Archives for April 2021
Lessons from the UAE
Strategies for improving operating efficiencies
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the most dynamic, forward-looking, and innovative countries in the world. People of over 200 different nationalities call the country their home. We have the world’s tallest building (the Burj Khalifa) and the biggest shopping mall (the Dubai Mall). When you drive down the Sheikh Zayed Road, our longest, most prominent street, the shining, towering skyscrapers provide evidence that the country’s leadership has had unparalleled success in the built environment.
The race to excellence does not end here: The real estate sector in the UAE continues to develop and mature, and the property management industry has been a cornerstone in its success. Property managers here manage both individual units and entire buildings. Like other places, we work to maximize return, enhance asset value, and provide hassle-free experiences for tenants.
Customer satisfaction and happiness are government-driven in the UAE, and the real estate sector is becoming a key contributor in making the industry more customer-centric. A “cohesive society and preserved identity” is one of the six pillars of the National Agenda set out in the UAE Vision 2021, and the happiness index is one of the key performance indicators. We even have a Ministry of Happiness.
A role for real estate
United in responsibility and following the vision of the country’s leadership, the private sector has been inspired and strives to make a difference in reaching this common goal. Hence, organizations of all kinds are putting their efforts into gaining a better end-to-end understanding of the customer’s journey, living experience, and tenant management to improve operational efficiencies. Property management companies have set benchmarks following the best global practices in order to measure the satisfaction and well-being of their patrons and tenants in terms of buying, selling, leasing, and management.
Some of the strategies adopted in this process of improving operating efficiencies are based on:
- Proptech
The sector has come a long way in adopting proptech products in both management and operations applications. Aligning with the government’s vision of meeting customer expectations, the industry is reshaping itself to offer quick and efficient digital platforms in order to optimize the delivery of services. The objective is to empower tenants, centralize all the key services at their fingertips, and do so quickly. The COVID-19 pandemic has further pushed organizations and industry professionals to explore virtual tours and digital lease renewal, simplifying the rental journey.
Facility management is another domain that has seen a significant shift in improving Common Area Maintenance (CAM), workplace management, energy savings, and complex workflows with the introduction of advanced technology in property operations.
- Customer experience
The real estate sector in UAE is witnessing a transformation from being customer-focused to customer-centric. There is a broad understanding that we must embed the culture of listening and learning into business strategies moving forward in order to continuously improve and meet customer demands. Though proptech is an essential component, there is much more to it.
Companies recognize the value of customer experience by aligning business and customer strategy, helping them better understand the people and the journey. Like any other industry, customer service is critical for the growth of the real estate sector. The progression is a realization that a customer-centric business will provide a competitive edge over its peers, nurture tenant relationships, and increase underlying asset value. UAE property management companies have been recognized with regional and global awards for adopting customer-centric policies.
- Data mining and optimization
Data mining is transforming industries and driving both performance optimization and competitiveness. It largely remains untapped in the property management sector of emerging markets, but the needs of investors and rising expectations of tenants are changing the landscape.
In the UAE, we are witnessing a holistic shift in data collection through innovation and digital transformation, from new construction developments to existing buildings. One example of this is on the customer side: We are tracking more information about our tenants, such as why they are moving out of their unit, their satisfaction upon the completion of work orders, the types of maintenance requests they are making, and their payment preferences.
On the facility management side, we are learning more about our buildings in order to plug the service gaps. With data, we can identify more quickly when issues emerge with HVAC, perform in-depth reviews of water usage, adjust common area lighting and landscaping to achieve increased energy savings, and more accurately project our reserves. All of this data allows us to better manage the asset life cycle.
Recently, we have been tracking which areas of the building are unoccupied during the COVID-19 pandemic to determine whether they need to be cleaned as often as normal, providing operational expense savings.
We’ve also managed to consolidate our data. Previously at my company, our call center, work order system, and facility management program all used separate ticketing. By bringing these under one umbrella, we have been able to centralize our previously scattered data sources.
This, in turn, has given us real-time access to all the services offered to internal and external customers. We can understand the delays in work completion and issues faced by the employees in getting the job done, such as any unavailability of materials in facility storerooms. Furthermore, recurring issues reported by the tenants are addressed in a timely manner and communicated to the department heads for needed follow-up action.
The benefits of data are expansive. We’ve reduced paperwork, saved time, and gained the ability to address day-to-day challenges by comparing them with others within a given building, community, or master development.
Upcoming challenges
The property management industry in the UAE is on the right trajectory. However, challenges remain; globally, the industry is forecasted to grow around 8% year over year. With the positive trends in innovation and digital transformation, there is a need to address a few fundamental but pervasive problems of a skilled and qualified workforce.
During the pandemic, we unfortunately saw job losses on an incredibly large scale. Accordingly, there has been a significant shift within the labor force to switch career paths. Many have looked to real estate for a new direction, but there was very little available to guide these people in starting their careers in property management. The UAE needs someone to fill in this leadership vacuum in order to promote greater industry development and to increase interest in property management among the younger generations. Developing a diverse, inclusive, and value-creating industry requires continued proactive work to address the imbalance in workforce skills.
Lack of clarity surrounding job roles within real estate is another painful area that is negatively affecting this profession in the UAE. Currently, when a property manager is hired, it can be unclear if they are being hired as a facility manager, a community manager, a broker, or even a property inspector. This hurts the profession and trivializes the role of a property manager.
The property manager is a multitasker who oversees property maintenance operations, risk, marketing, leasing, budgeting, and reporting. It requires knowledge and competencies in both hard and soft skills to preserve a building’s physical and economic life. A property manager must be able to communicate with owners, tenants, residents, and investors. Sustainable property management requires a structured approach rather than random hires who are playing targeted roles.
The UAE real estate landscape is expanding and evolving all the time, and new types of buildings are always coming into the market. With this comes the challenge of retaining and training new workers for these buildings and providing the necessary education so that industry professionals and new aspirants can continue to develop their capabilities. It is our job to reduce the ambiguity of the role of a property manager and communicate to the market that, ultimately, it is the property manager who ensures upkeep for a property, increases the length of its usable life, and enhances its value.
Issue: March/April 2021 Volume 86 Number 2
Source: “Lessons from the UAE”
April 2021 CCIM Deal Making Session Properties
Thanks to all of the brokers, sponsors, and guests who attended the April 2021 CCIM NM Deal Making Session, and to those who shared their properties.
Click here to view source PDF.
Click here to view the Thank Yous.
| Name | Property, City | Type | Price | |
| 1. | DJ Brigman
Dave Hill, CCIM, SIOR |
3621 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque | Retail | $11,250,000 |
| 2. | Alex Pulliam
Riley McKee |
108 Dale Ave SE, Albuquerque | Industrial | $1,599,000 |
| 3. | John Algermissen
Genieve Posen |
NWC Unser Blvd. & 5th St., Rio Rancho | Land | $993,168 |
| 4. | Chris Anderson | 4201 San Mateo Blvd NE,
Albuquerque |
Retail | $600,000 |
| 5. | Elisa Cardenas | 1171 Montoya Rd., Bernalillo | Office | $1,150,000 |
| 6. | Austin Tidwell
Daniel Kearney |
2437 Menaul Blvd Ne, Albuquerque | Industrial | $1,100,000 |
| 7. | Tim With, CCIM
John Ransom, CCIM Wesley Baiett |
2120 Eubank Blvd NE, Albuquerque | Retail | $750,000 |
| 8. | Bob Feinberg
Tom Jones, CCIM |
12500, 12504, 12410 Central Ave Sw, Albuquerque | Land | $4,476,400 |
| 9. | Todd Strickland
Danae Fernandez |
2501 Juan Tabo Blvd. NE, Albuquerque | Office | $741,000 |
| 10. | Todd Strickland
Danae Fernandez |
10010 Indian School Rd. NE, Albuquerque | Office | $1,299,000 |
Post-COVID Property Management Success: Lead With Resilience
Let’s begin with a reflection on the following quote from a property manager: “One interesting aspect of management is its resiliency during recessions or economic downturns. The pandemic and accompanying government response is only furthering that, as private owners [cannot] deal effectively with residents who are experiencing hardship. This better positions us for growth and provides value and education to both owners and residents.”
That was an excerpt from an exhaustive study of the property management industry–including more than 5,000 managers, owners and renters–conducted recently by Buildium (a RealPage company).
Resilience is defined as “the ability to recover quickly from difficulties. Toughness.” If after the events of last year, from the pandemic and social unrest to a wearying presidential election, you’re still standing, then the above definition fits you perfectly. Resilience is indeed a hallmark of property management today.
It’s also a hallmark of IREM members, apparently. In conversations conducted in advance of the annual Real Estate Forum “Women of Influence” feature–an editorial in which many IREM members have been recognized, it was a constant theme. (See last year’s feature)
In those conversations, these IREM members focused on such aspects of resilience as:
- The challenges of navigating the various COVID guidances from local and state authorities as well as from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), all with the ultimate purpose of keeping tenants and residents safe and comfortable as they return to their places of business. Of course, this also includes managing the protocols of vendors and visitors. For obvious reasons, this was a particularly intensive challenge for real estate managers overseeing medical office space, and the more intensive sanitation those facilities naturally demand.
Says Buildium: “Property management teams have been working overtime to prevent the spread of the virus within their properties, and to reassure residents that they’re looking out for their safety.”
- On a related note, in a time of unprecedented economic recession and the resultant layoffs, property managers rose to the challenge of working with strapped occupants in handling their rental obligations. This, it should be noted, much like the CDC guidance, was performed over a changing landscape as new relief bills rolled out from Washington, DC. Nevertheless, property managers entered the challenge armed with a host of resources for cash-strapped residents and tenants to pursue, and protocols to ensure follow-up.
In fact, Buildium reports that 60% of property managers had residents whose financial struggles necessitated the creation of rent payment plans.
The resilient stick-to-itiveness that IREM members showed throughout the prolonged crisis was not only there for the benefit of tenants. Much of that, not unlike an iceberg, took place unseen to their occupant constituents. For instance:
- At the start of the outbreak, management had to pivot, pretty much on a dime, from in-person maintenance and communications to remote working. An additional challenge was to still be obviously present, and provide a guiding voice for staff and vendors–often without the aid of clear guidance from authorities.
As the survey report observed: “Property managers are communicating with their residents, clients, and staff more than ever before—and this is a major way that they’re infusing a human touch into their business processes, even as they’re conducted online.”
- That voice had to communicate direction and understanding. But they also had to listen, probably more than ever before, to the needs and concerns of staff and vendors. The goal here, much as it was for building occupants, was confidence and motivation.
As one building manager stated in the Buildium survey: “Our role has become one of a steady hand, providing reassurance that everything will be OK, even if we are not being paid. It got messy and terrifying for everyone for a while, but providing a source of stability and comfort has been something we have had to step in and do.”
- The world didn’t stop due to COVID, although it may have seemed like that sometimes. IREM last year posted a record increase in virtual learning attendees, and part of the property managers’ mission through the depths of the crisis was to continue watching over the career advancement of their teams.
As IREM President Chip Watts, CPM, CCIM, reported in a recent column for Wealth Management Real Estate: “We’ve seen a 30% increase in online course enrollments this year compared to 2019.”
Obviously, resilience comes in a variety of shades. For IREM members, there was a strong commitment to maintaining order, instilling a sense of health and safety, and contributing to the progress and growth of their constituents. In doing so, they built their own arsenal of talents, which will serve them well now and in the years to come. It was a tough year, but IREM members in their resilient response to the crisis, elevated their status before their tenants, residents and owners.
As one property owner told Buildium: “It helps to have a level of earned mutual trust with my property management team. I rest assured that my property manager knows me well enough to help me weather this storm, protect my interests, and maintain quality services to the best of their ability.”
