Apartment Mobile App?

Has anyone considered using a mobile app in place of a tenant portal or in addition to a portal?
How effective has it been?

I am tired of printing and distributing flyers that residents simply throw away. I hear complaints all the time about residents not using the portal, or having login issues, or simply not getting notifications because they don't check it. I also have issues with maintenance requests coming in late because it is hard to report them. I am wondering if there is a solution to these issue in a mobile app I can give my residents.

I am trying to create a better sense of community but it is difficult when we are more likely to meet on facebook and twitter than in person.

This is a really good topic. I wish I knew the answer.

I try to be available in whatever way a resident prefers to communicate. Our phone service is provided by the same company that provides our internet and email (Comcast,) and we can send/receive text messages on our office computer just like a cell phone. Most younger residents prefer email or text, but we still have some residents who don't even have a cell phone or computer.

Most of my residents are on facebook, but few of them follow or contact my community there. I even have a QR code so residents can just scan it on their phone to get to our page. I forward my office phone to my cell when I am not in the office, and I have a drop box so residents can drop things off at the office at their convenience.

Rose,

Sounds like you are working hard to provide good service, you deserve a hand!

Seems like no matter how available you make yourself or how many communication channels you create between yourself and your residents, they still lack a way to communicate internally, organize events, get to know one another, sell things, feel like they were part of a community rather than just tenants in a building.

It is definitely getting harder to build a sense of "community" among residents.

We do have two bulletin boards where residents can post notes about services or things for sale.

I am hoping we can have a "yard sale" type of event that would get residents to meet some of their neighbors. Our building has wide long hallways, so residents could put their table in the hall by their front door and have a mini-sale. I think the residents would enjoy it, but I dread the clean up work. Residents seem to really enjoy making me carry their heaviest junk up and down the stairs when they abandon it. Junk gets dumped in our laundry room several times a week.

PS- please like us on Facebook. www.facebook.com/GeorgetownManor

This is a very good answer! Communication is the most difficult thing when it comes to that many people regardless of what you are offering.

Anonymous wrote: Rose,

Sounds like you are working hard to provide good service, you deserve a hand!

Seems like no matter how available you make yourself or how many communication channels you create between yourself and your residents, they still lack a way to communicate internally, organize events, get to know one another, sell things, feel like they were part of a community rather than just tenants in a building.

I think a mobile application would be great. In addition to Property Management, I work with a software company which is currently developing a mobile app for both Residents and Managers. We want to have some unique features that set us apart from the competition, but have not been able to come up with any "Game Changing" ideas. Is there any type of items you would want to see in a mobile app for example:

-Resident to Resident in-app messaging
-Directory
-Service Requests
-Calendar that would link to native phone calendar