Breaking Ground

Year 2017-2018

Title Scatter Site Program Migration to RealPage

Organization Breaking Ground

Skills used Data analysis & wrangling, Adobe Acrobat, RealPage (property management software), Excel

Stage Completed

URL https://breakingground.org/what-we-do

Description

During my MSW studies, my field placement at my employer, Breaking Ground, was to act as the Scatter Site Program's first Rent Administrator. Scatter Site housing is a social program wherein an organization holds master leases for privately owned apartments, then subleases (with rental subsidies and integrated case management services) for individuals and families, who have typically transitioned from chronic homelessness, incarceration, or psychiatric hospitalization. It is a form of long-term supportive housing. Breaking Ground is one of New York City's largest providers of supportive housing.

In this role, I served as the on-site technical lead for a migration to a cloud-based property management software (RealPage) for a scattered-site supportive housing program. I digitized all relevant property files (leases & renewals, DHCR notices, utility records) for 172 apartments funded through four separate contracts, and trained on-site management in protocols related to this new system. I also trained my supervisor to use Excel, and helped her develop a more efficient system for tracking utility accounts and bills for clients' apartments. I authored a procedures manual and trained my successor when I planned my transition to a new position at a different organization.