Managing a condominium is no small task—there are countless operations to handle, all while dealing with pressure from owners that the board represents. This is why a board is made up of multiple members who work together to work through to tackle their list of important responsibilities.
Boards tend to perform best if they are systematic and collaborative, but mistakes are inevitable due to human error. This is why we increasingly rely on technology and computers for complex, repeatable tasks. However, despite the growth of technological solutions in many industries, the condominium management space remains significantly underserved by advanced tools.
Given the wide range of tasks that condominium boards handle, one might expect technology to play a larger role, if only because these operations are begging for technological solutions. Some of these operations are simply better suited for computers. For example:
Reserve fund management and forecasting
Budget analysis and forecasting
Utility consumption analysis
So why haven’t more businesses emerged to fill this gap? The main obstacle is the high cost of acquiring the talent needed to develop the technology that could truly benefit the industry. Condominium corporations are typically working with limited budgets and are focused on keeping costs low. This, in our view, helps explain the lack of investment in high-end technological solutions.
Finding the right people or companies qualified to provide such services is not easy in a world where the best tech experts are in such high demand. Condos often don’t have tech experts on their boards, and how could they evaluate the quality of these people or companies if they don’t have the technological literacy themselves?
Another challenge lies with the existing service providers in the condominium space. Why aren’t they stepping up to offer technological solutions? The answer is fairly simple: most of these businesses operate with tight margins, and their revenue is only slightly higher than their costs. As a result, it's difficult for them to pivot and invest in technology that would require significant resources. Additionally, many existing service providers may not truly understand - or appreciate - the potential of technology.
A New Age
At Vertical City, we believe that change is on the horizon. Technology is becoming more accessible to everyone, and as board members turnover more frequently, new solutions to old problems are being discovered every day, and new businesses will emerge to fill the gap.
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