Peter Lohmann's Newsletter - Issue #182

You can’t solve process problems with tech (or AI)

Property management is tasks at scale. And those tasks need to be carefully organized into standard processes (SOPs/workflows), or you will quite literally go insane.

And before you can create effective processes, you need documented policies that define how your company works.

It goes like this: Policy—>Process—>Tech. (Not my original idea by the way—credit to Jordan Muela for turning me onto this!) Without policies, you have nothing to base your process design on. And without documented processes, tech/ai is just going to make mistakes faster than you are now.

We use Notion to document all our company policies, but use any tool you like that is easy to use and update. The important part is that it needs to be the exhaustive and single source of truth. Our company Notion has hundreds of pages covering everything from tenant lockouts to employee credit card policies to how the mail gets handled (here’s a video tour of the full build).

So as you consider hottest new AI tools and tech, make sure you have your processes fully documented. If you do, the next generation of tools is going to supercharge your business, putting you way ahead of your competitors. All of these AI Agents need massive amounts of context and background information in order to be productive, and that’s exactly what policy and process documentation provides. It’s no different than what you would want to provide to a new employee.

In other words, most property management companies don’t have a technology (or AI) problem - they have a clarity problem. Fix that first, and the tech you implement (or build) will take care of itself.

Decisions on the Record: Why Your Business Needs a “Cable System”

Most founders have experienced the “disappearing memo” problem… You write something thoughtful. Send it to the team. Everyone reacts with “👍” in Slack. And three weeks later… someone contradicts it, a new hire never saw it, and suddenly nobody knows what the actual policy is.

In this episode, Jon explains the U.S. diplomatic cable system - a structure that embassies use to put decisions “on the record.” A cable isn’t just a message. It’s sequenced, signed off by leadership, and permanently archived as the “single source of truth” (like I mentioned in the opening article). Check it out:

Available on Apple Podcasts & Spotify

Property Management Companies For Sale This Week

• Commercial PM company in Fairfax County, VA (asking $1M, ~$969k annual revenue, 30+ years in business)

• Residential + Commercial PM Company in Ontario, Canada. Includes 2 small apts. and 3 commercial buildings. (asking $225k, ~$80k annual revenue)

• 250-unit property management company in Dartmouth, MA (asking $150k, ~$101k cashflow SDE)

• Here’s an absentee-run residential PM company in San Jose, CA (asking $120k, ~$269k annual revenue)

Sponsored by appgentic.ai. They've been called "the most boring AI company in Property Management" because they will deliver an AI receptionist that just answers calls (even at 2am), responds to your tenants, and saves your team time 🥱 Get a demo.

Industry News & Events

• BREAKING NEWS: The Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (89–10). The bill now heads back to the House, where NARPM is pushing for changes affecting property managers and build-to-rent housing.

• NARPM just launched a Legal Hotline in partnership with Monica Gilroy, Esq. Members can access it here.

• HUD finally rolled back a significant portion of the COVID-era 30-day notice requirement for evictions on certain properties.

• We just opened up registration for Access Granted, our Spring 2026 live launch event for Crane. Speaking of Crane, my business partner Wolfgang Croskey and I were recently featured in Apple News talking about how Crane helps property managers build systems that create more time freedom.

• The FTC just released a 38-page PDF explaining their desire to regulate rental housing fees. They're requesting public comments.

Closing Thought

A few quick things before you go…

• Last week’s issue went to 21,311 readers (53% opened, 5% clicked)

• The most popular link was my podcast interview with Steve Hart “How PMI Built a 475-Location Property Management Franchise” (151 clicks)

• Property managers: Your professional trade association is NARPM. You need to join if you’re not already a member.

• Did someone forward you this email? Subscribe here.

Software I’m using to scale my 700+ door property management company:

Note: These are affiliate links, but I’ve been recommending all these companies long before any financial arrangements came into place.

The content of this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. I may have consulting agreements with, or financial interests in, companies mentioned in this newsletter. Additionally, some of the links included in this newsletter are affiliate links, meaning I may earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links. Always perform your own due diligence before making any financial or business decisions.