Being proactive can be defined as anticipating the future and preparing accordingly to help you stay ahead of the game and avoid any unexpected setbacks. In other words, it allows you to respond effectively to unforeseen events.

On the flip side, a reactive approach implies that you haven’t planned or anticipated the occurrence of events, and are therefore left blindsided. Reactive situations mean that the unexpected events have dictated the agenda – and you are now taking action only out of being forced to.

Why does this matter? Oftentimes when we are trying to rectify a past situation, it can be significantly more complicated. During the period of time that you’re scrambling to find the quickest fix, you can lose productivity, experience increased stress levels, and often end up forking out more cash just to get rid of the problem as quickly as possible. Options are usually limited and less favorable.

A great example is taking the initiative to stock up on sandbags a month before hurricane season begins. The sandbags will likely be in plenty supply and priced normally due to the lack of demand. Fast forward to the day before a hurricane is about to make landfall, and the thousands of people that have ignored the hurricane warning advisories are now frantically rushing to the store – only to find all of the sandbags are sold out, and the ones that ARE available are either being fought over in the parking lot or sold for 99% profit (true story, folks). The high stress, inconvenience and added expense of a ridiculously overpriced sandbag could have all been avoided by last-minute-Lucy, had she only prepared accordingly a few months prior.

In summary, time and money are two of the biggest things that can be salvaged with a proactive mindset. Relating this to the property management industry specifically: if an AC unit is displaying signs of malfunction but it goes unreported for an entire month, the problem will quickly worsen until it becomes broken beyond repair – resulting in the entire unit needing to be replaced. And if you’re familiar with how much it costs to replace (instead of repair) equipment, you’ll know how much money you could have saved had the issue been addressed immediately. Not to mention the added bonus of being able to avoid an unhappy tenant.

Proactive, consistent maintenance on existing equipment will help prevent expensive breakdowns. You’ll also be able to reduce the over-time hours you’re paying your maintenance manager for any late night service calls. But we know that being able to constantly monitor hundreds of units across an entire community can be a big job, which is why we have designed TrustHab – A Facilities IoT Solution that empowers proactive maintenance, purpose-built for Student Housing.

Contact us now to learn more!

To receive our next blog post directly in your inbox, sign up here…