Multifamily teams are under constant pressure to do more with less. Resident expectations are rising, staffing remains tight, and day-to-day operations can quickly turn into a nonstop cycle of requests, follow-ups and administrative work.
Automation is a lifeline in this environment. It performs repetitive, routine tasks that pull teams away from higher-value work without direct human intervention. In multifamily operations, this can include things like processing reports, scheduling maintenance requests, or managing standard resident communications. Artificial intelligence complements this by highlighting which tasks are best suited for automation.
During WithMe, Inc.’s webinar, The Future of Multifamily Leadership in an AI-Driven 2026, multifamily executives shared how thoughtful automation has helped their teams regain time, reduce burnout and refocus on the work that requires a human touch. What became clear is that automation delivers the most value when it empowers people, not when it tries to outpace them.
At its best, automation doesn’t change who does the work. It changes how the work gets done.
Turning Repetitive Tasks into Time
The connection between automation and efficiency is well understood.
What’s less often discussed is how automation reshapes where teams spend their energy.
“I’m building systems to look at reporting. Instead of 70 different people compiling reports throughout the week, I do that automatically, nightly, for the entire business. This ensures consistent formatting across exposure tracking, lead management and pricing decisions. All those tools are automated, and it’s 4Xing the output of what used to require a team of five,” said Daniel Thomas, vice president of analytics at Portico Property Management. “It’s not replacing me. It’s making me more effective.”
When routine processes run automatically, teams are freed from chasing paperwork or managing endless follow-ups and can focus on resident relationships, proactive problem-solving, and building stronger, more connected communities.
Automation’s true impact is revealed in the moments it unlocks: an extra hour to mentor a team member, fewer manual handoffs that add unnecessary complexity or burnout, or simply breathing room to think strategically rather than constantly reacting to situations. Done right, automation amplifies human effort.
Where Automation Delivers Real Value
When applied with intention, automation enhances consistency, efficiency and accuracy across multifamily operations. Webinar panelists highlighted a few key areas where it is already driving tangible benefits:
- Reducing burnout: Automation handles routine work so teams can dedicate attention to initiatives that have the greatest impact.
- Improving response times: Automation allows routine inquiries and updates to be handled promptly, helping prospects and residents feel seen and valued while improving overall satisfaction.
- Increasing operational consistency: Standardized workflows reduce errors and ensure no step is overlooked.
- Supporting retention: Lisa Moore, director of training and support at GoldOller Real Estate Investments, reported a nearly 40% increase in retention after automating routine resident communications. “Teams can breathe,” she said. “And that frees employees to focus on why we hired them: to be great at the human side of the job.”
The Risks of Moving Too Fast
Automation can introduce new problems when it’s implemented without discipline.
Several panelists warned that automating broken or poorly defined processes only magnifies inefficiencies.
“If you automate a process that isn’t working correctly, you just make the problem happen faster,” Landis noted. “We’ve learned that defining and documenting workflows before automation is critical. Otherwise, you’re amplifying mistakes instead of eliminating them.”
Over-reliance can also become a blind spot. When teams stop questioning outputs or disengage from decision-making, automation shifts from a support system to a crutch. Teams may lose sight of the human judgment required to interpret results, respond to anomalies or adapt to unexpected situations.
Automation should serve the team, not dictate their decisions, accountability or critical thinking. Centralized processes provide the structure and consistency that automation depends on to deliver reliable results.
Leadership Makes Automation Work
Successful automation starts with leadership buy-in and stays successful through ongoing involvement.
Lisa Moore also emphasized that resistance is often rooted in fear. “Everyone is up in arms and doesn’t want to take one step forward,” she said. “Leadership should immerse themselves, understand the tools and communicate enthusiastically. They should go shoulder-to-shoulder with teams from day one.” Celebrating wins, even small ones, reinforces adoption and confidence.
However, Moore urges caution. “You can’t ‘set it and forget it,’” she said. “Bots learn from us.” Automation requires ongoing maintenance. Knowledge bases must be updated, training repeated as teams change and results monitored regularly.
Automation Reveals, Not Weakens, Human Connection
One concern leaders often raise is whether automation erodes human connection. According to the panel, the opposite is true.
“If you’re worried automation will make you lose connection, I don’t think you’re actually being a leader,” said Thomas. “Tools get the work done, but the relationships you build are with real humans.”
Thomas emphasized hiring for human traits (curiosity, passion, and a learning mindset) rather than technical skills alone. Automation, he noted, is simply another tool in the leadership toolbox.
Choosing Automation That Works
With so many platforms promising to automate everything, it’s easy to get caught up in novelty rather than true operational impact.
Self-serve amenities, like WithMe’s PrintWithMe and SipWithMe, are intentionally designed at the intersection of convenience, automation, and measurable performance.
For residents, the value is immediate. They get on-demand access and an intuitive experience that matches modern expectations for autonomy and speed.
For on-site teams, that same self-serve experience is supported by automation that reduces day-to-day workload. It cuts down on manual tasks and routine oversight, and it helps prevent the interruptions that pull staff away from higher-value work.
These tech-enabled amenities operate reliably without constant human intervention and the result is not just fewer tasks for staff, but fewer points of failure overall. Teams spend less time troubleshooting, tracking usage, and managing inventory, and more time focused on initiatives that improve retention, satisfaction, and long-term property performance.
When automation underpins self-serve experiences that residents value and produces analytics that make performance visible, amenities evolve from optional perks into components of a deliberate operational strategy.
We developed a reference for when these concepts start to feel a little confusing. The AI, Automation & Centralization Cheat Sheet clarifies the role each technology plays and how they work together to create consistency, insight and breathing room for teams.
