If you’re a multifamily asset, revenue, or portfolio manager, you know the complexities that come with estimating property values, tracking rental trends, and optimizing income potential. The stakes are high, and so is the level of detail needed for informed decision-making. Yet, traditional market research methods often fall short of delivering precise, up-to-date insights.
The main issue? Traditional market research methods are time-consuming, prone to human error, and are inherently limited in scope. In today’s fast-paced, data-driven landscape, this approach simply isn’t scalable or accurate enough to meet the needs of a competitive market.
The solution lies in automation. With AI-driven tools such as ApartmentIQ, you can streamline and enhance market research with next-level accuracy, scale, and speed. In fact, 7 of the National Multifamily Housing Council’s (NMHC) top 10 largest property management companies have already made the switch to public data, marking a transformative shift in the industry.
In this article, we’ll explore why automation is your solution to more accurate market research, detailing how it can transform your multifamily business, delivering both immediate benefits and long-term strategic gains.
The Challenges of Traditional Market Research Methods
Traditional processes and their drawbacks
You’re probably familiar with traditional market research methods for multifamily properties. From consulting brokers to relying on internal listing service (ILS) data, these current processes all have their unique drawbacks and limitations:
- Consulting real estate brokers: While informative, this process is time-consuming and often yields subjective insights.
- Manual calling & neighborhood investigation: A significant time investment that requires directly contacting property owners to gather information. Whether handled internally or by a 3rd party call center, this method is unscalable, costly, prone to human error, and suffers from low response rates.
- Trusting intuition: Human judgment is essential in any business, but in market research, it can introduce bias and increase the risk of error.
- Relying on private or ILS data: Private data is often outdated and, in recent years, has faced growing scrutiny. ILS data, scraped from third-party sites rather than sourced directly, can result in an unreliable user experience and less accurate insights.
Yes, these methods may have worked in the past, but competition is intensifying and the speed to market is accelerating. To succeed, you need accurate and timely data that will give you the best picture of the multifamily market. This is where automation can make the biggest impact.
The Role of Automation and AI in Multifamily
What do we mean by automation in multifamily market research?
Automation in multifamily market research refers to the use of AI-powered tools that can gather, process, and analyze large sets of data—faster and more accurately than any human can. Unlike the traditional methods of market research detailed above, automation brings consistency, reliability, and accuracy, creating actionable insights that build a framework for data-driven decision-making.
How does automation transform market research?
Automated market research can achieve outcomes that are difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish manually. Tools such as ApartmentIQ pull vast amounts of data from trusted, public sources, such as property listing sites. This raw data is then aggregated and organized in real-time, giving you a visual depiction of complex data that is easy to read and comprehend.
By introducing automated market research, you receive a comprehensive view of the market that is streamlined and scalable, reducing reliance on repetitive manual processes and increasing the volume of insights available. With this, you and your staff can spend more time focusing on what matters most: making informed decisions and improving the living experience for both current and prospective tenants.
What are the key benefits of automation?
Improved accuracy
AI enhances accuracy by minimizing human error, leading to more reliable data and significantly reducing risk and bias in decision-making. For example, by automating data entry, AI eliminates common manual errors, allowing for more confident decision-making and precise insights. ApartmentIQ takes market research automation a step further by bypassing outdated ILS data entirely and providing 100% unit-level data collection, resulting in a minimum 4% increase in data accuracy.
Data collection at scale
The average property spends 12 days per year manually collecting market data. AI scales data collection effortlessly by automating the aggregation of data from numerous sources. This reduces dependence on manual work and accelerates the process, enabling users to handle much larger data sets. ApartmentIQ’s intuitive dashboard takes this extensive information and presents it in user-friendly formats, making data interpretation seamless and accessible so you don’t need to be a statistician to make informed decisions.
Real-time collection and analysis
AI provides the invaluable advantage of real-time data collection and analysis, allowing for the most informed business decisions based on current market conditions. This real-time capability enables continuous monitoring through features like ApartmentIQ’s daily, automated market survey, which collects data on tens of millions of multifamily units across the United States. As a result, businesses can stay attuned to market dynamics without added labor. AI empowers multifamily professionals not just to keep up but to stay ahead, responding quickly and accurately to shifting market trends.
The Short- and Long-Term Effects of Automating Market Research
Switching to automated market research creates a wealth of advantages that can transform your business operations. From immediate, short-term benefits to long-term strategic gains, automation equips you with the knowledge to drive success now and sustain growth well into the future.
Short-term effects
Automation delivers faster access to critical insights, shortening the time from data collection to decision-making. With real-time tracking of customer preferences and competitor strategies, multifamily managers can make timely adjustments that keep them competitive. The introduction of automation eliminates much of the manual work of data collection and analysis, enabling teams to shift their focus to more meaningful tasks, such as attracting tenants and improving resident experiences.
Long-term effects
Automation opens the door to advanced analytics, such as trend analysis and predictive modeling, which help managers forecast market shifts and seasonal trends with greater accuracy. With data-driven insights guiding decisions, teams can confidently adapt strategies to respond proactively to changing market demands. Over time, these capabilities strengthen an organization’s competitive position by allowing it to anticipate and act on emerging trends.
Ultimate objective
At its core, automated market research aims to boost return on investment (ROI) and revenue by reducing reliance on manual processes and reallocating resources toward strategic decision-making. With a more precise and data-informed view of market conditions, teams can refine pricing, position properties more effectively, and ultimately drive revenue growth.
Getting Started with Automated Market Research
Getting started with automated market research is simpler than you may think. Make the switch today, and be up and running tomorrow by following these three simple steps:
1. Assess your current needs
Begin by evaluating which aspects of your current market research process could benefit from automation. Consider the volume of data, the variety of sources, the frequency with which you need updates, and your overall budget.
2. Choose the right tools
Selecting the right automation tool is essential. While there are many solutions available, you want to avoid ones that pull from ILS providers or pull from private data. These will only provide you with inaccurate data sets and complications down the road. Instead, opt for a solution like ApartmentIQ which provides scalability, easy integration, advanced data processing, and human support. It’s no surprise that ApartmentIQ is the top choice for the National Multifamily Housing Council’s (NMCH) Top 50 list.
3. Plan for implementation and training
Change can be challenging, especially if your team has relied on the same market research strategies for years. Before implementation, secure buy-in across the organization to build a foundation of support and mutual commitment. A well-planned implementation strategy will minimize disruption and adoption resistance. In addition, ease the transition with an AI-driven platform that offers human support and personalized onboarding to ensure your team not only adopts the new system but uses it effectively. ApartmentIQ has successfully onboarded over 800 customers with full-service onboarding backed by an experienced Customer Training Team and Customer Success Managers.
Why Wait? It’s Time to Adopt Automated Market Research
Automation is rapidly reshaping multifamily market research, enabling data-driven decision-making that surpasses what traditional methods can provide. By adopting automated tools like ApartmentIQ, your team can stay competitive and adaptable in a dynamic market landscape, optimizing for both immediate success and sustained long-term growth well into the future.
Ready to learn more? Download the free Multifamily Advantage Report and discover how you can upgrade your market survey with AI.