The safety of residents is of paramount importance for multifamily housing operators. Nevertheless, achieving complete control and substantiating 100% compliance across all areas of housing can be difficult. In a co-regulated environment, the flexibility to oversee compliance has seen many owners and operators fall short in terms of complying. However, as regulations and fines become more stringent, the importance of compliance has never been more crucial.
Here we will outline some of the most common compliance mistakes in housing and how to avoid them in order to create long-term sustainable compliance adherence.
Mistake #1: Lack of strategic direction for compliance management.
Ensuring consistent adherence for sustainable compliance is a complex challenge. Without clear guidance from owners and operators, the safety risks associated with properties and residents tend to escalate. It is apparent that many owners and operators lack strategic direction for compliance management, making it difficult for them to meet regulatory requirements. Consequently, this results in a rise of potential hazards and defects within properties that will not only become costly, but also pose a substantial threat to the health and overall well-being of residents.
How to avoid this mistake? The government not only outlines the compliance regulations that owners and operators need to follow, but it also promotes methodology that should be adopted to produce timely reports and good-quality data. By utilizing resources like HUD, multifamily housing operators will be able to clarify their intentions and expectations for compliance and connect policies, processes, people, systems, and resources for sustainable compliance adherence.
Mistake #2: Poor management of compliance data.
Demonstrating full housing compliance management via a single source of truth is difficult to achieve. It is common for compliance management to take place across an array of programs, systems, spreadsheets, and databases that are not interfaced with a core housing management system. As a result, it is often impossible to ensure the accuracy of data between the asset data within these systems and the asset data stored in the central property management system. Consequently, this affects the accuracy of KPIs and achieving a single source of truth.
How to avoid this mistake? Implementing an appropriate compliance management software that can integrate into the core property management system will not only centralize data and create a single source of truth, but will also enhance visibility across teams. Compliance management software can help you gain a 360-degree view of building safety through comprehensive insights and performance reports, and deliver corrective action and follow-on actions swiftly to reduce or remove hazards faster.
Mistake #3: Little to no compliance reporting or KPIs.
All owners and operators have an obligation to manage and report on various aspects of compliance, however, some of these are more stringent than others. It is common for owners and operators to not cover all areas of compliance within their compliance health check, subsequently, reporting at both governance and management levels is often inadequate or non-existent, raising concerns for the safety of properties and their residents.
How to avoid this mistake? Develop a suite of appropriate KPIs at both governance and management levels to ensure effective compliance management. In combination with compliance management software, KPIs can be reported on to drive actionable decisions and faster resolutions. Streamline reporting with full configuration and real-time data, while keeping track of all types of compliance such as fire, gas, electrical, elevator, and water safety, as well as custom trackers, in a single platform.
How can Plentific help with compliance management?
Plentific’s new and improved Compliance Management Solution helps property operators stay compliant with ease by quickly identifying hazards and seamlessly taking action to remove or reduce risks. It enables owners and operators to efficiently track, manage, and ensure building safety and compliance across all areas in a robust, flexible, and secure way. The solution covers the areas of fire, gas, electrical, elevator, and water safety. What’s more, owners and operators can keep track of all types of building records, such as moisture and mold and smoke alarm checks with full configuration.
Ready to take the next step in elevating your compliance management strategy with Plentific? Get in touch.
