© 2013 AppFolio, Inc. - Redstone Residential Case Study 1

SummaryRedstone Residential, Inc. focuses on purpose-built student housing at four Utah universities: Brigham Young University (BYU), Utah Valley University (UVU), Utah State University (USU) and Snow College. Founded in 1991, the Redstone Residential team features both executives with decades of experience in student housing, and younger staff who fully utilize technology to fulfill current student housing needs. This provides the company with a unique strength in its market, as many traditional property management companies lack student housing experience, are slow to integrate technology, and may not relate to the students they serve. Currently Redstone Residential handles more than 6,600 beds, including a significant portion of the off-campus housing at BYU and Utah Valley University.

ChallengeRedstone Residential initially relied on manual office systems to manage their buildings. “Early on in the days of Redstone, we were still using paper ledgers and DOS-based accounting systems, with people who transcribed the ledgers into the computer system,” said partner Grant Collard. “This led to a lot of human error, and was very labor intensive and expensive. Eventually, we realized the only way to keep our sanity and create a growth plan for ourselves would be by implementing a fully-integrated property management software.”

Unfortunately the platform didn’t deliver the benefits Redstone Residential hoped for. Despite the system being heralded as “the industry standard,” the staff considered it cumbersome. It was found that the platform required extensive and ongoing training, which posed a problem in terms of the company’s student employees.

“We’re a young company. Most of our employees are under thirty. That’s been our competitive edge – being in touch with the Generation Y market,” explained Collard. “So we tend to spend a lot of time and resources on training. This means we needed a system that was both intuitive and easy to understand—not one that virtually required our own internal tech support line to keep it going.”

Redstone Residential Leverages AppFolio Property Manager To Effectively Handle Student Housing At Four Universities.

“The interface is incredibly easy to use and took very little time to figure out. It’s exactly what we needed.”Grant Collard, Partner, Redstone Residential

AppFolio ContactSales866.648.1536Sales@AppFolio.com

AppFolio, Inc.50 Castilian Dr.Goleta, CA 93117www.AppFolio.com

Property Manager

Key Benefits

Web Based

Easy Vacancy Posting

Prospect Tracking

Online Applications

Professional Websites

Built-in Screening

Collect Rent Online

Accurate Accounting

Insurance

Results Redstone Residential credits AppFolio Property Manager as being a critical part of its success and says the platform will assist with its expansion plans into Nevada and Idaho later this year.

“The software has transformed our system.”

Satisfaction Greater resident satisfaction with a simple, easy to understand interface

AccuracyAccurate accounting and record management

FlexibilityConvenience and flexibility to accommodate varied unit arrangements

EfficiencyCost savings through enhanced productivity and streamlined workflows

© 2013 AppFolio, Inc. - Redstone Residential Case Study 2

The previous software proved costly in other ways as well. “Our previous platform was not easy to use, but it was easy to break,” Collard recalled. “The databases became corrupted quite easily from a misstep made by a front-line employee, and were very expensive.”

It was obvious that Redstone Residential needed a new property management software solution – one that was intuitive, reliable and tailored to the needs of student renters. After the search led to AppFolio Property Manager, Redstone Residential made the switch in early 2013.

Solution: AppFolio Property ManagerAppFolio Property Manager delivered immediate rewards for Redstone Residential. “The interface is incredibly easy to use and took very little time to figure out,” said Collard. “It’s exactly what we needed.”

Collard has also found that AppFolio Property Manager is unique in being able to accommodate the company’s range of properties. “I really like its flexibility,” he said. “With a lot of other software, pricing is per property. It isn’t with AppFolio Property Manager. We often buy small properties – like town homes and rental properties that don’t always fit into a large building model – and AppFolio’s pricing model accommodates that. You pay by the unit, so you can add as many users as you’d like.”

The company has also noticed consistent and vocal appreciation from its student residents. “We get a lot of compliments on how easy it is to pay rent, use the interface and make maintenance requests,” said Collard. “Another nice thing with AppFolio is that there’s no convenience fee with ACH payments and transfers. Most others charge that back to the resident, so eliminating those charges is yet one more benefit we can offer our residents.”

Collard said the platform features have increased efficiency and automated the workflow for the office, saving time for employees in every role. “AppFolio Property Manager has been such a major part of what we’ve done – both for internal processes and on the student end,” said Collard. “The software has transformed our system.”

“Rent week used to mean a line of students out the door holding rent checks. But now that they can make payments online, our team can concentrate on leasing and not lose a week every month to manually process payments,” said Collard. “We can also upload files and notes quickly on residents, scan invoices and run our end of month accounting reports.”

Most recently, the company has decided to explore AppFolio Property Manager’s newest feature, RentMatch, which compares other local rental prices to make sure property managers are getting the most competitive price for their units. “It’s just another way we can save time and be even more efficient,” said Collard.

Learn how AppFolio can help your business at Appfolio.com.

“The software has transformed our system. I’m happy to finally see a technology company get involved and create innovation in the space, rather than the same tired software repackaged as SaaS.”Grant Collard, Partner, Redstone Residential