![\"How](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Group-Shot-1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nDuring a wide-ranging roundtable discussion held at UKREiiF and sponsored by Yardi, a group of leading industry experts discussed how property managers should be using tech to manage occupancy rates and costs and assessed how tech can be used more effectively in conjunction with data and AI to meet investor expectations.<\/p>\n
How well are property managers currently leveraging tech?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n![\"Justin](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Justin-Harley-1.jpg\")
\nJustin Harley, Senior Director, Yardi<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nHARLEY<\/strong>: We find ourselves in a privileged position in terms of dealing with both investors and property managers. And I\u2019d say we\u2019re definitely seeing an element of friction between the two, because the property reports just aren\u2019t coming in fast enough [for investors].<\/p>\nMaybe this is controversial, but I believe the investors should own the system and the data, yet so often they don\u2019t, and this means they might not be getting the data that they want in real time. We\u2019re all getting our heads around leveraging AI, sure, but I think AI gives us lots of opportunity for easing this friction.<\/p>\n
KRASTINS<\/strong>: There\u2019s been an impact from an organisational perspective, yes, because AI allows us to implement more language models. But we\u2019ve not seen too big an impact on the day-to-day operations yet. AI has been a little bit hit and miss to be honest.<\/p>\n\n![\"Eli](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Eli-Kauffman-1.jpg\")
\nEli Kauffman, Associate Partner, Landswood de Coy<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWALKER<\/strong>: Hit and miss is a good way of putting it. I believe that, fundamentally, your tenants need to be looked after well. They need working toilets and lifts and for us to get the basics right in their building.<\/p>\nYou can\u2019t assume just because you\u2019re going to add AI to your business, everything will suddenly work better. It\u2019s about ensuring you already have good processes in place and are simply adding AI on top of it all in a seamless way.<\/p>\n
AI will only do what you ask it to do with the data that you give it. If your internal documents are already a mess, it\u2019s not going to suddenly find good data.<\/p>\n
KAUFFMAN<\/strong>: For me it\u2019s about us all managing proptech, rather than proptech managing us. Some things can be replaced by AI, but others can\u2019t. Sometimes tenants need to be spoken to by a person.<\/p>\nIf they have no hot water and they\u2019re getting messages from Chat GPT about the next steps, then they\u2019re going to go crazy and they\u2019re all going to leave at the end of their lease.<\/p>\n
Human interaction needs to stay at the heart of our business, with AI one of a variety of different tools that can help us all do our jobs better.<\/p>\n
How ready do you think the living sector is for AI, and does the sector understand its capabilities?<\/strong><\/h2>\nWALKER<\/strong>: I believe the sector is ready, but there\u2019s also some nervousness around AI too. The problem is there\u2019s never been a technology before that pretty much improves and evolves into something new every single day. Therefore, you don\u2019t want to go all in tomorrow and invest millions into a specific AI system to find out the next day it\u2019s suddenly obsolete.<\/p>\n\n\u201cAI has been a little bit hit and miss to be honest.\u201d
Ivo Krastins<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n![\"Olivia](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Olivia-Harris-1.jpg\")
\nOlivia Harris, CEO, Dolphin Living<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nHARRIS<\/strong>: I believe the sector is ready, but it shouldn\u2019t rush. For example, we have a lot of residents who want to contact us and give us their data, but I would stress that people in their 60s and people in their 20s both interact in such different ways, so there can\u2019t be a one size fits all approach to how AI interprets their data or offers them solutions.<\/p>\nWe\u2019re looking at where we can create value for AI. So, for example, can you use AI to look at people\u2019s payment patterns and behaviours so we can work out how to improve our arrears management? That particular capability is very exciting.<\/p>\n
HARLEY<\/strong>: I\u2019d like to stress that property management firms shouldn\u2019t worry too much if they haven\u2019t utilised AI yet. We carried out a poll recently and 50% said they haven\u2019t yet implemented AI. You\u2019re not in a bad place if you\u2019re behind on AI; it\u2019s important to take your time in getting it right.<\/p>\nThere are a few things I believe you need to consider before introducing AI: have you done your data housekeeping, how tired is your data, and how are you going to keep your information private?<\/p>\n
How many of you are actively using AI and how many of you are waiting to find the right moment?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\u201cWe\u2019re on a journey to try and improve processes.\u201d
Dan Greenslade<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\n![\"Dan](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Dan-Greenslade-1.jpg\")
\nDan Greenslade, Chief Financial Officer, Get Living<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nGREENSLADE<\/strong>: We\u2019re on a journey to try and improve processes. We want to improve data collection, both internally and in terms of what we report to our investors.<\/p>\nThe idea of reporting data in real time is very attractive to our investors, but with that you do lack human interpretation, which can be dangerous.<\/p>\n
We don\u2019t feel like we\u2019re quite there yet, but the ambition is to be actively using AI within a year or so.<\/p>\n
STALEY<\/strong>: Our clients are very demanding on data and sometimes there\u2019s this tension between what you can do, what you should do, what you\u2019re capable of doing, and finally who is going to pay for it.<\/p>\nBecause there is obviously a big cost around AI. Not just in terms of the technology, but also the software and the training of people. The biggest challenge I feel is being honest with your partners and telling them you\u2019re not going to get everything for free.<\/p>\n
If you want to go on this AI journey with us, then it\u2019s not just about the operators and the software partners stepping up, but it\u2019s also about investors putting their hands in their pockets as well.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Laura](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Laura-Kurt-1.jpg\")
\nLaura Kurt, Commercial Director, Fusion Group<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nKURT<\/strong>: I would stress that AI definitely can bring cost efficiencies. The way we\u2019re using it at the minute is to replace having to expand our team in a ridiculous fashion and actually have the people doing the job that you want them to do from a service provision standpoint.<\/p>\nWe\u2019re not getting rid of people \u2013 rather, we don\u2019t need to bring as many new people into the business. AI means we can improve the focus of our staff because they\u2019re not wasting so much time on administrative tasks.<\/p>\n
BANGEE<\/strong>: Our residents are already using AI to assist with their daily lives and they expect you to be using it as well or you seem outdated. You need to be confident that AI is in place to support the tenant\u2019s journey, but I\u2019d stress there also needs to be a human being there for those that don\u2019t want the AI.<\/p>\nBalance is key. When you start to put AI into the business, you have to think: does it look right, is it the right tone of voice, is it tapping into your brand\u2019s POV? If someone interacts with your AI system and they feel it\u2019s just a rush job, then they\u2019re going to think you\u2019re lazy.<\/p>\n
Is that the biggest risk; that AI awkwardly replaces that human connection and dilutes a brand?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n![\"Rachel](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Rachel-Hanniquet-Brooking-1.jpg\")
\nRachel Hanniquet-Brooking, MD, APO<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nHANNIQUET-BROOKING<\/strong>: For sure. Soon, we\u2019re all going to have to declare how much AI we\u2019re using, because the government is reviewing all the digital stuff.<\/p>\nSomeone is going to say: they\u2019re just making people speak to a computer, because they can\u2019t be bothered to do their job.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve all complained about call centres, which end up passing you to someone in India. Our sector cannot afford for AI to create a similar sort of backlash.<\/p>\n
Where I think AI can be positive is around analysing customer emails. It can analyse the language used and then ensure we\u2019re responding in the best possible way.<\/p>\n
WALKER<\/strong>: I know AI can write a 2,000 word report on market regulation, but you can\u2019t 100% rely on what it produces for you.<\/p>\nIt is important that a human being reads through the copy and ensures everything is fact-checked, because the AI is unreliable and that can create legal issues. The human connection can\u2019t be lost.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Stephen](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Stephen-Walker-1.jpg\")
\nStephen Walker, Head of AI & Technology, Aberdeen Investments<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\u201cI think that the hype cycle we are in at the moment will fade.\u201d
Stephen Walker<\/p>\n
KRASTINS<\/strong>: AI can\u2019t replace human connection, but it can make the people in your business work more effectively.<\/p>\nWe\u2019ve got instances where we\u2019ve integrated AI and made data more visible for our engineers on site.<\/p>\n
It means the engineers are noticing more and more things. Instead of having 50 data points to reference each day, they now have 100.<\/p>\n
It also means we\u2019ve had to hire additional engineers. This shows AI isn\u2019t necessarily taking human jobs, but it is sometimes adding more of them.<\/p>\n
How effectively do you think your businesses will be leveraging AI tech and data to meet investor expectations by 2030?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n![\"Simon](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Simon-Gawthorpe-v2-1.jpg\")
\nSimon Gawthorpe, MD, Urban Splash<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nGAWTHORPE<\/strong>: By 2030, I think we\u2019ll all be saying: \u201cDo you remember when it used to take us 28 days to get a tenant moved in? Do you remember when we didn\u2019t do this? Do you remember when we had a team of 100 on data and actually now there\u2019s just 10 people doing it?\u201d<\/p>\nSo absolutely yes, I think we\u2019ll dive heavily into AI and, well, hopefully we will have made the right choices.<\/p>\n
STALEY<\/strong>: For us, it\u2019s about embracing whatever comes our way. We\u2019ve been adaptable so far, and I don\u2019t think we\u2019re going to change from being adaptable.<\/p>\nCovid-19 showed this sector you can\u2019t see what\u2019s coming tomorrow, so let\u2019s all react to AI in a way that\u2019s sensible.<\/p>\n
WALKER<\/strong>: Honestly, I think the hype cycle we are in at the moment will fade. I think next year, and the year after, it will be a lot less buzzy. I believe the answer is technology plus humans. It\u2019s about giving the customer a choice, right?<\/p>\nDo they want to talk to AI via WhatsApp or do they want to speak directly to a person? When you make AI the only choice, you annoy a lot of people.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Paul](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Paul-Staley-1.jpg\")
\nPaul Staley, MD, Wise Living<\/a><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nHANNIQUET-BROOKING<\/strong>: In five years, I believe we will have fully adopted AI and we\u2019ll be working with it. We\u2019re real advocates for the benefits of AI.<\/p>\nBut I just hope we\u2019re always going to be balancing AI with the importance of the human element within the property industry. Our business is homes and lives, and that focus can\u2019t change.<\/p>\n
BANGEE<\/strong>: Yes, we will absolutely have adopted it by 2030, but I hope we will do so in a way that gives the customer more choices.<\/p>\nIf you want to book a property viewing, it\u2019s about using the AI so it can give them a virtual tour or answer questions should they not be able to come to the building in person. Offering more choices is how you make AI a success.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cMy focus is always going to be on how we can deliver a better outcome for tenants.\u201d
Olivia Harris<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nHARLEY<\/strong>: We find ourselves in a privileged position in terms of dealing with both investors and property managers. And I\u2019d say we\u2019re definitely seeing an element of friction between the two, because the property reports just aren\u2019t coming in fast enough [for investors].<\/p>\n Maybe this is controversial, but I believe the investors should own the system and the data, yet so often they don\u2019t, and this means they might not be getting the data that they want in real time. We\u2019re all getting our heads around leveraging AI, sure, but I think AI gives us lots of opportunity for easing this friction.<\/p>\n KRASTINS<\/strong>: There\u2019s been an impact from an organisational perspective, yes, because AI allows us to implement more language models. But we\u2019ve not seen too big an impact on the day-to-day operations yet. AI has been a little bit hit and miss to be honest.<\/p>\n WALKER<\/strong>: Hit and miss is a good way of putting it. I believe that, fundamentally, your tenants need to be looked after well. They need working toilets and lifts and for us to get the basics right in their building.<\/p>\n You can\u2019t assume just because you\u2019re going to add AI to your business, everything will suddenly work better. It\u2019s about ensuring you already have good processes in place and are simply adding AI on top of it all in a seamless way.<\/p>\n AI will only do what you ask it to do with the data that you give it. If your internal documents are already a mess, it\u2019s not going to suddenly find good data.<\/p>\n KAUFFMAN<\/strong>: For me it\u2019s about us all managing proptech, rather than proptech managing us. Some things can be replaced by AI, but others can\u2019t. Sometimes tenants need to be spoken to by a person.<\/p>\n If they have no hot water and they\u2019re getting messages from Chat GPT about the next steps, then they\u2019re going to go crazy and they\u2019re all going to leave at the end of their lease.<\/p>\n Human interaction needs to stay at the heart of our business, with AI one of a variety of different tools that can help us all do our jobs better.<\/p>\n WALKER<\/strong>: I believe the sector is ready, but there\u2019s also some nervousness around AI too. The problem is there\u2019s never been a technology before that pretty much improves and evolves into something new every single day. Therefore, you don\u2019t want to go all in tomorrow and invest millions into a specific AI system to find out the next day it\u2019s suddenly obsolete.<\/p>\n \u201cAI has been a little bit hit and miss to be honest.\u201d HARRIS<\/strong>: I believe the sector is ready, but it shouldn\u2019t rush. For example, we have a lot of residents who want to contact us and give us their data, but I would stress that people in their 60s and people in their 20s both interact in such different ways, so there can\u2019t be a one size fits all approach to how AI interprets their data or offers them solutions.<\/p>\n We\u2019re looking at where we can create value for AI. So, for example, can you use AI to look at people\u2019s payment patterns and behaviours so we can work out how to improve our arrears management? That particular capability is very exciting.<\/p>\n HARLEY<\/strong>: I\u2019d like to stress that property management firms shouldn\u2019t worry too much if they haven\u2019t utilised AI yet. We carried out a poll recently and 50% said they haven\u2019t yet implemented AI. You\u2019re not in a bad place if you\u2019re behind on AI; it\u2019s important to take your time in getting it right.<\/p>\n There are a few things I believe you need to consider before introducing AI: have you done your data housekeeping, how tired is your data, and how are you going to keep your information private?<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re on a journey to try and improve processes.\u201d GREENSLADE<\/strong>: We\u2019re on a journey to try and improve processes. We want to improve data collection, both internally and in terms of what we report to our investors.<\/p>\n The idea of reporting data in real time is very attractive to our investors, but with that you do lack human interpretation, which can be dangerous.<\/p>\n We don\u2019t feel like we\u2019re quite there yet, but the ambition is to be actively using AI within a year or so.<\/p>\n STALEY<\/strong>: Our clients are very demanding on data and sometimes there\u2019s this tension between what you can do, what you should do, what you\u2019re capable of doing, and finally who is going to pay for it.<\/p>\n Because there is obviously a big cost around AI. Not just in terms of the technology, but also the software and the training of people. The biggest challenge I feel is being honest with your partners and telling them you\u2019re not going to get everything for free.<\/p>\n If you want to go on this AI journey with us, then it\u2019s not just about the operators and the software partners stepping up, but it\u2019s also about investors putting their hands in their pockets as well.<\/p>\n KURT<\/strong>: I would stress that AI definitely can bring cost efficiencies. The way we\u2019re using it at the minute is to replace having to expand our team in a ridiculous fashion and actually have the people doing the job that you want them to do from a service provision standpoint.<\/p>\n We\u2019re not getting rid of people \u2013 rather, we don\u2019t need to bring as many new people into the business. AI means we can improve the focus of our staff because they\u2019re not wasting so much time on administrative tasks.<\/p>\n BANGEE<\/strong>: Our residents are already using AI to assist with their daily lives and they expect you to be using it as well or you seem outdated. You need to be confident that AI is in place to support the tenant\u2019s journey, but I\u2019d stress there also needs to be a human being there for those that don\u2019t want the AI.<\/p>\n Balance is key. When you start to put AI into the business, you have to think: does it look right, is it the right tone of voice, is it tapping into your brand\u2019s POV? If someone interacts with your AI system and they feel it\u2019s just a rush job, then they\u2019re going to think you\u2019re lazy.<\/p>\n HANNIQUET-BROOKING<\/strong>: For sure. Soon, we\u2019re all going to have to declare how much AI we\u2019re using, because the government is reviewing all the digital stuff.<\/p>\n Someone is going to say: they\u2019re just making people speak to a computer, because they can\u2019t be bothered to do their job.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve all complained about call centres, which end up passing you to someone in India. Our sector cannot afford for AI to create a similar sort of backlash.<\/p>\n Where I think AI can be positive is around analysing customer emails. It can analyse the language used and then ensure we\u2019re responding in the best possible way.<\/p>\n WALKER<\/strong>: I know AI can write a 2,000 word report on market regulation, but you can\u2019t 100% rely on what it produces for you.<\/p>\n It is important that a human being reads through the copy and ensures everything is fact-checked, because the AI is unreliable and that can create legal issues. The human connection can\u2019t be lost.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that the hype cycle we are in at the moment will fade.\u201d KRASTINS<\/strong>: AI can\u2019t replace human connection, but it can make the people in your business work more effectively.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve got instances where we\u2019ve integrated AI and made data more visible for our engineers on site.<\/p>\n It means the engineers are noticing more and more things. Instead of having 50 data points to reference each day, they now have 100.<\/p>\n It also means we\u2019ve had to hire additional engineers. This shows AI isn\u2019t necessarily taking human jobs, but it is sometimes adding more of them.<\/p>\n GAWTHORPE<\/strong>: By 2030, I think we\u2019ll all be saying: \u201cDo you remember when it used to take us 28 days to get a tenant moved in? Do you remember when we didn\u2019t do this? Do you remember when we had a team of 100 on data and actually now there\u2019s just 10 people doing it?\u201d<\/p>\n So absolutely yes, I think we\u2019ll dive heavily into AI and, well, hopefully we will have made the right choices.<\/p>\n STALEY<\/strong>: For us, it\u2019s about embracing whatever comes our way. We\u2019ve been adaptable so far, and I don\u2019t think we\u2019re going to change from being adaptable.<\/p>\n Covid-19 showed this sector you can\u2019t see what\u2019s coming tomorrow, so let\u2019s all react to AI in a way that\u2019s sensible.<\/p>\n WALKER<\/strong>: Honestly, I think the hype cycle we are in at the moment will fade. I think next year, and the year after, it will be a lot less buzzy. I believe the answer is technology plus humans. It\u2019s about giving the customer a choice, right?<\/p>\n Do they want to talk to AI via WhatsApp or do they want to speak directly to a person? When you make AI the only choice, you annoy a lot of people.<\/p>\n HANNIQUET-BROOKING<\/strong>: In five years, I believe we will have fully adopted AI and we\u2019ll be working with it. We\u2019re real advocates for the benefits of AI.<\/p>\n But I just hope we\u2019re always going to be balancing AI with the importance of the human element within the property industry. Our business is homes and lives, and that focus can\u2019t change.<\/p>\n BANGEE<\/strong>: Yes, we will absolutely have adopted it by 2030, but I hope we will do so in a way that gives the customer more choices.<\/p>\n If you want to book a property viewing, it\u2019s about using the AI so it can give them a virtual tour or answer questions should they not be able to come to the building in person. Offering more choices is how you make AI a success.<\/p>\n \u201cMy focus is always going to be on how we can deliver a better outcome for tenants.\u201d\nHow ready do you think the living sector is for AI, and does the sector understand its capabilities?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n
Ivo Krastins<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\nHow many of you are actively using AI and how many of you are waiting to find the right moment?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n
Dan Greenslade<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\nIs that the biggest risk; that AI awkwardly replaces that human connection and dilutes a brand?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n\n
Stephen Walker<\/p>\nHow effectively do you think your businesses will be leveraging AI tech and data to meet investor expectations by 2030?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n\n\n
Olivia Harris<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
![\"Ivo](\"https:\/\/www.yardi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/07\/BE-News-UKREiiF-Roundtable-Ivo-Krastins-1.jpg\")
\n