How Stratford Partners Baked AI-Enabled Centralization Into Their Investment Thesis

Stratford Partners is a boutique real estate investment firm focused on using best-in-class technology to drive outsized returns. With a portfolio comprising value-added assets, LIHTC conversions, debt repositions, and fractured condos across the nation, Stratford Partners has proved its consistent ability to identify opportunities, mitigate risks, and deliver value to investors across a wide variety of local markets. But, as is the case with many multifamily owners, delivering value in light of challenging apartment market conditions isn’t always as simple as adding a new coat of paint to a troubled asset.

‍

As Stratford Partners expanded its portfolio across diverse markets, the team encountered a common operational tension in multifamily: smaller communities in the 80-100 unit range often fall into a staffing gray zone—too large for a single office employee, yet not quite justifiable for two. A shared staffing model at certain assets created after-hours and weekend availability gaps that hurt leasing conversion rates. This was amplified by the fact that the onsite teams stewarding Stratford’s assets had to spend significant amounts of valuable time on menial, repetitive tasks—like post-tour follow-ups and rent reminders—rather than impactful work like building resident relationships, working on competitive positioning, and mystery shopping. 

‍

Rather than treating these challenges as isolated issues, Mark Halling, Principal and Director of Portfolio Management, and the Stratford team saw an opportunity to reimagine core operations, positioning technology not as a tool, but as a lever for scalable performance.

Stratford Partners first started using EliseAI at several of their assets in 2020 due to its robust integration with their preferred PMS, setting them ahead of the tech curve in multifamily asset management. From there, the team had the vision to deploy EliseAI in conjunction with an innovative centralized model, leveraging one dedicated management company resource as a centralized leasing agent across 16 assets.

‍

By combining the associate’s human expertise with the force-multiplying capabilities of EliseAI, Stratford Partners now receives unmatched service quality at scale. The centralized team member brings their deep understanding of Stratford Partners’ differentiated offerings and unique markets to the table, while EliseAI makes managing leasing and resident communications across 16 assets possible for one person. 

‍

Mark and the Stratford Partners team also view this setup as a more effective structure for attracting top leasing talent that isn’t interested in the accounting responsibilities and other administrative tasks that usually fall under the purview of a community manager. By giving team members the opportunity to become incredible leasing professionals covering multiple assets, Stratford ensures its communities are consistently marketed and leased up by top-tier talent at scalable costs. With AI handling “steps one and two of a ten part leasing journey,” Stratford Partners has been able to outperform the market, relying on AI and automation to automate repetitive work so their centralized agent can focus on high-leverage activities, like personalized negotiations. 

‍

From the early days of exclusively leveraging LeasingAI, Stratford Partners has now expanded their EliseAI usage to include Delinquency and Maintenance, creating consistency and scalable efficiencies throughout the entire prospect-through-resident lifecycle, and expanded AI-Guided Tour capabilities to further amplify the reach of their centralized team member.

‍

Stratford Partners has driven improved results across the board with EliseAI and centralization: improved leasing conversion rates, decreasing bad debt, and increased operating efficiency through cost savings. That is most clearly seen in how the centralization effort has introduced new opportunities for payroll reduction. For example, Stratford Partners initially had two managers overseeing four deals in one Colorado submarket, with a total payroll burden of $167,000. Today, one senior manager oversees all four deals with support from the centralized leasing resource, at a total salary and burden figure of $116,000—immediate ROI from EliseAI-enabled headcount reduction.

‍

The impacts of EliseAI on the day to day operations at Stratford Partners communities go beyond the dollars and cents. Today, onsite team members who look after Stratford Partners assets are freed up for high-value tasks that they otherwise would not have been able to attend to, building lasting relationships with residents that increase renewal rates and protect asset performance. Average response times have been slashed significantly, ensuring Stratford Partners communities immediately support residents around the clock—consistently engaging prospects between Friday evening and Monday morning when onsite teams aren't working, and ensuring Stratford properties stay top of mind.

‍

Between cost savings from successful centralization, portfolio-wide leasing and delinquency performance improvement, and qualitative increases in service quality, Stratford Partners has succeeded in reinventing their operations for the modern multifamily environment. 

‍

Today, AI adoption is now a core part of Stratford's value proposition. For Mark and the Stratford team, EliseAI usage has become a highly preferred, if not outright required, part of the tech stack. Stratford Partners is applying this AI-first approach as they expand their foothold in markets like North Carolina and Tennessee, betting on the hypothesis that speed to reply and 24/7 availability drives outsized returns in a tight rental environment.

‍

The Stratford Partners team continues to advocate for AI adoption with other owners, staking their claim on the cutting edge of innovation in asset management. They bring this collaborative, forward-looking gaze to their fee manager partnerships, working closely with operational specialists to drive AI adoption rather than simply mandating it from the top down. With AI-powered centralization as part of their investment thesis, the Stratford Partners team is heading to where the industry is going instead of chasing trends.

‍

Look for Stratford Partners to continue delivering both short and long term results that outperform the market at large, with a little help from EliseAI.