How AI Is Reshaping Chicago Multifamily Operations

Multifamily managers are increasingly doubling down on artificial intelligence platforms to attract younger tenants and expedite back-end processes. 

Operators are hiring employees explicitly to vet new AI technology and are building out internal platforms to consolidate AI-driven insight, panelists said at Bisnow’s Midwest Multifamily Property Management and Operations event at The Allegro Royal Sonesta Hotel Chicago Loop.

The implementation of the new technology helps companies deliver a better, more personalized experience for their tenants, panelists said.

“We view AI as a tool to really help expand and elevate the human touch element,” Bozzuto Managing Director Erin Carney said.

AI adoption across all of multifamily is gaining steam.

According to an EliseAI survey of 280 multifamily executives, 68% of respondents are incorporating AI into their key business systems. Among those surveyed, 60% are using AI to automate resident conversations and 77% report AI is driving a moderate to significant reduction in operating expenses. 

Jillian Larkin, assistant vice president at Willow Bridge Property Co., said today’s renters are looking for fast service and immediate satisfaction. To meet that need, operators need to advance their technology and implement AI tools. 

When Willow Bridge’s office is closed and a prospective renter reaches out about an apartment, a chatbot will respond and have a conversation that someone in the office picks up the next day, Larkin said. 

“It enhances the experience the residents have when they come up to the apartment,” she said. 

Larkin said her company has hired two people dedicated to vetting and implementing new technology into its processes. They focus on not inundating their team with too much software and trying to make the transition process as seamless as possible, with new tech that is fluid with existing property management software. 

AI is also used to save working hours on leasing and maintenance, Carney said. The properties where Bozzuto piloted a leasing and maintenance chatbot saved an average of 32 hours of work time because of the ability to automate certain workflows, she said. 

The added time allows the team members to be intentional about how they are showing up for residents and “surprising and delighting them,” she said. 

Carney said Bozzuto has also built its own residential and employee platform that uses AI to surface insights for on-site teams. The system pulls in everything from upcoming renewals and open maintenance requests to small personal details and flags them proactively, allowing staff to reach out before issues escalate and tailor communication in a way that feels more personalized than traditional property management.

“It's using all of those tech tools, building the infrastructure so that we can have the information that we need to be proactive,” Carney said.

But not everyone is completely buying in to high-tech solutions for property management.

Mike Zucker, managing partner at Peak Properties, said his company has gone “old school” in its attempt to add a heavier human touch to the process. It has outsourced several positions abroad, so if tenants call the office after work hours, they will be routed to remote property managers who are in the Philippines, Mexico or India. 

Tenants who may expect a chatbot will speak with a human, he said. 

“We have really gone backwards when I know everyone's taking 10 steps forward, but we're trying to slow it down a little bit,” Zucker said.