Takeaways
- If the allegations are true, Balfour Beatty’s antiquated technology and processes could have made it easier to deceive US officials in the reporting of their performance.
- A technology-enabled property management company could help provide transparency at scale by using tools that automatically log and track maintenance issues.
- With the right data and technology, we can improve on the current process for renting and managing military housing and thereby increase living standards.
