PROPERTY MANAGEMENT While it is being advertised as mere fair housing “principles” and not formal policy, among other initiatives, the paper directs eight federal agencies to scruti-nize apartment operations, says Solomon, who is based in the Washington, D.C., area. Topics of interest include ten-ant screening procedures, credit reporting agencies and secu-rity deposit sizing. “Perhaps it is well intended,” Solomon adds. “But this shift to federal oversight will have a nega-tive impact on the quality and quantity of rental housing at an affordable rent.” One way that some owners are approaching the labor shortage is to try and reduce on-site personnel and marketing programs, says Mitchell. But by removing a full-time person from the offi ce, managers have one less person who can interact with tenants and keep them connected to the community. What’s more, he says, reducing marketing budgets risks losing traffi c. “If you drop below a certain level of competency or spending on mar-keting, it just creates a death spiral,” he cautions. “You might be able to save a little cash fl ow today, but it could be to the detriment of a lot of cash fl ow tomorrow.” start Scarce Labor Adjustments What the proposed bill of rights does not address is how la-bor shortages are affecting rental housing. Finding workers is an ongoing multifamily property management headache that ri-vals infl ating expenses and high-er interest rates. “We have experienced diffi cul-ty with sourcing the perfect-fi t-ting team member amidst a tight labor market,” states Jamin Hark-ness, president of The Life Prop-erties, an Atlanta-based manager of more than 16,000 workforce housing and naturally occurring affordable units in Texas, the Southeast and Midwest. “Prior to the pandemic, it was harder to get top talent to leave their previous companies, where-as today there is a bidding war for top talent.” As a result, the company is enhancing leadership training, benefi ts and work-life balance programs, says Harkness, whose fi rm is affi liated with value-add investor Olive Tree Holdings. Property managers are also in-creasingly turning to technology to do more with less. Middleburg, for example, has implemented ar-tifi cial intelligence (AI) to fi eld in-quiries and schedule tours, many of which are self-guided. “It’s still early with this tech-nology, but it is actually out-performing calls answered by humans. It’s shocking to me,” says Finlay. “It fi elds questions and can get people on-site. And if we can get people on-site, we have very good success in getting signed leases.” www.MultifamilyAffordableHousing.com realizing what could be. You have the vision of a vibrant community with affordable living spaces. We’ll help you bring it to life. WalkerDunlop.com/Affordable July/August 2023 | Southeast Multifamily & Affordable Housing Business | 21
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