Yardi Executive Summit Special Report: AI in Multifamily

Real estate has been slower than many other industries to adopt AI, even more than automotive and public sector jobs. But the slow adoption of AI in multifamily presents a real opportunity for those in the business, affirmed Richard Malpica, Yardi vice president of sales, opening the multifamily session of the firm’s recent Executive Summit in New York City. The session particularly focused on AI, as the industry explores the most effective and beneficial ways to integrate it into processes.

For the skeptics that take a dystopian view and reject the idea of data center development in their own backyard, “it’s a great opportunity to create guardrails and a sense of peace,” he observed.

A good way to win support among your own team, he and Kettler President Cindy Fisher agreed, is to bring them together in groups to discuss the problems they’re encountering to ensure solutions really are helpful.

“You need to really listen to them,” Fisher cautioned.

She also recommended creating a governance committee for leadership-level corporate decisions to ensure consistency across the company and reduce the risk of siloed efforts.

And then there’s the value gained from data analysis. With rent growth currently so limited, operations have become a critical focus to boost NOI. The best way to find meaningful improvement, Fisher noted, is to collect as much data as possible so you can start to analyze where to cut costs.

“You have to be able to measure what you manage—it’s an old, old phrase, but it’s still true,” she said. Perhaps even more so, since AI-based analysis can significantly augment the results.

Meanwhile, housing association leaders Sharon Wilson Geno and Robert Pinnegar agreed that federal involvement in AI development is necessary in order to move it forward sufficiently. During a discussion led by Yardi Vice President Michael Tuer, Geno, president of the National Multifamily Housing Council, termed it “a force for good,” including non-real estate specific applications that can also benefit the industry. And Pinnegar, president & CEO of the National Apartment Association, pointed to the lack of understanding at the state and local levels, which tends to lead to efforts to shut down progress rather than encouraging it.  

“You need to keep your eye on the ball of the generational AI universe,” Geno said.