Case Study: The Knolls

Affordable Housing's Success With ENCORE PRO

The Knolls is an affordable housing complex in Orange, California. Owned by a joint venture of the non-profit Foundation for Affordable Housing and an affiliate of BLDG Partners, the California property consists of 260 apartment units on a 17-acre campus with 22 separate laundry rooms serving its residents. With help from Laundrylux Distribution California, BLDG upgraded The Knolls' outdated multi-housing laundry facilities to ENCORE PRO semi-professional laundry equipment.

Resident Satisfaction

When The Knolls’ laundry rooms were updated with ENCORE PRO washers and dryers, the positive reactions from the residents were instantaneous. “The feedback we’ve gotten is that the clothes are less wrinkled, cleaner, and dry in less time,” says Matt Jacobs, Principal at BLDG. Along with offering standout laundry results, ENCORE PRO'S large 22 lb. capacity washers enable tenants to do fewer loads at once, saving them time and effort. The efficiency of the dryers also means that only a small number of tenants tend to add extra drying minutes, offering them a quicker laundry experience while costing them less. “Every dollar matters for our residents, and we want to save them money and give them reliable, good service,” explains Matt.

These speedy laundry times are vital to a multi-housing complex. “We have ten apartments per laundry room, so the usage is pretty high,” he tells us. “The shorter cycle times are very important.” The quicker turnaround means more washer and dryer availability throughout the day and less waiting time for tenants.

ENCORE PRO compatibility with mobile and card payments is an added convenience. Residents can pay for laundry as they go without topping up a laundry card, which Matt explains is a priority for the laundry room’s cost-sensitive users. The card-only system also makes it easier for BLDG to manage and review its laundry room revenue.

The Knolls tenants also like the modern appearance of the ENCORE PRO washers and dryers and their ability to elevate the overall look of their laundry rooms. As Matt says, “having high-quality laundry facilities on the property is really important,” as it gives the residents a greater sense of pride in where they live. Offering a better on-site laundry experience not only boosts laundry room income but adds to the tenants’ overall satisfaction with the property. Matt explains, “Our residents are happy, which keeps them living in their apartments longer and reduces our unit turnover costs. So it all just makes sense.”

"Every dollar matters for our residents, and we want to save them money and give them reliable, good service [...] Our residents are happy, which keeps them living in their apartments longer."

— Matt Jacobs Principal at BLDG

Higher Profitability

The Knolls’ laundry room revenue has increased by an incredible 150% since upgrading to ENCORE PRO and transitioning from a revenue-share model with an off-site laundry provider to a self-owned and managed laundry solution. Taking ownership and financing their laundry equipment has also given BLDG more control of the property’s laundry rooms, enabling them to replace their substandard home-style appliances with professional-grade equipment and offer residents a better laundry experience. The boost in tenant satisfaction has led to an immediate rise in laundry room usage, resulting in higher earnings for the company. “We’re seeing more people use the laundry at home,” says Matt.

Matt also loves the space-saving qualities of ENCORE PRO that enable him to maximize revenue despite the small footprint of the property’s laundry rooms. With an average size of just 56 sq. feet, ENCORE PRO'S stacked washer-dryer units and economical 27-inch width make it easy to fit more equipment into a limited area. “These are not easy spaces to work in,” he says. “We’re very fortunate that these machines fit.” ENCORE PRO'S Energy Star Ⓡ efficiency also means that this boost in revenue doesn’t disappear with expensive utility bills. Instead, the equipment’s water and energy-saving features enable BLDG’s profits to climb and help it achieve its goal of becoming a more environmentally friendly operation.

A Greener Solution

Water is a precious resource in California, and BLDG needed to find a sustainable solution to their high utility bills at The Knolls property. “Our water bills were huge before replacing the old laundry equipment,” Matt admits. Since upgrading to ENCORE PRO, however, the company has reduced water consumption by up to 60% and has experienced incredible energy savings that have helped BLDG meet the targets of its Green program initiative. “The focus of our BLDG Green program is reducing electricity, water, and gas consumption, both in our common areas and units,” says Matt. “We’re also transitioning to more efficient air conditioners and working on introducing solar power into our communities.” The company has also taken advantage of government initiatives like the Inflation Reduction Act to achieve its climate goals. Matt says that the BLDG Green program ultimately “improves the quality of life for our residents and saves us money.” ENCORE PRO has helped the team realize this initiative and achieve its goal of providing tenants with a more sustainable laundry solution.

Equipment Selection

Matt and his team at BLDG shopped for the best multi-housing laundry equipment on the market and soon discovered that ENCORE PRO was the perfect solution. “We did our research, and ENCORE PRO is the most efficient commercially available equipment,” he says. Laundrylux’s national ENCORE DIRECT team helped select the right equipment mix for The Knolls’ 22 laundry rooms, and Laundrylux Distribution’s local California team expertly completed the installation.

"The feedback we've gotten is that the clothes are less wrinkled, cleaner, and dry in less time."

— Matt Jacobs, Principal at BLDG

Easy Maintenance

Since replacing the laundry room’s old Speed Queen models with ENCORE PRO, Matt and his team have avoided the typical maintenance issues they had experienced in the past. “We haven’t had any maintenance issues in 90 days,” he remarks. He explains that coins would often get stuck in the old washers and dryers, causing frustration among the residents and a loss of revenue from machine downtime. With ENCORE PRO offering three times more reliability than residential equipment, Matt’s tenants can complete their laundry without interruption, while BLDG saves time and money on maintenance call outs. The success of the installation has inspired the company to begin upgrading its other multi-housing properties throughout the US to ENCORE PRO.