Waste of Money

I’ll be the first to admit, I’m a little new to the multifamily sphere. I worked as a systems administrator for Harris County for 18 years. I retired in 2006 and then started working with an apartment community in southwest Houston not too long ago.

I’ve just been really surprised by some of these software providers that market to the industry. Our community is paying thousands of dollars for these management applications which are cumbersome and slow. We hear about updates and new releases, but they’re essentially just patching up this architecture from the 90s. And what does it matter that the system is in the cloud, if I have to use Internet Explorer to do anything?

I feel like if the company is paying as much as they are, they should at least be given a quality product. I told my supervisor as much and he just accepts it, like that’s just how it is.

Steve,

I hope I am not missing the mark here, but not knowing the software that is being used I am going to take a stab in the dark. If you are knew on the block have you talked to the other managers from other properties and asked them what do they think of the current software that is being used and if they had a chance which one would they prefer and why?

It has been my experience when you point out a problem to have a couple of solutions in your pocket. Since you are maybe the new guy on the block, to findout who the trusted senior people are and what they have to say. If you are the only one singing the blues, guess what? Nothing is going to happen until you can show there is something better and will save money. Other managers out there may either love or hate you if you do not have buy in and support.

It's been a while since we left the Texas market but if I recall right. The software sold in TX has to follow guidelines set by the State. Our software has been key to reducing costs in many levels