The property management market is a competitive one, with close to 300,000 companies in the United States alone. To stay ahead, it's necessary to be agile enough to respond to unexpected circumstances, yet maintain efficiency in all areas of the business.

The right technology can aid in this. A 2018 KMPG survey of leading real estate and property management companies found that 60% believe digital innovation will have a significant impact on their business.

Property management is changing in various ways due to technology, but here some of the areas where a managed service provider can help improve the process:

Communication

Modern, cloud-based PBX services can provide property management companies with an enterprise PBX phone system at a fraction of the cost. VoIP telephone service allows property managers to stay in touch with clients and colleagues without overextending their budgets.

Building on this are workplace chat tools like Microsoft Teams, which allow communication from desktop or on a mobile device in the field. By providing a single centralized hub for documents, video chat, and collaborative work, companies can ensure time isn't wasted switching between apps and finding documents.

Remote Work

A good property management company needs to be able to deal with a diverse set of needs, and in some cases, it's more efficient to do some work while still out in the field. With tools like VirtuWorks Virtual Office, property managers can gain remote access to the tools they use back at their branch.

Access to software like Buildium, Planon, AppFolio, or Avail while on the move can speed up the process without posing a security risk. Employees can quickly mark the status of an inspection or browse repair requests from anywhere.

Reliable Document Storage

A wealth of contracts, pictures, and documents are created on a day-to-day basis, and all of these need to be stored somewhere safe. The majority of property management companies need a professional storage solution.

Strong, data storage, warehousing, and management, alongside regular backups, aid business resilience. Solutions, like Microsoft Azure, help to secure the data in a way that's compliant and protected should the business suffer a breach.

Security

Naturally, secure cloud storage isn't enough to fully protect a property management company. Both on-site and cloud applications, which can house private client and contract information, can be at risk of ransomware attacks or hacking. Offerings like Microsoft Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) allow for easy identity and access management, threat protection, and cloud security no matter the location, keeping private data protected.

With the growing focus on cloud apps, Microsoft Cloud App Security can also provide essential protection. Organizations are able to quickly discover and control the use of shadow IT, protect and classify information, automatically detect unusual behavior, and ensure apps meet compliance standards.

IT Cost Reduction

With differing usage week-to-week, property management companies can find it difficult to predict IT expenditure and keep costs low. In many cases, it makes more sense to shift IT operations to an MSP at a fixed rate.

These services are ultimately helping firms to focus more on the business aspect and worry less about hiring qualified IT staff and security contractors. With the help of an MSP, they can quickly scale their infrastructure to meet new hires and have expert support on-hand if something goes awry.

Have a chat with us today to learn how VirtuWorks can keep your property management company efficient and competitive.