Build to rent developers: Why AI gets people talking about your property (in a good way)

It’s no secret to investors; renting property is in. But we’re not talking about renting a room because it’s close to work, or renting a house while you save up to buy or just need somewhere temporarily. Build to rent is different. This is making a choice to rent for the lifestyle. Renting long-term and as part of a new generation of city dwellers. And for build to rent property developers, using AI gels beautifully with this ultra-modern way of life.

Forward-thinking property developers like JLL and Get Living use AI in their build to rent apartments to do two things:

1. Eliminate the stressful, mundane parts of moving home, then manage routine property maintenance, and
2. create a joyful experience in every other aspect of life as part of a thriving digital-first community.

Because within our city walls, Savills reports a “record level of investment” in build to rent apartments. A boom in the spaces you create for people to not just live in but engage with ― both their home and the people they’re co-living with, sharing communal spaces, facilities and events.

One build to rent developer in Manchester featured in Property Investor Today, notes that where “owning property may not be the norm in the future … it’s important residents are able to reside in high-quality properties fit for their needs”.

As property developers look to make more frequent and better use of new technology, residents in some build to rent homes are using AI assistants to help them move in, to find out what’s going on in the local neighbourhood, to book a yoga class or order a takeaway. And they’re telling their friends how cool it is because this is an experience people can so easily celebrate and enjoy together.

Using voice technology, web or messaging services, AI is there 24 hours a day, every day of the year. Ready to give information or offer help to your residents in all the ways they’re used to in our digital-driven world ― before and after they move in.

• Searching for places
• Looking at locations
• Listening to or watching instructions
• Downloading or sharing documents
• And everything else in between

Because whatever your customer is looking for online, you can use AI to find it for them faster.

Get ready to embrace a new way of living and lead the way in rentals

Just imagine for a moment, a day in the life of your resident (let’s call her Amy) when you give her an AI assistant.

Amy wakes up and the heating hasn’t come on. But she doesn’t phone you as her rental manager, she asks the smart assistant hanging patiently on the wall by the fridge, waiting for her command. “My heating isn’t working,” says Amy, and the AI assistant responds, asking a few questions about the problem before showing her a video that tells her how to check the boiler, if she’s happy to.

As the heating powers on, Amy gets a message from her friend whose cat has had kittens: “Are you still looking for a cat?” But Amy’s not sure if she can have a pet in her new home, so she asks the AI, “Can I have a pet?” The AI assistant tells Amy what’s allowed and what isn’t in the apartment she rents. Amy messages her friend back with a smile: “I can have one!”

Amy’s friend is keen to meet up, so they chat over messenger about where to go for dinner. When Amy asks the AI, “Which restaurants are open tonight?” they don’t fancy any of the choices, so she asks about after-dinner options: “Where can I get beer and snacks?”

When Amy heads out for the shop, she’s not sure if the door is locked, so she opens the Google Assistant on her phone to keep talking with Get Living: “How do I lock the door?” she asks, and the AI reminds her to look for a green and red light after holding her key fob to the lock.

On the way home from the shop, Amy’s sure there’s something she was supposed to do today now she’s settled in her new apartment, but can’t remember what it is. She goes back to the Google Assistant and asks Get Living’s AI to carry on with the move-in process, then she’s reminded to fill out the rental inventory before the deadline tomorrow. As Amy walks past a gym, it’s closed, so she scans a QR code on the door to find out when it’s open and how much it costs to sign up.

Maybe tomorrow, she says to herself, sensing the cold of the beer bottles through her shopping bag and hearing the crunch of the bags of crisps.

Amy’s friend is late because she had to visit two pharmacies for some headache tablets, not realising the one nearest to her would be closed when she got there. And a call from her partner reminded her she’d forgotten to post an important letter, so she had to go back home to get it. When Amy tells her all the things she’s done in the past hour with the help of AI, it’s evident to her friend she could use an assistant too to help plan her day and get timely reminders.

Build a reputation for excellence using AI to assist you and your residents

The way we live and work is different now, especially with the sharp increase we’ve seen in remote working. Build to rent apartments with communal spaces are ideal for giving people a place to get outside, take a break, or go talk for a while with others. Making daily life easier too with practical help, like including utility bills in the rent or giving people WiFi on tap is only part of the attraction. Add an AI assistant to help your customers sort out their Council Tax bill or find the nearest GP surgery and everyday life runs enviably smoother for your modern-day movers.

Home becomes an experience.

To find out how AI can help you enrich the build to rent experience for your residents, ask us to show you our advanced conversational AI platform. You can use AI on any channel (web, mobile, social, smart speakers and more) and we can link it up with any of the tech you already use to manage your build to rent apartments.

Want to see how it works?