To define a property’s value proposition in a crowded market is to invest in solutions that recognise the needs of the tenant and property owner. To add value where it can be added, and to lock in values like trust, transparency and accessibility. This can be hard to do in South Africa, a country with its fair share of complexity, but it is not impossible. According to Citiq Prepaid Managing Director, Michael Franze, simple tools that are reliable, authentic and capable can make all the difference to how a property is perceived.
“There are numerous obstacles that developers and architects have to overcome for their clients in order to gain traction in the market,” he explains. “One of the most common is, of course, utility management. Control and admin can cause difficulties and this can cause distrust, mismanagement and damaged reputations. These are just some of the reasons why companies are opting for prepaid sub-meters because they turn challenges into simple solutions.”
Prepaid sub-meters add immediate transparency. Tenants pay upfront, and they manage their spend directly through online purchases or recharge outlets. There are no shared bills with other tenants or complicated municipality readings. Everything is managed directly from the unit, by the tenant. With Citiq Prepaid this is further refined by the addition of an online portal that allows for landlords and tenants to access their own customised areas. Landlords log in to find reporting functionalities and metre allocations that give them much-needed visibility, and tenants log in to find data around spend and recharging.
“Our prepaid sub-meters remove any chances of hidden fees or unexpected costs,” says Franze. “They also contribute to South Africa’s economic development. Well, they do through the Citiq Installation Club (CIC) that offers installers from around the country the opportunity to engage with new markets, receive helpful training materials, and get access to valuable resources. We have designed our CIC to provide electrical contractors with opportunities that they may not have had in the past.”
Citiq Prepaid has embedded transparency into the quality of its prepaid sub-meters, the online portal, and the service. But it adds value to the developer and the architect in that it assures them of prepaid sub-meter installations that benefit society, and the property. With Citiq Prepaid, professional-quality sub-meters ensure tenants of transparent and secure utility management and property managers of reduced admin and fraud. It’s an easy fix for a complicated situation.