Modern Multifamily

SummaryNick Deveau, Co-Founder and CEO of Grotto AI, joins Modern Multifamily fresh off Blueprint in Las Vegas. Host Mike Wolber, Chief Sales Officer at Apartment List, digs into Nick's path from a decade of vertical AI in hiring and healthcare to multifamily, why every operator he asked named vacancy loss as the industry's biggest problem, and how Grotto went from real-time call guidance for Weidner Apartment Homes' contact center to coaching the in-person tour.The conversation then turns to leasing as sales: demand versus conversion, "Gong for leasing" and why active coaching beats scoring, the simple habit of asking for the application (and asking again), turning the "just looking around" objection into comp data for asset managers, and how wearables and smartwatches keep opt-outs under 10% in two-party consent states. Nick closes with the case for open integration ecosystems and Hillpointe's results: a 27% lift in tour-to-lease conversion and new-hire ramp-up cut from 90 days to 9. For multifamily operators, leasing and marketing leaders, and anyone selling technology into real estate.Chapters00:00 Why human interactions will be laid bare01:04 Blueprint and spreading the Grotto gospel02:13 From AI for hiring and healthcare to multifamily05:28 From predicting renewals to Call Guidance and tours07:07 Demand versus conversion in leasing10:05 Leasing is sales and malnourished L&D teams11:14 Gong for leasing: why coaching beats scoring15:10 A new category for human performance at scale16:32 Ask for the application, then ask again18:55 One question on every tour for asset managers20:56 Wearables, smartwatches and opt-out rates24:22 Open integration ecosystems in proptech28:01 Hillpointe's case study: 27% more leases, 9-day ramp-upTakeaways- Most operators name vacancy loss as the biggest problem, yet down-funnel conversion has been treated as a fixed engine rather than something teams can improve.- Asking for the application, and asking again after the first no, is one of the highest-leverage leasing behaviors; one pilot doubled the ask rate from about 35% to almost 70%.- Scoring a conversation is not a product; coaching is an active process that diagnoses issues, turns them into feedback and delivers it in a way that sticks.- The "just looking around" objection is a chance to collect real comp data that helps marketing, asset management and revenue management.- Framing recording consent around the prospect's benefit keeps opt-outs under 10%, even in two-party consent states.Connect with the GuestNick Deveau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nick-deveau-a6241379/Company Website: https://grotto.ai

SummaryDom Beveridge, Founder of 20for20, returns to Modern Multifamily for the eighth edition of his annual white paper, built on 20 structured, open-ended interviews with multifamily executives. Host Mike Wolber, Chief Sales Officer at Apartment List, digs into the word that kept surfacing this year (exhaustion), why a balance sheet industry finds three years of P&L focus so draining, and how centralization now looks settled for owner operators while third party managers still depend on their owners to roll it out.The conversation then turns to tech bloat: community managers with more than 40 logins, the third of operators now running tech freezes and shedding applications, the VC funding model that quietly drives over-buying, and the 6 companies Dom calls AI first, who are configuring their organizations around automation instead of buying widgets. Dom closes with his early read on 2027: a possible peak in the proptech VC wave and a push to simplify the resident application process. For multifamily operators, marketers and anyone selling technology into real estate.Chapters00:00 Why a digital leasing assistant isn't an AI strategy00:46 The 20for20 thesis after eight editions03:15 Owner operators versus third party managers on centralization05:36 Exhaustion becomes the word of the year09:39 Tech bloat, tech freezes and cutting 40 apps to 2014:50 Shifting sands for proptech vendors17:52 The VC model and the tech bloat trade-off20:18 AI first operators versus widget buyers26:27 Conversion rates when AI nurtures every lead32:06 The 2027 outlook: peak VC and simpler applicationsTakeaways- Exhaustion is structural: a balance sheet industry has spent 3 years focused on NOI while also changing how it operates, and the same second-half recovery has been predicted 3 years running.- Community managers routinely carry more than 40 logins, and getting rid of technology is at least as hard as acquiring it.- About a third of operators now treat shedding tech as a formal initiative, with tech freezes and one large owner operator cutting from the low 40s to under 20 applications.- The VC model that gives startups access to LP operators creates an incentive to roll out software most portfolio companies will never grow into.- AI first operators configure the organization around automation and ask software to tell them how to improve, while most of the industry still reflexively buys widgets like a digital leasing assistant.Connect with the GuestDom Beveridge LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dombeveridge/Company Website: https://20for20.com

SummaryIn this episode of Modern Multifamily, Mike Wolber brings the show back with Dana Pate, Founder/CEO of Stitched Marketing and former marketing leader at RangeWater through its growth from four properties to 400. Dana explains why so many people who go independent quietly return to a W-2 within two quarters (you report to more people, not fewer), why both large and small property management companies still move slowly on marketing decisions, and why "we just need more leads" is the same question the industry was asking ten years ago. The conversation closes on proptech go-to-market: why the obsession with the NMHC Top 50 starves companies of the mid-market partners that actually keep them afloat. For multifamily marketers, proptech operators and anyone thinking about going out on their own.Chapters00:00 Bringing Modern Multifamily back with Dana Pate01:22 Launching Stitched Marketing after 15 years on the PMC side04:12 Saying yes to everything, then learning to be choosy06:36 Working with competitors and keeping the client list at five or six11:24 What makes people fail when they go out on their own16:11 Building the plane at RangeWater, from 4 to 400 properties19:46 Two camps of slow PMCs and the "we just need more leads" trap25:59 Crowded categories and a dashboard for your dashboards29:30 Stop obsessing over the NMHC Top 5031:27 Who should call Stitched MarketingTakeaways- Going independent means answering to more people, not fewer, and losing the title, the authority and the team.- Large PMCs stall on red tape while small PMCs stall on fear of change, so both move slowly for opposite reasons.- "We just need more leads" is the same question the industry asked a decade ago, and the same question gets the same answers.- A signed contract is not buy-in; technology that the on-site team never adopts goes dusty and gets canceled.- Proptech companies obsessed with the Top 50 should win fast-deciding mid-market partners first and move upmarket with proof.Connect with the GuestDana Pate LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danagrazianopateCompany Website: https://stitchedmarketing.com

I had a blast sitting down with Alex Roudi, the CEO of Interwest Capital Group on the podcast.The conversation started with digging into Alex's history as a founder. He built a very successful global cleaning business in the 90's - and hearing about this was fascinating.From there, we learned how he used the capital from a big liquidity event to start to build Interwest - an ownership/investment group that's focused on Multifamily.In this episode, we hear about the 300+ investors that Interwest works today and how they are creating value across their 4,000 unit portfolio. And, all of the things that have Alex and the team excited about the future as they charge towards 1,000 investors and more than 10,000 owned units.Be sure to learn more about interwest here: https://interwestcapital.com/And find/connect with Alex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexroudi/

Each year, I look forward to hosting Dom Beveridge to discuss the the 20for20 white paper. Every year, Dom sits down with 20 executives to uncover what's top of mind and what's driving their strategy over the coming year.This year, we hit on a few topics that stood out to me the most:- The evolution of the Tech Stack- The state of Centralization and what's happening in the front and back office- And of course, we discussed AIFind the white paper here: https://20for20.com/Be sure to find Dom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dombeveridge/