Having just returned from OPTECH 2025 in Las Vegas, I wanted to share my observations on what proved to be one of the most important gatherings for the multifamily housing industry this year. A special thank you to the RETTC team for the invitation and for delivering an outstanding show that brought together the brightest minds in rental housing technology.

Picture with Sharon Wilson Geno, President of NMHC

Resident Experience & Affordability

If there was one unifying message at OPTECH 2025, it was this: technology must serve the resident first. Every panel, every product demonstration, and every hallway conversation circled back to how innovation can improve the lives of the people who call our properties home. As one industry veteran put it during a connectivity panel, operators should think about resident experience first, operating efficiencies second, and economics third—and that order matters.

Zillow's Consumer Housing Trends presentation offered striking insights into today's renters. The average renter age has climbed to 41—far from the young professional stereotype many still carry. Gen Z represents 26% of overall renters but accounts for 44% of moves, making them a demographic that operators cannot ignore. Perhaps most critically, 75% of renters now use mobile apps to find their next home, up from the low 30s just six years ago. The implication is clear: mobile devices aren't just helping renters find your front door—they are your front door.

Budget transparency emerged as a near-universal demand, with 93% of surveyed renters citing budget as their primary concern and 94% wanting full cost transparency upfront. Housing affordability loomed large throughout the conference—not just as a policy talking point, but as an operational imperative. Speakers emphasized that technology investments must ultimately serve affordability, whether through operational savings passed to residents or through enabling more efficient development of the workforce and affordable housing

PropTech ROI: Serving Residents While Protecting the Bottom Line

With rent growth slowing across many markets, the conversation is shifting from revenue generation to operational efficiency—but always through the lens of resident benefit. Research presented at the conference demonstrated encouraging results: properties deploying smart locks, thermostats, and predictive maintenance saw measurable reductions in overtime spend and after-hours service calls. But the real goal remains improving resident satisfaction.

Consider predictive maintenance. When an HVAC system starts showing signs of trouble, smart sensors can alert maintenance teams before failure occurs. As one panelist shared from personal experience, there's a world of difference between a resident receiving proactive outreach—"We detected an issue and we're coming to fix it"—versus discovering their air conditioning has failed during a Phoenix summer. The former builds trust and loyalty; the latter triggers move-out conversations.

Leak detection systems proved particularly compelling, with properties successfully negotiating insurance premium discounts by demonstrating reduced catastrophic incidents. Energy management systems are becoming compliance necessities rather than luxury amenities, with regulations like New York's Local Law 97 requiring 25% energy reductions. The data showed that each degree of temperature control translates to approximately 13% in energy cost savings—benefits that can be shared with environmentally conscious residents.

Connectivity: The Foundation of Modern Living

A recurring theme across multiple panels was the evolution of broadband from amenity to essential infrastructure. As one speaker noted, "Other than a roof over their head, connectivity is the most important thing to your residents." This shift in perspective is driving significant changes in how operators approach their technology stack. Fiber-first strategies are becoming the norm, with providers emphasizing that great managed WiFi ultimately depends on robust fiber backbones.

The introduction of Wi-Fi 7 technology promises improvements beyond raw speed. Multi-link operation expands data pathways from what one presenter described as a two-lane highway to a 16-lane highway, improving experience across all device generations—even older Wi-Fi 5 and 6 devices see 20-30% speed improvements. Platforms like Ruckus’ MDU 360 are giving owners added visibility into network health, bandwidth utilization, and previously invisible resident satisfaction metrics.

Calix highlighted its SmartMDU partnership with Zentro Internet, the largest independent MDU-focused ISP east of the Mississippi. The collaboration has enabled Zentro to deploy property-wide Wi-Fi roaming capabilities—a critical feature in tall MDU buildings where cellular signals may be weak—allowing residents seamless connectivity throughout common areas, including pool decks and parking garages.

Picture: With the Calix Team

The ability to run real-time heat maps and proactively address connectivity issues before residents notice represents a shift in service delivery. When asked about vendor selection, panelists consistently emphasized flexibility—the ability to adapt as technology evolves and resident expectations change. One provider noted that managed Wi-Fi is evolving so rapidly that within five years, the word "managed" may become redundant as all connectivity solutions converge toward optimized user experience.

A notable product announcement came from DojoNetworks, which unveiled major upgrades to Elemento, its unified network operations platform. The new release features a completely redesigned dashboarding suite, an AI-powered customer support agent capable of handling inquiries in 52 languages via voice, text, email, or chatbot, and vendor-agnostic licensing now available to all ISPs and MSPs nationwide. 

Picture with the Dojo Networks team

AI as an Enabler—With Appropriate Guardrails

While AI generated significant discussion, the industry's approach was notably measured. Congressmen Jay Obernolte and Ted Lieu, co-chairs of the bipartisan AI Task Force, outlined the United States' sectoral approach to regulation—letting domain experts oversee AI applications within their respective industries rather than creating a single massive regulatory framework. For housing providers, this means practical flexibility to innovate while maintaining accountability.

RETTC Unveiled the First-of-Its-Kind AI Governance Framework for Rental Housing and Technology Partners.  The unveiling of the Responsible AI innovation principles provided a voluntary governance framework developed by technology providers and rental housing operators working together. These eight principles emphasize human oversight at key decision points, transparency in deployment, and third-party partner accountability. The framework acknowledges a crucial truth repeated throughout the conference: AI excels at pattern recognition and handling large data volumes, while humans bring irreplaceable context, judgment, and empathy.

The Human Element Remains Essential

Despite all the technology discussions, a consistent theme emerged: automation should free humans to be more human. Site teams won't be replaced; they'll evolve into roles that leverage technology while focusing on relationship-building that residents genuinely value. As one panelist observed, there will always be residents who want a human connection—and that preference may even command a premium as automation becomes ubiquitous. The winning operators will offer choice: seamless digital experiences for those who want them, with genuine human touchpoints preserved for those who don't.

For operators and investors seeking to understand these trends in greater depth, our MDU Research Service provides comprehensive analysis of connectivity solutions, smart living technologies, and the evolving PropTech landscape. As the industry navigates this transformation, having reliable market intelligence will be essential for making informed decisions.

Thank you again to the RETTC team for a phenomenal event!