WeconnectU News

If you’ve been following our journey for a while now, you’ll know that WeconnectU is the only company in South Africa (and, as far as we can tell, the world) to provide custom-built solutions for all three facets of property management (Community Management, Rental Asset Management and Inspections and Maintenance Management). Being in this unique position, and collaborating with almost 1500 clients across our three solutions, is an achievement that fills us with pride on a daily basis. However, that pride has recently received a very humbling boost in the form of recognition from two highly respected international organisations.

With year-end rapidly approaching, a lot of property management business owners will be doubling down on their involvement in daily activities. For many, this is a necessity driven by increased workloads and exacerbated by tired teams motivated for nothing more than a well-earned holiday. The trouble is, as a business owner, having your nose pressed too firmly to the grindstone often means missing the big picture opportunities that are right in front of you.

To a lot of people, the difference between a technology system and a technology solution is one of semantics. To us at WeconnectU, it’s a foundational component of our business ethos. You see, back when we worked in the industry ourselves, we used our fair share of technology systems – tools designed to achieve a specific function or set of functions. We quickly came to realise that, while these systems gave us a way to perform workflow-specific activities, they didn’t actually solve any of property management’s core business challenges: Compliancy. Manageability. Scalability. Profitability.

When was the last time you did a detailed review and adjustment of your management fees? If you’re like most South African property professionals, the answer is probably: “Not for a long time.” In fact, many property management business owners we’ve spoken to say their current fee model is not too different from the one they first started out with. They’re still cutting costs on every level, and offering a host of value-adding freebies. What has quickly become apparent, however, is that the same competitive pricing techniques that were so important when building an initial client base are now effectively strangling these business’ ability to achieve their full potential.

In uncertain times, it’s human instinct to go to ground, seek security in familiarity, and avoid change at all costs. History has shown this very same instinct can be detrimental to both businesses and investors, however. The fact is: unusual times breed unusual opportunities. The world’s most successful investors (the Jeff Bezos and Warren Buffets of the world) are not those who succumbed to negativity, but those who rose above it to find the potential in every circumstance. Today’s property managers have a similar choice before them: batten the hatches and maintain the status quo for their property investors, or act as a guiding light to draw investors’ attention to strategic opportunities that will see them emerge from current challenges stronger than ever before. If you’re ready to be this beacon of hope and progress in a sea of negativity, a clear and consistent communication strategy is going to be your greatest asset.

Being a trustee of a community scheme may feel like a thankless task – all work, no play, and very little gratitude. The irony is: the quality and dedication of a community scheme’s leadership – its body corporate, trustees and managing agents – is often the single biggest contributor to its success or failure. If taking responsibility for the protection of the value of their entire community’s property assets wasn’t enough, trustees are often interested to learn that community schemes are also a significant economic contributor. Estimated to comprise 27% (R800 billion) of the total value of residential property in South Africa, the health of organised communities is critical for the country as a whole.

In our recent article, Tapping the Full Potential of Community Meetings, we explored the many challenges – and enormous workload – Community Managers face in planning, facilitating, and concluding community meetings. Today, we’ll be examining the other side of the coin: community meetings’ importance as a touchpoint for Community Managers to engage their communities and drive progress on critical, high-impact matters. The reality is, despite their many challenges, community meetings offer an unrivalled opportunity for Community Managers to demonstrate – and leverage – their professional skills for the benefit of their communities. From guiding strategic decision-making, to accelerating budget approvals, to facilitating trustee selections – the value-adding potential is endless.

Compliance is one of those frustrating areas in property management that feels like it delivers very little tangible benefit for all the time-consuming and repetitive input it requires. It’s not easy, it’s not enjoyable, and it doesn’t exactly bring in the bacon. And yet, in reality, compliance isn’t only benefitting investors – it’s actively benefiting the property management industry, too.

As a modern rental portfolio manager, you’re undoubtedly well aware of the importance of maximising yield and return on investment (ROI) for your investors. With this goal front and centre, it can be tempting (for property managers and investors, alike) to focus solely on rental income and occupancy rates, putting routine maintenance and property upgrades on the backburner. In reality, however, these seemingly less-important tasks can have a surprisingly large impact on a rental property’s short-term profits and long-term value. In this article, we’ll explore some of the biggest benefits of prioritising routine maintenance and upgrades, helping you motivate your investors to make informed choices that yield lasting rewards.

In business, as in life, the only constant is change. For today’s Rental Portfolio Managers, however, that change is happening a little faster than usual. The industry is widely acknowledged as having entered an important, transformative phase driven by technological advancements, changing expectations, evolving regulations, and a growing emphasis on customer service and profitability.