Bonsall Security & Automation - Brivo Authorized Reseller servicing Omaha, NE and surrounding

According to a survey commissioned by Schlage and conducted by Wakefield Research, 86% of Millenial and 65% of Baby Boomer renters would be willing to pay up to 20% more for smart home features in their apartment. This includes 55% that are likely to pay more for an apartment that has “high-tech” door locks compared to ones that did not.

While Brivo has perfected door access systems since 2002, the Brivo Multi-family Smart Home Platform goes far beyond just access, employing such in-demand automation devices as thermostats, lights, electrical outlets, garage door controllers, in addition to the individual apartment unit door locks that make up the access portion of the smart home foundation. These are the features that the majority of renters are wanting, and are willing to pay more for.

The Brivo Multi-family Smart Home System has other benefits for the property owner, beyond just increased rent. With water leak detectors and freeze sensors, both the tenant and the propery manager can be notified before a small clean-up becomes a major disaster.

These sensors can also be installed in non-tenant areas too, such as common areas, as well as areas where only property management personnel have access. Be notified before a pipe freezes and bursts, or when water first begins to overflow in a bathroom, kitchen, or laundry room.

Combine the ability to sense water in areas where it shouldn't be with the ability to remotely shut off water with a Z-Wave water valve, and water disasters can be largely eliminated.

Brivo's multi-family smart home platform makes self-guided tours for prospective tenants convenient, and secure for the property and staff. Over 40% of prospective tenants have passed on a property due to issues with scheduling a tour. Provide your prospects with convenient tour times that work around their busy life.

Pre-qualify your prospects using your existing qualification process, then send them a unique access code that only works during an agreed-upon timeframe. They use the code to tour not only an apartment, but also amenities, such as fitness rooms, pools, and clubhouses. Review the analytics for their tour, and see who is most likely to sign a new lease.

Providing access security starts with securing the buildings (or even just parts of buildings) of the apartment communities. This could include providing access security to building entrances, or even to common areas such as clubhouses, fitness centers, laundry rooms, or even gates surrounding community swimming pools and dumpsters. This can also include areas that are only accessible to apartment staff, such as offices and maintenance shops.

And because of Brivo's cloud-based nature, installation and management is simple and straightforward. Even with multiple buildings, there's no trenching wires between buildings, or stringing unslightly aerial cables. All the access doors of the entire community are combined into one "system" in the cloud. Everything is managed directly in a web browser. Have a new tenant moving into a unit on the far end of the community? They can be added to the Brivo web interface and have access before they even leave the office to start heading to their new home.

The foundation for the Brivo smart home system is Z-Wave; an industry-standard wireless protocol used by countless home automation devices. Because of the vast number of available Z-Wave devices on the market, there are various options for functionaility and aesthetics.

While the Z-Wave devices connect to the Brivo hub wirelessly, most devices are powered from the electrical grid. While some devices, most noticeably door locks and some thermostats do operate off of battery power, most other devices, such as light switches, electrical outlets, garage door controllers, water valves, and other thermostats operate off of grid power. So, in most cases, the tenant only needs to periodically change the batteries in the door lock, and nothing else. And, they'll get a notice in the Brivo app when those batteries are about to need changed.

For the smart home equipment, the only device that will have a wire that will need run to an electrical outlet is the Brivo hub. Bonsall Security techs will fish that wire inside the wall for appearance as well as protection. The hub can be located in an in-unit furnace room or laundry room, above or inside cabinets, or even behind a cut-in, recessed wall panel.

Most of the smart home devices can be installed by our low-voltage technicians, but some devices, notably light switches and electrical outlets, will require a licensed electrician to install.

Because of the cloud-based nature of the Brivo Multi-Family Smart Home platform, an internet connection to the Brivo hub will be required. During new construction or remodel, it is possible to wire Cat5e/Cat6 cable to meet that requirement. In most cases, though, this internet connection can be either through Wi-Fi or Cellular. Brivo does recommend two network connection types to each hub for fallover redundency, but that is not a requirement.

While Wi-Fi will often be the preferred choice, it is not recommeded by either Bonsall Security or Brivo that the Wi-Fi connection be through a tenant's Wi-Fi service, but through Wi-Fi service provided by the apartment community. This would negate the need to reprogram the Brivo hub every time a new tenant moves in and sets up their own internet service. Plus, it would allow the smart home functions of the individual unit to be controllable by the apartment community's management when the unit is vacant.

Obviously, installing Wi-Fi service in each building of the community is going to add to the overall installation cost of the system. But, Bonsall Security can help by eliminating the need to add any additional internet service to the property to connect the Brivo hubs to. We can install point-to-point access points on each building that can extend the apartment office's Wi-Fi network to each building, connecting the Brivo hubs to that network. The network would be secured to prevent tenant use, and the traffic from the hubs would be negligible. That would also have the added benefit of allowing the office Wi-Fi to be available to apartment staff property-wide, instead of just near the apartment office.

Whenever units are vacant, their smart home functionality reverts to the apartment community staff. This allows easily setting all vacant unit thermostats to a lower-cost termperature level, making sure all lights are off, and making sure all doors are locked. Bulk changes to several or all vacant units can be applied all at once.

Once a unit is rented out, the smart home functionality is transferred to the new tenant, and they manage the settings right through a smart phone app. Community staff can still see the temperature of each unit as measured by the in-unit thermostat.

Brivo's Multi-Family Smart Home platform integrates directly with many different property managment software platforms, including Yardi, Rent Manager, RealPage, and others.

Add your tenants into the Brivo Multi-family Smart Home platform during your regular on-boarding process, with just a few extra clicks.

Because of Brivo's open API (Application Programming Interface), even if you have a custom software system, it too can be integrated by your vendor or IT department with a minimal amount of effort.

(402) 804-8005

(402) 804-8005

Generate Higher Rental Income with a Brivo Multi-family System

Access Control and Smart Home Functionality in One Solution

Help Prevent Disasters

Make Self-guided Tours a Breeze

Start with the Basics

Industry Standard Z-Wave Equipment

Installation is simple and non-invasive

Network Connection Options

Manage Vacant Units

Integrates with Common Property Management Software