By Chris Larsen

In the world of property management, those with the data are kings. The IT era has caught up with the humble property manager – no longer do they simply collect the rent and ‘mind the store’. Today they are more likely to be found on a computer, feeding data to clients constantly hungry for more information and better performance. Chris Larsen spoke to MRI’s Ian Anderson on the future of property management systems beyond the information age.

In Australia’s property IT market, Ian Anderson is flying high – and it’s because of business ‘gremlins’ such as Y2K and the GST.

Among other things, these two factors have created a target-rich environment amongst the management hierarchies within Australia’s leading property trusts and agencies.

The need for speed has caught up with these managers of property, who now need new systems. And as the Australian general manager MRI, of one of the biggest firms in the property-specific IT pack, Anderson is on the prowl.

"Now that the GST and Y2K issues have settled, and the Olympic period is over, there are a large number of property trusts and agents reviewing their current IT infrastructure," Anderson says.

"The GST did not necessarily create a major driver of change in property related software, but the complexities of it and the instability it created caused the majority of agents and trusts to adapt their existing systems as an interim measure."

Anderson says these interim measures are akin to a ‘band-aid’ solution. Major upgrades, or replacement, of existing systems are on the cards for many Australian property trusts and managers, and many current ‘legacy’ or in-house systems won’t have adjusted well.

"We have a very competitive property industry here, compared to the rest of the world," Anderson says. "To be able to compete for new business and achieve the highest levels of productivity, they’re looking for leading-edge technology.

"They are comparing what is available on the market through regular IT infrastructure reviews. To utilise an in-house system or a third-party system with limited support resources is very difficult to justify, given some of the solutions currently available."

In his 17 years in the property management game, Anderson has been exposed to numerous systems. Working with agencies such as CB Richard Ellis and Knight Frank, Anderson has moved through various property management and accounting positions, including trust accountant and financial controller. Three years ago he moved from Perth to Sydney to become Australian general manager of MRI.

A global company based in the US, MRI has also been prominent in the Australian market for some time.

It has staked a large claim in the provision of specialist property-related software. MRI’s trademark is the modular construction of its systems – clients buy a base package and add the modules they need, whether they be for property or asset management, trust accounting, corporate real estate or tenancy management.

Traditionally MRI’s favoured hunting ground for new clients in Australia has been the major commercial property agencies, an area in which Anderson believes there is still growth – particularly given the continuing trend towards outsourcing.

But Australia’s major property owning institutions and listed property trusts have been a more recent focus for MRI’s attention, which is where MRI’s US and European strength lies.

Property Australia caught Anderson – who has just returned from a global MRI conference in Florida – as the company is preparing to roll out new system modules intended for the project management and property leasing markets.

Anderson believes there is room for specialist software in these markets and it is here that MRI is also exploring portability for property software. The company intends leasing agents to take MRI-enabled pocket computers ‘on tour’ during leasing inspections, enter data electronically and ‘sync’ with their main systems upon return to the office.

"Portability has a number of advantages in the facilities management and leasing markets. And we all like our gadgets and toys," Anderson says.

So if property IT is already on the cusp of portability, what is the next big thing? What systems will property managers of the future be using, and what benefits will they bring?

It has long been said that the commercial property industry, in comparison to other sectors, has been slow to take up the new technologies of the internet age. Anderson believes that the future for property systems in Australia is not just web-enablement, but transparent web-based systems.

Anderson says this trend is already emerging in the United States, with real estate investment trusts (REITs) and analysts holding software and databases in their own offices, and property management agents processing directly into their servers.

"That way the property trust has the ability to . . . have on-line access to their portfolios and can consolidate and provide financials across all their properties, instantly."

He says the market for commercial property-specific software has come a long way. In an era where better technology forces us to work faster rather than less, it would appear that the industry is locked into investing in systems that help us manage property better, and quicker.

Anderson says access to information will grant property owners, trusts and institutions increased transparency into their properties, and more power over their portfolios.

"The transfer (of information) between agencies and owners is no longer where it used to be," Anderson says. "When I started in property (management) 17 years ago, the medium of exchange between us and the owners was through reporting. Now (the trusts) have the ability for direct on-line enquiry and reporting access.

"It gives them the information they need to manage their business (and) . . . increase their productivity.

"We have become an information-hungry society. We need to source information in order to be able to analyse our business needs and, for a property trust, to provide the best returns to unitholders."