A New Industry Survey from SurfaceAI and CRETI Reveals the Cost of Billing Errors and the Need for Intelligent AI Agents

A new industry survey conducted by the Center for Real Estate Technology & Innovation (CRETI) and SurfaceAI has revealed a widespread financial challenge in multifamily property management—one that is costing owners, operators, and investors millions in lost revenue. The survey, which gathered responses from 325 property management professionals across the U.S., found that 60% of respondents encounter financial discrepancies monthly, while 40% experience them quarterly.

At the heart of these discrepancies are billing errors—cited by 100% of surveyed property managers as the most common issue. These errors include incorrect rent charges, misapplied amenity fees, and duplicate invoices, all of which contribute to operational inefficiencies and revenue leakage.

Key Survey Findings:

• 60% of property managers encounter financial discrepancies monthly; 40% experience them quarterly.
  

• 100% of respondents identified billing errors as the leading source of discrepancies, highlighting the prevalence of misapplied rent adjustments, fee inconsistencies, and manual entry mistakes.
  
  

• Manual reconciliation remains a major challenge, with property managers citing human error as a persistent cause of inaccuracies in lease and rent roll data.

“These survey results confirm what many in the industry already know—financial and leasing discrepancies in multifamily operations are a systemic issue, not just an occasional mistake,” said Jason Wallis, CEO at SurfaceAI. “The reliance on outdated reconciliation processes leads to inefficiencies that cost property managers time, money, and trust. AI-powered automation presents a clear opportunity to eliminate these errors and drive financial accuracy at scale.”

Moving Beyond Chatbots: The Role of AI Agents in Financial Automation

The survey findings highlight a critical limitation of traditional property management technology. While chatbots and automation tools have become commonplace, they fail to address core financial inefficiencies. Chatbots assist with tenant inquiries, but they do not detect errors, analyze financial data, or automate reconciliation processes. This gap leaves property managers vulnerable to costly mistakes and time-consuming manual reviews.

AI Agents—intelligent, decision-making automation systems—are changing the game by:

• Automatically auditing lease and rent roll data to flag discrepancies before they escalate.

• Identifying and correcting billing errors in real time, reducing revenue leakage.

• Eliminating manual reconciliation efforts, freeing up property teams to focus on higher-value tasks.

By shifting from reactive to proactive financial management, AI Agents ensure that discrepancies are caught and corrected before they impact NOI and operational efficiency.

“The future of property management technology will be driven by AI automation that delivers measurable financial impact,” said Ashkan Zandieh, Managing Director at CRETI. “This survey highlights the need for next-generation AI solutions that proactively prevent errors rather than reactively fixing them.”