As someone who spends way too much time behind a desk and in endless virtual meetings, I sometimes catch myself daydreaming about life as an apartment community maintenance professional. Picture it with me:

• The freedom of cruising around the community in a golf cart, with fresh air in your lungs on the way to your next task.
• The quiet satisfaction of turning an empty apartment into move-in ready perfection.
• The joy of using your hands and your tools to take something broken and make it work like new.
• The instant gratification of making a resident's day with a quick repair and a smile.

It sounds pretty great, doesn't it?

But when you talk to those who are actually walking the walk (or, er, driving the golf cart), the reality reveals itself. For all the fresh air, freedom, and occasional thanks from residents, there's another side of the job: frustration. A recent study by Service Team Training and Swift Bunny confirms what many of us have heard firsthand: maintenance professionals are spending too much time wrestling with inefficiencies. And spoiler alert: many of those inefficiencies are rooted in technology.

Tech Headaches in the Field

According to the survey:

• 42% say residents complain about the tech at their communities.
• 35% say that technology doesn't actually improve the resident experience
• 52% admit they've never received training on providing tech support to residents
• Meanwhile, 38% say their office staff haven't been trained either—leaving maintenance as the unofficial help desk

You can probably see where this is going. Residents are confused, calls for help pile up, and maintenance teams are suddenly spending as much time troubleshooting tech mysteries as they are fixing leaky faucets.

One maintenance professional shared: "At the community I work at, we have five apps that residents have to download to use all of the things we offer." Another added their two cents: "Some smart functions don't need to be smart, like thermostats. We receive consistent requests for help figuring it out."

Portals That Don't Pull Their Weight

The study also revealed that about a third of maintenance professionals say resident portals are less than helpful. Instead of smoothing communication, portals can create one more digital hurdle for residents and service teams alike.

As one respondent put it bluntly: "Residents don't know what they are doing and don't like it." Another flagged a more serious issue: "A lot of our residents don't speak English and can't navigate the portal."

When residents can't use the technology as intended, guess who picks up the slack? You got it; the maintenance team once again.

So, What Does This Mean for Our Industry?

Maintenance professionals are the backbone of rental housing communities, and the last thing they need is to be hamstrung by clunky tech and poor training. If we want our service teams to thrive, and our residents to feel supported, our industry needs to take technology rollouts and training more seriously.

The tools we choose should make life easier, not harder. That means giving the team members who use the technology a voice in selecting platforms that are intuitive. It also means prioritizing training for all staff (not just service teams) and thinking carefully about the actual usefulness of "smart" features. Sometimes simple really is smarter.

When we invest in the right solutions, and the proper support for those who use them, everyone wins: residents, office staff, and the maintenance professionals keeping our communities running smoothly.