You may have noticed I skipped a beat. No post in a while, no clever excuse.

Here's the honest one: three straight weeks of demos, pricing calls, and contract reviews. Every vendor I smiled at in New Orleans—and several I'm certain I didn't—has followed up, followed up on the follow-up, and offered to, you guessed it, "hop on a quick call."

The writing time got swallowed. And I'd do it again.

Because when we walked Apartmentalize, we didn't collect swag. We collected a hit list.

Now every vendor on it gets the same treatment:

• Show me how it works on a real portfolio.
• Show me actual pricing—not the conference-discount theater.
• Send me the contract so I can read what the sales deck left out.

Most PM companies don't have a procurement department. You hear about a tool on a podcast, squeeze in a demo between showings, and discover the per-unit minimum or auto-renew clause three months later.

Somebody has to drown in this so you don't have to.

I volunteered.

🔍 What's in the Pipeline

🐾 Assistance animal screening. This category exploded on May 22, when HUD rescinded its long-standing assistance animal guidance and adopted the stricter ADA trained-animal standard. Federal rules shifted overnight; state laws didn't move. Software that separates legitimate assistance animals from ordinary pets—and holds up under both—just became essential. We met one of OurPetPolicy's founders at the expo and finished a full demo and pricing review. Shortlisted for solving a real compliance problem, not for the sales pitch.

📋 Inspection platforms. Security deposit disputes are won or lost on documentation. My bar: works with any PM software, built for agent-conducted inspections, and doesn't ask tenants to photograph their own units. We've demoed zInspector—strong candidate, but no recommendation until the field is finished.

🤖 AI communication agents. Missed calls cost leases, and after-hours coverage usually means more payroll. Two vendors, two completely different philosophies, one head-to-head evaluation.

🧾 Invoice automation. An expo vendor quoted us roughly $0.70 per invoice. Sounds cheap—until you multiply it. So before signing anything, I asked accounting how many invoices we actually process each month. Always do that math before agreeing to transaction-based pricing.

📊 Owner analytics & scorecards. Owners are drowning in housing market noise. Good data inside their portal beats a stranger's cold call about selling. Two contenders under review. This isn't a dashboard—it's a client retention strategy.

💵 Lease-advance financing. Advances owners future lease income, pays the PM a referral commission. Interesting enough to request the agreement. Interesting isn't approved.

🔧 Vendor sourcing. "I can't find a plumber who calls me back" might be the most common complaint in this industry. Contract under review.

🔑 Self-showing tech. We're replacing our current platform—wrong fit for our student portfolio, not a platform failure. The replacement gets tested the way we test everything: live in it before you commit to it.

💡 The Cheapest Demo of the Month

My most valuable meeting wasn't with a new vendor. It was with our existing software provider—where we found features we'd been paying for and never turned on.

Before you buy anything new, book a meeting with the software you already own and ask one question:

"What am I paying for that I'm not using?"

That hour will save us more than any new tool we buy this quarter. The easiest savings hide inside your current subscription.

🏆 What Happens to the Survivors

None of these are recommendations. That's the point.

The vendors that survive become negotiated offers for PMAdvisor clients—better-than-retail pricing, and we take zero referral fees from the companies we recommend.

There's a live debate right now about vendor rebates and referral commissions. Wherever you land on that fight, I'd rather my recommendations not depend on who's writing the check. The software has to work—because you're our client, not the vendor.

The ones that don't survive? You'll never hear about them again.

PMAdvisor is free for existing clients, whatever the website says. Evaluating software and don't have time for the homework? Send it to me. I'll test it, read the contract, and tell you what the sales presentation didn't.

Most vendors sell software.

I'm buying proof.

📚 Must-Reads

💳 Your Delinquency Problem Has a Fix. We Already Did the Vetting.

Here’s a scenario you know well. A resident pays on the 11th instead of the 1st, most months. You post the notice, send the text, your team eats the hours. And the frustrating part is that it usually isn’t about money or character — there’s just nothing linking

PM Monthly ForecastPM Monthly Forecast

HUD Pulls the Plug on Emotional Support Animal Guidance: 5 Steps for Education Housing Administrators

Federal housing officials just formally stripped emotional support animals of their protected status in housing, a sweeping policy change that will directly affect how college and university housing offices process accommodation requests from students with disabilities. On May 22, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development issued an enforcement memo permanently rescinding prior guidance on emotional support animals in housing, effectively ending nearly two decades of federal protection for those who rely on ESAs. The memo eliminates the presumption that landlords and housing providers must accommodate untrained ESAs, replaces it with the much stricter ADA standard for trained service animals, and takes effect immediately. Here is what happened, what it means for your campus, and what you should do now.

Fisher Phillips

Vendor Rebates Aren’t Kickbacks

The ethical line in preferred vendor programs isn’t whether money changes hands. It’s whether the arrangement is disclosed, documented, and still serves the owner’s best interests.

PMAssist Industry InsightsTodd Ortscheid

Peter Lohmann’s Newsletter - Issue #199

Peter Lohmann's NewsletterPeter Lohmann

Senate advances housing bill to limit private equity purchases of single-family homes

The House is also expected to advance a sprawling housing package this week that’s aimed at creating more supply and making homes more affordable.

CNBCJustin Papp