Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
San-Francisco-based Zenplace is a full-service property management company that aims to help managers and landlords take a proactive approach to what has traditionally been a very reactive field.
“Property management today is largely reactive; you wait for a problem and then tackle it,” Zenplace CEO Rahul Mewawalla told LTP. “Our view is that it needs to be proactive and should be able to mitigate issues before they happen. Currently, management companies are indeed reactive in nature, they wait for a problem to appear and then deal with it.” Anyone new to it should consult with the experienced, like referring to the guide to Airbnb property management. Strategical mitigation of issues and proactivity comes from expertise and experience.
To achieve its stated aims, Zenplace is leveraging technologies including artificial intelligence, machine learning and chatbots to ensure its clients can get higher returns, lower costs and a better owner experience.
The company’s property management fees are pretty low, starting at just five percent of the rent. It offers a full service that includes the screening and selection of tenants, lease agreements, rent collection, maintenance and more.
“Property management and the owner and tenant experience is already three times-better today than it was some years ago, and in another five years will be ten-times easier and better than today,” Mewawalla told Forbes.
Zenplace takes care of property maintenance by screening vendors based on their prices, quality of work and responsiveness, among other factors. It pays special attention to reviews of these vendors from the property owners and tenants. It also sets an expense threshold so once that has been met the property owner will then have to pay to complete the maintenance work himself. To help with these matters, Zenplace provides information on the work that needs to be completed, as well as a short list of estimates and recommendations.
Zenplace also performs annual inspections, plus additional inspections that are required by state law or before a new tenant moves in.
Another useful benefit of Zenplace is it used AI devices such as Google Home and Amazon Alexa to help with property related issues.
The service also includes property marketing across more than 100 listings sites. Zenplace uses many of the same technologies as companies like Facebook and Google do, and also completes all the paperwork online, including leasing agreements and other documents.
“By knowing your property’s components and referencing with manufacturer’s recommendations and real-world conditions, issues can be resolved before any possible expensive problems occur or replacements are needed,” Mewawalla told LTP. “This can help property owners and landlords save billions of dollars a year, better protect and maintain their properties, and result in a greater cap return, higher return-on-investment [ROI] and peace of mind for owners and a truly enjoyable and hassle-free experience for tenants.”
