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How Tech Can Provide Social Housing Management Uk 22 Jul 2024

How Tech Can Provide Social Housing Management Uk

Managing social housing can be challenging. This is true if a property manager needs more resources. It takes much work to handle erratic payment dates. This includes universal credit payments, deposit amounts, and other factors. These difficulties can, nevertheless, be significantly reduced. Technology updates have the potential to change everything. Proptino Manager offers several features. It helps property managers deal with social housing. The sections cover communication, financial management, deposits, and compliance. They also cover onboarding, repairs, maintenance, and other valuable topics.

1. Understanding The Role of Tech In Social Housing Management UK

Property managers must arrange many rental transactions for each tenant. Due to their large volume, these processes take time and effort. The primary rental transactions are tenant top-up fees, universal credit, and housing benefits.

A property manager can add these as separate lines in Proptino Manager. This way, they can be handled on their own. This implies that a social housing client can see which payments are late. They can then decide whether to pursue the tenant or the council for their part.

A housing firm can apply a lump sum from the council to many renters together. They don't have to match each resident one by one.

2. Key Advancements Tech Brings in Social Housing Management

2.1 Shift to Online Technologies

They can use CRM and maintenance systems, social media pages, and constant app updates. These tools help associations improve tenant communication and improve their workflow. These platforms can capture subtenants' data. They are then used to follow up on maintenance requests and chat with subtenants in real-time. For instance, tenant-engagement platforms let tenants receive all information. They also let tenants communicate with providers in one place. They could also include forums and newsfeeds. These would keep the tenants updated and connected.

In addition to the centralized platforms, the housing associations use Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp to engage the tenants. This shows how digital tools can open up new ways to engage more people. We regard these as pivotal in the bid to address what has been proposed by the Social Housing White Paper.

2.2 Impelementing Smart Tools

These technologies can help tenants. The settings can be changed to their satisfaction and from a distance. For example, we can use sensors to track appliance use. They can find issues with the boiler and the building’s temperature. This helps us predict possible maintenance needs. For instance, the Midland Heart is currently embarking on a study of the tenants’ activity of how they engage with technology as well as identifying those technologies that could give the tenants maximum benefit once they moved into new homes – such innovations as augmented reality, sensors, an interactive app, smart sockets which harness machine learning to minimize energy usage.

2.3 Easier Tenant Management

Modern technology can also help social housing organizations enhance tenant participation. Organizations could reach out to tenants and seek feedback through social media platforms or messaging apps. Digital forms and questionnaires can be employed to measure the level of satisfaction among the tenants and to determine areas for improvement.

2.4 Role of AI

AI and ML in property management entail the use of modern technologies, such as machine learning, to detect and automate repetitive tasks in the decision-making process. Live support, chatbots, and AI can be integrated to handle most service requests, freeing up staff to handle more complicated problems. This can enhance tenants’ success by providing them with speedy and efficient aid.

Technological advancements such as robotic process automation can help organizations relieve employees' workloads by addressing inefficient routine tasks. This involves optimizing work processes and obtaining considerable cost savings while redirecting resources toward more critical initiatives.

2.5 Adopting Cloud-Based Software

Software in the cloud also refers to organizations' capability to store and process their IT data and applications elsewhere other than within the company’s premises. This enhances flexibility and scalability, which can help businesses. It's cheaper and a known way to make operations more efficient.

For example, Proptino UK adopted a new IT solution to develop user-friendly systems and solve problems related to information technology and cloud computing. This has led to a significant increase in what was called ‘digital’ customers, virtually complete eradication of manual intervention in most cases, and the initiation of what can be described as colleagues anywhere.

Read also: What is the cloud base software?

3. Key Advantages of Using Tech in Social Housing Management UK

3.1 Creation of a new social housing advisory panel:

New social housing advisory panel. These will include the respondent groups like the tenants and the other parties like the owner occupiers; this will help the panel in advising the regulator on various aspects of regulating social housing, including a power in the panel to bring issues for the regulator’s consideration on an ad hoc basis. A vital strength of the proposed panel will be the ability to inform (among other things)

  • New and revised rules governing the regulatory standards and code of practice
  • The main problems and challenges associated with this sector
  • Its relations with the main partners

3.2 Easy registration as a social housing provider:

Simple registration as a social housing supplier: In any way enabling the regulator to progressively build up the requirement to the level that it might set to clear the legal provisions (which relate to financial, constitutional, and management arrangements) and also linking the registration to meeting all the mentioned requirements in a way that the social housing provider can be successfully registered. This may include proving that the organization satisfies the consumer requirements as far as the maintenance of homes is concerned and implementing effective measures in dealing with complaints from tenants.

3.3 Standards for social housing:

Social Housing standards:

  •   The Act introduces new standards to regulate:
  •   The Act establishes new norms to govern:
  •   The capacity of parties that are involved in the direction of social housing;

Justify providing information to tenants. Also, meet the regulator's requirements. A code of practice relating to issues that touch on consumers so that RPs have a clue about what is expected of them in providing for them and tenants get to know what landlords are likely to give them. Reduce the energy consumption of social housing facilities. Further, a strategy is to be published by the Secretary of State by July 20, 2024.

4. Challenges In Employing Tech In Social Housing Management

4.1 Higher demand and lower supply issue

Another problem explains the current difficulty. It is a phenomenon called the Issue of Higher Demand and Less Supply.

 The requirement for social housing has increased, and the sector has been under pressure to house hundreds of thousands of families all over the United Kingdom.

The above are system-wide problems. They have political backing and massive funding proposals. However, there are many more ways in which technology can help providers who are facing growing demand.

One solution is to introduce a shared tenancy. We made this for individuals. Tenants get a device to contact landlords right away.

 This tool allows the tenant to complete simple tasks that may have otherwise warranted a phone call. The result is an enhancement to the tenant’s customer satisfaction while cutting down costs and easing the burden of the housing provider in question.

4.2 Accessibility

 It is impossible to speak about technology in social housing management without mentioning accessibility, and rightfully so. This might be as basic as showing an in-browser experience for people who don’t own a smartphone. They might use a platform on a personal or borrowed desktop.

 Technology should also be made so that disabled people can use it. This includes those with hearing defects, blindness, weak motor skills, and learning disabilities. Catering to all is a considerable challenge. But, as tech providers, we should focus on making the best technology solutions. These should serve as many people as possible, not just the fortunate few.

5. Enforcement of Standards and Regulations

The Act also introduces another amendment. It removes the 'serious detriment test.' This test used to let the RSH act based on a breach or potential breach of consumer standards, but it did so regardless of actual or perceived harm to tenants.  

The regulator's main enforcement tools are:

5.1 Transparency:

The regulator can demand that RPs collect, analyze, and report data about the relationship between their performance indicators and standards. Failing to meet this obligation may result in the regulator issuing a notice or penalty.

5.2 Surveys:

Inspections of an RP's property can now be arranged on short notice. This happens when the regulator suspects the RP is not maintaining the property. The regulator can also apply for a warrant when needed.

5.3 Inspections:

The regulator must also establish and ensure the schedule for inspecting the RPs' consumers and review this schedule regularly. Some RPs may be visited more often, others less often, and some only occasionally.

6. Conclusion

In conclusion, due to the large volume of rental transactions that property managers must arrange for each of their tenants, these processes can be challenging and time-consuming. Tenant top-up fees, universal credit, and housing benefits are the foremost rental transactions. A property manager can add these as separate lines in a tenancy agreement.Then, they can handle them one by one. This implies that a social housing client can monitor which payments are delinquent and determine whether to pursue the tenant or the council for their portion. Instead of matching each resident one by one, a social housing firm can apply a lump sum payment from the council to several renters at once.