From Elevator Updates To Rent Reminders, Property Management Software Is No Longer A Luxury

It's taken a while, but commercial real estate (CRE) and its property managers are finally realizing the importance of technology to their businesses. 

By bringing tech into property management decisions and communication with tenants, integrated software platforms have heightened the value of some properties while reducing costs.  

From tenant communication and maintenance requests to learning a faulty elevator is causing problems, property management software is no longer viewed as a luxury but a necessity in a market that is struggling to find tenants.

One example of technology adding to the marketability of an updated commercial space was the $500 million renovation of the landmark Willis Tower in Chicago. The 100-story building took five years to upgrade and added a 300,000-square-foot, five-level addition on the southern side of the building, now used by retail and restaurants and featuring a landscaped terrace on the rooftop.  

In addition to its multiuse restoration, the tower also employed cove's integrated platform software build to consolidate the tenant experience, operations and critical performance data into one system. 

"Our software for Willis was certainly a value add and our biggest project to date," cove Co-Founder and CEO Adam Segal told Benzinga. "The re-visioning of office space like Willis requires innovation." 

Cove has been providing software technology for commercial real estate properties for 10 years and says it continues to add capabilities to its software with every project. It now views itself as a  partner with the CRE owners it works with.  

"We started by enabling coworking spaces and engaging with end consumers. Our software was able to unlock doors, handle package delivery management and other amenities. But what technology can do in commercial real estate is offer a number of different products, put it all on the platform and charge for it. We now have eight approved projects used for conversion in office space. It's certainly a value add for our client," Segal said.  

Property management software platforms are also helping with back office tasks such as running background checks and credit reports on prospective tenants and helping landlords develop and manage lease agreements, track rent payments and communicate reminders. With new cloud-based software, some tech platforms are also being used for virtual tours. 

"Our sector is becoming more mature, but there's a lot more we can do. We're in, like, the second inning right now," Segal said.   

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