A High-Tech Place
Place’s student-focused approach to living extends to its technology offerings. The company offers a completely paperless leasing process. “There is no stamp and no piece of paper that is required for any prospect or customer of Place Properties,” Phillips says proudly. The company went paperless about three years ago and estimates saving hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in both man-hours and paperwork. Just one example of the savings: The company was able to lease a 740-bed high-rise in Knoxville, Tenn., with only one and a half leasing agents–a feat that would have required at least five employees without a computerized system.
Any time, day or night, prospects can complete and submit applications and room reservations and make payments. Students are taking advantage: Last year, nearly 40 percent of Place’s residents rented their bedrooms between midnight and 2 a.m.
The Web-based system is just as helpful on the back end. The property management team can electronically manage the customer application and leasing process, with the ability to follow up on leads for uncompleted applications. “They can play offense rather than sitting in the office processing forms,” says Tom Ratchford, president of WebRoomz, the company that sells the Web-based product. (The product was originally created in-house)
The most unusual aspect of the system: It offers an online roommate matching system where residents can post profiles, chat with potential candidates, and ultimately select their roommates and exact units. The system, pioneered by Phillips, simplifies a typically complex, paper-intensive process and reduces roommate matching errors. Just as important, residents love the power of selecting their own roommates–and encourage their friends to rent from Place.
So what type of high-tech gizmo will Phillips and his team think of next as the company continues to grow and develop properties at more colleges and universities? Only time will tell as members of the booming Y generation demand more and more amenities to fit their high-tech and highly social lifestyles. Who knows–maybe one day the labor-intensive annual move-in event will be facilitated through an iPod Web cast. But what fun would that be?