SOFTWARE REVIEW
Automation of these tasks through a workflow system can save huge amounts time, Mark Howlett says. Propco includes an array of events with specified trigger points and times from that trigger point – for instance, legal notices are automatically issued on exactly the anniversary of the initial lease, or at the correct notice period. In addition to the time and workload
saving, Mark Howlett says, agents can achieve consistency in terms of how the service is provided. “If you have 5,000 properties, that’s 5,000 opportunities to get things wrong; with the right software, it’s 5,000 notices of termination of tenancy, all documented and accurate.” Automating and innovation can also cut
wastage. One Propco functionality is automatic communication around periodic visits; a letter seven days before, a call three days before, and a text message sent to the tenant the day before. And though email is by no means new,
the way in which agents are corresponding with landlords and tenants is evolving rapidly, says Trevor Youens. “On one level there are innovations around the e-signing of agreements with companies like Echosign and Agreement Express. This allows clients to distribute things like tenancy agreements to four or five separate parties, often in different parts of the country or indeed different continents; all parties “esign” the agreement with one click and a legally binding contract is in place.”
AnAlytics And reporting The increasing presence of larger corporates and increased sophistication, have led to more focus on reporting. Glyn Trott says that “due to the current financial climate and an increase in competition, many clients are more concerned than ever with where they are making profit and loss.” LetMC’s software is designed so that clients can easily customise it for analysis of a month’s profit – which properties, clients, offices or services made the most money. It’s not just financial outcomes that need
to be measured, either, but efficiency statistics such as the time from instruction to letting, the length of void periods, or the percentage of instructions won. Mark Howlett says, “It’s incredible, the measurement that takes place of everything – how much wastage do we have in the business? How do we remove it? Have we captured landlords’ information? Did we convert those enquiries into an instruction? Measurement is a critical factor these days, with increased scrutiny of every facet of the
56 JULY 2011 PROPERTYdrum
Texting is becoming old hat, electronic exchange with clients and suppliers will be a major differentiator.’ trevor youens
business.” That takes lettings software a long way beyond its roots, automating the basic paperwork, and makes it a true generator of competitive advantage. At the same time lettings software has to
assist in compliance. Lettings may not be as highly regulated as some would like, but landlords and their agents have to comply with a number of different areas of regulation, from gas safety certificates, through HMO regulations and EPCs, to the legal niceties of the assured shorthold tenancy contract. These regulations are getting more onerous all the time; Nigel Stanley recently attended a course on legislation for Houses in Multiple Occupation, and says “By the time we’d done two hours on the subject of HMOs, a lot of the attendees were looking like they had a headache.” The more of this regulatory compliance can be built into lettings software, therefore, the better – particularly if the software is automatically updated with any changes to the regulations, so that agents don’t have to implement it themselves. The financial back end, too, needs to be
more complex than with a sales process, Nigel Stanley points out. While estate agents don’t handle client money, leaving that to the solicitors, lettings agents are responsible for huge amounts of other people’s money. That’s why, unlike sales systems which tend to look like specialised Customer Relationship Management systems or marketing solutions, lettings software often has an accounting or workflow driven nature. EstatesIT’s solutions are written as finance systems, “We spend more time looking at accounting principles rather than just writing software to match applicants to property. Our property management system is full-on double entry accounting, written by a guy who’s got ledgers in his blood.” This also delivers compliance benefits –that are very important when a lettings agent can be handling a million pounds of client money every month. But it can make selling the software to lettings agents difficult, as it’s not easy to explain what is behind the system. “It’s much easier to sell accountancy software to accountants,” he sighs.
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