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From Necessity to Competitive Edge: The Growing Importance of Reliable Internet in Apartment Buildings

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In today's increasingly digital world, the importance of reliable and high-speed internet cannot be overstated. It has become an essential utility for residents in apartment buildings, transforming from a luxury to a necessity. Reliable high speed internet is an often overlooked service that is all too frequently left entirely to local incumbent providers to supply the needs of residents. Let’s take a moment to explore the value and benefits of providing and selling internet service to building residents and why leaving this in the hands of the local phone and cable company leaves both the building owner and the residents getting short changed.

By offering even “just above average” internet services, apartment building owners can enhance tenant attraction and retention rates. In today's highly competitive rental market, a reliable and high-speed internet connection has become one of the top amenities tenants consider when choosing a residence. Moreover, being able to advertise gigabit or multi-gigabit fiber to a building becomes a key differentiator for building owners. This differentiation creates a competitive edge that can boost occupancy rates and decrease tenant turnover. Savvy building owners are already taking advantage of this with Aditum and increasing building NOI, gross revenue and profits.

A common mistake is confusing building Wi-Fi with actually providing internet service to the residents. Providing real internet service means the ability to offer wired and wireless connections to residents in their apartment, provide static IP addresses to residents who may have a work related need for one (and a willingness to pay extra for it), and most importantly providing guaranteed minimum levels of performance so that even under the most heavy load and busiest times that the internet will continue to work well for all residents in the building to operate without any problems.

Providing and selling internet services to apartment building residents also presents a lucrative opportunity for both building owners and the service providers who install it. Building owners routinely realize NET annual profits of $250-$500 per apartment ($750-$1000 Gross). A 150 unit building can easily see profits from internet sales reach up to $75k/yr. In addition, SMART building management systems (HVAC, cameras, door access control, etc.) all benefit from some ethernet wiring throughout the building (often this is required). Much of this same low voltage cabling infrastructure can be shared and all these services may co-exist safely on the same cabling and switch hardware. This infrastructure sharing can reduce the effective Capital Expenditure (CapEx) associated with each additional overlayed system, resulting in a higher return on investment (ROI) for the owner.

Historically, the main arguments against providing Internet have been a matter of technical difficulty coupled with a high cost of maintenance and support. Equipment necessary to provide a quality service was costly and the labor to maintain and support that equipment was too expensive to justify the effort in all but the largest of deployments. Previously, these barriers to entry were formidable and allowed the phone and cable companies to thrive in this space.

Aditum is a solution designed specifically to solve these problems. The platform is designed to be set up and maintained by a person of average tech skills and it can be maintained by the building staff, no network engineers are required. Aditum is designed from the ground up to specifically address the internet problem in the MDU space while providing all the same features the Tier 1 providers offer (e.g., cable, phone companies). It provides these Tier 1 features in a scaled down platform that allows these features to be accessible and affordable for buildings of any size (e.g., automated device provisioning, automated billing solutions, web based Wi-Fi config for tenants’ private Wi-Fi).

When multiple service providers collaborate to offer a comprehensive suite of amenities, such as HVAC systems, security cameras and internet services, apartment building owners can create a seamless and integrated living experience for their residents. This synergy not only enhances tenant satisfaction but also simplifies management for building owners while also driving up the bottom line. Residents benefit from a one-stop solution that meets their various needs, leading to increased resident loyalty and improved overall satisfaction.

In the era of smart buildings, providing internet services becomes even more critical. As apartment buildings adopt smart technologies, such as connected thermostats, lighting control systems or virtual concierge services, a robust and reliable internet connection becomes the backbone of these innovations. Today’s tenant is increasingly working from home (WFH); therefore, the quality and speed of internet offerings is essential to their employment. This creates a tangible opportunity for savvy building owners and service providers to create a new revenue stream for their respective businesses. Building owners need to position themselves as leaders in the smart building space by offering high-quality internet services, attracting tech-savvy residents who value convenience, energy efficiency and enhanced security.

To many, Milwaukee, WI, may not seem to be the hotbed of high tech competition, but just at the edge of the UW-Milwaukee campus there lies several perfect examples of property owners who are leveraging Internet sales in the never ending battle to attract and retain tenants. In this price range of a competitive mid-west college town where tenants will sometimes make rental choices on the smallest of dollar margins, owners who also control their internet services are frequently enticing renters away from owners who do not. Often these owners provide several months of free internet to entice cost-conscious tenants to sign. These owners consistently report near 100% occupancy in their buildings.

The value and benefits of providing and selling internet services to apartment building residents cannot be overlooked. For apartment building owners, it presents an opportunity to increase occupancy rates, reduce tenant turnover, and create additional revenue streams. For MDU service providers, it offers operational efficiency, additional revenue, and a chance to expand their customer base. Leveraging existing infrastructure, such as ethernet wiring, enables both parties to maximize ROI while delivering reliable and high-speed internet services to tenants. By embracing this opportunity, apartment building owners and MDU service providers can create a win-win situation that enhances tenant satisfaction, increases profitability and positions their properties as modern, technologically advanced living spaces.

Brian Higgins, CEO, Aditum Brian Higgins is founder and CEO of Aditum, a Norwalk, Connecticut-based technology company focused on revolutionizing how the real estate industry connects to the Internet. Leading the business from its inception, Aditum’s broadband platform enables building owners to provide enhanced services to their tenants in the form of competitive, high-quality broadband, capable of achieving speeds of up to 10 gigabit of internet service – while generating revenue for the property.

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