iRent
Financial reporting and analytic capabilities minimize our workload in consolidating financial data as well as give us a comprehensive understanding of our business performance in different periods.
Johnny Cheng
Business Development Manager
Business Development Manager
Levelling Up with Automation in Apartment Rental Management
For students studying abroad, finding affordable and cozy accommodation could be one of their primary concerns. In Hong Kong, student housing in universities’ residence halls is always limited. Flat-hunting ignited a group of overseas university graduates to set up iRent, aiming to create a warm rental living community for students.
Established in 2014, iRent offers long-term apartment rental services specifically for Mainland China and overseas students studying in Hong Kong. Its apartments are strategically located in key districts across Hong Kong including Mongkok, Prince Edward, Yau Ma Tei, Kowloon City and Shatin, with close proximity to various universities and MTR stations.
iRent’s property portfolio includes 10 apartment buildings and other residences scattered in multiple residential buildings, providing 250 rooms via its one-stop O2O apartment rental platform. The company has served over 700 tenants since its inception with 95% students coming from different countries.
A wide range of room types at monthly or yearly rental plans are available to cater for different tenant needs. Custom-made furniture, regular cleaning, courier services and various entertainment services are also provided.
Challenges in Booking Management
When iRent debuted its apartment rental services, the company collected and recorded room availability, bookings and tenants’ information offline. With the growing numbers of both rooms and tenants, the company experienced pain points throughout the offline booking management and account invoicing process. iRent believes that technology plays an important role in its daily business operations and expansion strategies.
“In the past, our staffs had to do a lot of manual works to keep track of room status such as bookings and availability. It was prone to human errors and increased our manpower costs,” said Johnny Cheng, Business Development Manager at iRent. Cheng decided to look for automation solutions in property and financial management.
iRent eventually turned to FlexSystem Ltd, one of the largest Hong Kong-based enterprise management software and services provider. Financial and Property Management solutions are implemented at iRent.
Maximise Manpower and Efficiency
Financial and Property Management solutions help iRent maximize manpower, enhance lease and accounting operational efficiency and assist in business decision making.
“Our entire booking process is now automated with minimal human intervention, enhancing efficiency while reducing human errors and manpower costs,” he said. “Every staff can now handle 150 tenants simultaneously, speed up 50% after using FlexSystem’s solutions.”
Tenants are now able to search, view and book rooms, pay rental fees, submit repair requests and chat with customer service agents online. 3D 360-degree views of rooms are available for customers who are unable to schedule onsite property viewing.
Financial and Property Management solutions provide high-level data security, access control and flexible reporting. iRent staffs are granted different access rights to ensure they have the appropriate access to company data including financial and confidential data.
Data Analysis in Management
Data analysis becomes more crucial for financial and real estate business management. FlexSystem solutions enable iRent to easily retrieve meaningful financial data and create reports for financial analysis.
“Financial reporting and analytic capabilities minimize our workload in consolidating financial data as well as give us a comprehensive understanding of our business performance in different periods such as every quarter or every year,” he said.
He added, “FlexSystem solutions provide actionable insights for our financial and business planning. We can make more informed business and investment decisions particularly in business expansion.”
Despite challenges brought by COVID-19 and economic downturn, iRent has an optimistic outlook of property management market. “With an ever-rising demand for housing and quality living in the Chinese community, Hong Kong’s property rental market will continue to prosper,” he concluded.