Two large property owners, Amax Properties and Bluepeak Holdings, had outsourced their property management to several external partners. Reliance on one dominant property manager posed significant risks. Both companies were dissatisfied with the service quality, including delayed reporting and minimal transparency, and felt locked into their current setups due to the complexity of multiple systems. This left them with limited control over crucial aspects of their portfolio's performance.
Both Amax and Bluepeak faced a complex situation. They were dissatisfied with their main property manager, and their property management ecosystem had become cumbersome. Reporting and accounting processes were fragmented, making data consolidation and analysis challenging and time-consuming.
Switching providers or managing the data internally felt overwhelming due to varied processes and technologies. This lack of integration made effective portfolio oversight difficult, limiting their ability to make informed decisions and react to opportunities.
Their dependency on the primary property manager also constrained their negotiating leverage. They feared that switching providers or moving operations in-house would lead to significant disruptions, leaving them feeling trapped with limited options for improvement.
Amax and Bluepeak, took different approaches to solving their similar problems. Each of these companies faced challenges in managing a diverse portfolio with multiple property managers, struggling with fragmented data and limited control.
Bluepeak chose to build their own solution in-house. They tasked their IT department, led by Brian, a Senior Systems Integration Manager, with developing a proprietary platform to consolidate property management data from various systems. The goal was to create a centralized solution that could integrate with existing tools used by different property managers. Initially, the timeline for development was estimated to be one year. However, due to the complexity of data integration and unforeseen challenges, the project ended up taking nearly three years, with numerous missed deadlines and expanded scope.
Amax, on the other hand, opted to buy an existing platform. Their real estate operations, led by Amy, Head of Asset Management, decided that purchasing a mature platform designed specifically for real estate would be more efficient. Within just three months, they were able to fully implement the new system, including training and configuration. The platform seamlessly consolidated all of their property management data, offering them a holistic view of their portfolio.
Amy and Brian both had to tackle their own sets of challenges during the implementation phase. Brian faced delays in development—initial estimates turned out to be overly optimistic, as the IT team had to repeatedly adjust the data models and develop custom integration tools for each of the property managers’ systems. The complexity of creating real-time access to data and reconciling differences across various data formats slowed down the project considerably. This not only led to missed deadlines but also required additional resources to meet the needs of asset managers who needed accurate insights for decision-making.
Meanwhile, Amy’s approach allowed Amax to begin their transition with minimal delay. The platform they purchased was ready to use with built-in integrations for most property management systems they had in place. Implementation was largely about configuring the system to their specific needs and training their staff. Within weeks, Amax had a centralized view of their portfolio, complete with real-time access to financial performance, lease updates, and occupancy rates.
Brian's journey was arduous, with new requirements causing scope expansion and significant delays. Bluepeak's in-house team faced challenges in adapting the platform and reconciling data, ultimately stretching the project timeline from one year to nearly three years.
Amy and Amax, by contrast, reaped the benefits of their decision much sooner. The purchased platform provided consistent and reliable data almost immediately, empowering their teams to make informed, data-driven decisions without getting bogged down in the details of system development and data integration.
Bluepeak eventually developed their own in-house solution, but the impact was marked by a long road fraught with unexpected obstacles. Despite completing the platform, it lacked the refined features of mature market solutions, and adoption across the organization was slow. Brian reflected that while the solution ultimately provided some level of data centralization, the constant delays, ongoing development needs, and the high cost in both time and resources made the journey challenging. Compared to Amax's efficient three-month implementation, Bluepeak's nearly three-year timeline and significant ongoing costs made their solution a burdensome endeavor. Bluepeak now has a functional system, but the cost to build and maintain it continues to impact their overall budget, and the experience has been a cautionary tale about the complexities of building in-house.
Amax saw almost immediate positive impacts from their approach. With the purchased platform, Amy and her team were able to regain control over their operations with a unified, intuitive view of their portfolio. They quickly moved away from relying on the reporting practices of property managers and took control of their data flow. Amax saw efficiency gains that led to significant cost savings, and their ability to adapt their property management strategy in real-time provided them with an edge in the market. The centralized platform allowed them to confidently switch property management partners without fearing data loss or disruption.
Comparing these two journeys, it is evident that while both Amax and Bluepeak faced similar challenges, their approaches yielded vastly different outcomes. Bluepeak’s choice to build in-house highlighted the risks of underestimated complexity, unexpected delays, and ongoing costs, while Amax’s decision to buy an existing platform allowed them to focus on utilizing the solution rather than building it. Ultimately, Amax’s path gave them immediate control, flexibility, and strategic advantages, whereas Bluepeak is still grappling with the consequences of their prolonged development efforts. And who knows, maybe they have shut it down already?
For property owners facing similar decisions, purchasing a proven platform can provide faster implementation, reduced complexity, and immediate strategic benefits, ultimately enabling a more efficient path to regaining control over property management.
