The Internet of Things (IoT) presents the apartment industry with both opportunities and challenges. The National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) has published a new white paper, Smart Communities: The Internet of Things & the Apartment Industry, to help apartment firms navigate the potential and the possible pitfalls of smart home technologies.
This white paper is designed to serve apartment firms at various stages of evaluating and piloting IoT. It documents some of the opportunities IoT offers and provides guidance and best practices for each phase. For firms just beginning to explore IoT, the paper provides a primer on smart home technology and how it can be deployed to provide competitive advantages and help support industry innovation. It goes on to document the seven steps to develop and execute an IoT strategy and offers best practices for each step.
For firms that have successfully launched an IoT pilot, the paper offers advice on how to plan for the ongoing maintenance of new infrastructure and how to ensure the integrity of new systems, drawing on many of the best practices already created for cybersecurity.
“Smart home technologies can create a competitive advantage and help drive innovation for apartment firms,” said Doug Bibby, NMHC’s President. “But achieving those goals requires firms to understand how IoT fits within their business strateg and also to acknowledge and develop plans to manage the risks associated with Internet-connected devices. This paper seeks to inform both of those.”
The paper was authored by Gate 15, a homeland security-focused all-hazards company, and NMHC staff and members. It is available to NMHC members here.
About NMHC
Based in Washington, D.C., the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) is the leadership of the trillion-dollar apartment industry. We bring together the prominent apartment owners, managers and developers who help create thriving communities by providing apartment homes for 39 million Americans. NMHC provides a forum for insight, advocacy and action that enables both members and the communities they help build to thrive.
