Background

Waikiki Banyan is a popular 38-story condominium complex located just a block and a half from the dazzling Waikiki Beach. The two towers that make up the complex are more than 40 years old, and they receive dozens of short-term visitors every week. 93% of units are used as short-term rentals. Chris Saxton, the General Manager, wanted a modern system that would drive operations and keep up with the condominium.

Challenges

Outdated resident data

Prior to Condo Control, Waikiki Banyan was using an outdated system with a simple data bank to store resident information. Chris would have to contact a managing agent if an email or phone number was no longer valid since so few owners actually live in the condo complex. Every update had to be completed manually. “It was trying and tiring finding the correct information.”

Slow, tedious process for communications

To contact someone, Chris and his team used Outlook. They would type out each email and add addresses manually. But again, if an email was no longer in use, it would take additional time to find valid contact information.

Issuing citations took up valuable time

Since so many units are occupied by short-term visitors who may not be aware of the rules, Waikiki Banyan produced a sizable number of incident reports that are converted into citations. It would take Chris anywhere from 30 to 40 minutes to complete and issue a single citation.

Solution

Chris was excited to introduce Condo Control to the community because he believed it would create meaningful changes. Not only did he anticipate improved operational efficiencies, but cost reductions, too.

Implementation

Residents and staff have all enjoyed more effective communication and one-click operational processes since they started using Condo Control.

Dynamic communication channels

Waikiki Banyan is already seeing positive results now that it is using Condo Control’s streamlined announcements tool to share notices. Staff can send out text messages or email instantly, depending on the urgency of the notice. The condo complex is in the middle of a couple of big projects, and the water needs to be turned off regularly. When they become aware of the next disruption, staff can schedule a notice ahead of time instead of having to remember to send it out. Chris estimates that this solution has reduced admin work for his team by roughly 15 hours a week.

Engaged residents

There has been a 20% increase in resident platform usage since Condo Control was introduced to Waikiki Banyan. Residents can access documents conveniently through the document library, which is a big appeal. “Any time we have documentation required to be online (insurance or house rules), we add them to Condo Control.”

Cost-conscious processes

Chris was eager to see how much he could reduce costs associated with annual meetings using Condo Control. Though the meeting hadn’t occurred before this case study was completed, he expected to see a 15% reduction in annual notification expenses by sending out electronic notices instead.

Less manual work, faster rule enforcement

Now, when a citation needs to be issued to a unit, staff can build templates on Condo Control’s violation management feature and reuse them as needed. Citations can be completed in 10 minutes instead of 40 minutes, resulting in faster enforcement and resolution times.

Waikiki Banyan Results Through Condo Control

One-click workflows

It takes as little as one click of a button to reach residents, share notices and post documents. Residents can also submit service requests for broken washers and dryers through Condo Control instead of leaving handwritten notes for staff to find.

Reduced manual work by dozens of hours

Staff can complete a citation 30 minutes faster. Cumbersome manual work has been reduced by 15 to 20 hours. Time spent sending out communications to residents has been reduced by 15 hours per week.

Ability to move forward with projects

Staff have more freedom to focus on bigger projects that will maintain the value and appeal of the property.

Higher resident engagement

20% more residents are on Condo Control than on the previous platform. Considering less than 10% of owners live in their units, Condo Control is key in keeping offsite owners connected.

Conclusion

Waikiki Banyan has transformed operations with the help of Condo Control. The platform has improved connectivity and transparency for residents, and made traditionally slow workflows less tedious for Chris and his team. Now, they can focus on completing bigger tasks.