Build-to-rent’s Tech Revolution

Michael Burgess, head of IT at Ascend, takes a look at how bespoke technology is driving enhanced resident experience and improved investor returns.

Listen to any real estate industry leader, and it won’t be long before the subject of technology is raised. From annual reports to conference panels, CEOs talk of the opportunities presented, and how their firms are embracing the change. They know that future success rests on being able to capitalise on the potential unleashed by technological innovations.

Where things sometimes get a little hazier, however, is what exactly these innovations will look like. There is much talk of AI, user experience and data-led decision-making, but too often these technologies are discussed in the abstract. The challenge is to apply innovations to real-world use cases. And for Ascend, the opportunity was clear: technology is a tool to enhance resident satisfaction, operate more efficiently and drive improved investor returns.

As the UK’s largest third-party operator of single-family rental (SFR) homes, alongside its multifamily BTR and buy-to-let management capabilities, Ascend oversees more than 10,500 homes. That scale creates significant complexities – lease events, maintenance and regulatory compliance are just some of the hurdles to be met – but significant opportunities too. A portfolio of this scale provides an unrivalled anonymised dataset that can be harnessed to deliver new insights, slicker processes and improved outcomes. So that’s exactly what we set out to do.

A fully-integrated platform

Ascend’s platform is built on three pillars: data warehousing; cross-integration of data resources; and automation of in-house processes. Within this structure, we have built a series of specific systems that, between them, cover all aspects of property management from first enquiries to move-outs. A dedicated onboarding app manages administrative and regulatory essentials such as deposits, inventory, lease agreements and rental payments. A maintenance dashboard provides visibility of current and anticipated issues across portfolios, enabling swifter resolution. Diary and travel management identifies and implements the most efficient and effective schedules for site visits. Bespoke systems gently prompt residents to help avoid issues like arrears, and actively work to resolve such problems when they do arise. End of tenancy activity – including return of deposit and utility supplier updating – is made smoother and easier by our software.

Taken together, this creates one of the sector’s most innovative platforms that is revolutionising the way Ascend operates, enhancing resident experience and boosting portfolio performance.

Our data warehouse is the most comprehensive in the SFR management sector, drawing on a significant number of datapoints to provide unique analysis and prediction tools. In parallel, integration with other data resources – both internal and external third-party systems – enable smooth navigation of everything from council tax and maintenance jobs to lease renewals and deposit repayments. Automation, using our proprietary software to both speed up processes and reduce employee time spent on low-value activity, is the final cog in the machine.

A combination of these pillars underpins all aspects of Ascend’s property management work. While our data warehouse is the resource that makes these technological innovations possible, it is in the streamlined processes and reduction in wasted employee time where the effects are most easily observed.

Residents benefit from easier and swifter application, leasing and onboarding processes. Potential maintenance issues are anticipated, and resolved more speedily, to minimise disruption, while better communication and engagement around site visits reduce wait times and enables virtual inspections as appropriate – the latter of which saves us on average 8,000 miles of wasted travel per month, reducing our Scope 1 carbon emissions. Payment reminders – 120,000 emails, 75,000 SMS texts and 2,000 letters have been automatically generated since our bespoke arrears system went live – help with budgeting and planning and reducing arrears. Security deposits are automatically processed, expediting repayment at the end of a tenancy.

With admin-based tasks automated and minimum in-person oversight required, employees have been freed up to focus on areas where they can add most value, and are able to deliver a personable experience to residents. Over the past two years, our tech platform has saved over 162 working days (c. 1,150 working hours) of manual resource during the processing of 9,000 applications, while on average 93% of in-person resident appointments successfully go ahead due to enhanced communication. Automatic prompts advise of time-critical activities, and unique status analyses allow for both more proactive management and better client reporting.

The automation of each step has, in isolation, a relatively small impact. But taken together, and applied across a portfolio of over 10,500 homes, the improvements are considerable. These are good for residents, good for investors and good for Ascend’s team too.

Tech-driven returns

The effects of these technological innovations feeds into improved asset performance through two key channels. At a basic level, the efficiencies created both reduce headline costs and speed up all aspects of lettings and management. Automated enquiries, references, lettings and deposits minimise the amount of time a home lies empty; efficient maintenance procedures identify and resolve problems before they appear or worsen; less employee time is wasted on low-value admin and wasted vehicle journeys. These all either reduce costs or actively increase revenue – or both – contributing to improved performance and more sustainably-driven operations.

The second aspect is more qualitative but no less important: resident satisfaction. Technology has liberated our team to focus on decision-making and resident engagement, where personal contact can make a real difference. In parallel, residents experience smoother processes, greater certainty, fewer delays and reduced disruption should maintenance issues arise. In short, residents have a better experience and are happier, which in turn feeds through to greater retention rates, more lease renewals and higher demand.

It is a combination of these factors that saw Ascend recognised at the 2024 Love to Rent Awards, winning the Best Use of Operational Technology in BTR category. If there is a “big idea” around the bespoke platform Ascend has developed, it is harnessing technology to make improvements – sometimes relatively small, sometimes significant – across all aspects of the processes that underpin lettings and property management. In aggregate, these lead to considerable efficiencies in operating expenditure, greater resident satisfaction and more effective maintenance of the homes. And it is driving enhanced investor returns as a result.