For property management companies, operational efficiency isn’t just a back-office concern – it directly impacts resident satisfaction, cash flow, profitability, and ultimately NOI as well as long-term portfolio growth. For Evans Realty, manual processes, unconnected legacy systems (all too common in property management), and delayed access to funds were creating unnecessary friction across accounting, payroll, vendor payments, and resident operations.
After partnering with Priority Commerce, Evans Realty transformed its financial and operational workflows through an integrated ecosystem that included all things commerce related and the collecting, storing and sending money. Priority Commerce’s all in one stack – which covers receivables and tenant engagement, payables, treasury/banking, payroll and contractor/subcontractor construction invoicing and money movement—had a rapid and dramatic increase in efficiency, cash flow acceleration, reduced labor costs, and revenue growth, all while scaling operations without increasing overhead.
Evans Realty chose to take advantage of Priority Commerce products, including Prisma Prop Tech for receivables and engagement, Priority Payables, Passport (Treasury), Priority Payroll, and MX™Build (Construction). These products were systematically rolled out with Priority Commerce’s white glove implementation and account management to maximize impact without disruption.
Throughout the transformation, Evans Realty’s Comptroller, Ali Swindle, and COO, Jack Atkins, played a key role in identifying operational inefficiencies and implementing scalable financial solutions that supported the company’s long term growth.
Key Takeaways
- Evans Realty eliminated time-consuming manual accounting and payment processes, saving two weeks of labor per month for property accountants
- Accounting doubled its productivity within 90 days. An accountant that was overseeing financials for 6 properties scaled to 12 without additional staff.
- CashBuilder+, Priority Commerce’s Treasury solution, helped Evans Realty turn idle cash (a big opportunity and common gap for businesses and property managers and owners) into a revenue-generating asset, increasing savings growth by 500% while improving overall cash flow management
- Faster payment processing reduced funding to next business day, improving payroll and bill payment operations
- Through automation, vendor payment optimization, and operational efficiencies, Evans Realty generated an estimated $50,000–$100,000 per month in additional revenue and collections improvements
- Across the portfolio, these operational improvements contributed to an estimated $41 million increase in property cap valuations within the first year
The Challenge
Before implementing Priority Commerce solutions, Evans Realty relied heavily on manual, fragmented workflows that created inefficiencies across nearly every department.
“Our biggest pain point was being stuck in manual, redundant processes that were inefficient and costing us significant labor time,” explained Comptroller Ali Swindle.
Property managers physically scanned checks, manually entered custom payment fields, transferred information between multiple systems, and individually posted transactions into their accounting software. Payroll processing involved multiple rounds of spreadsheets, edits, and back-and-forth communication between managers, accounting teams, and external payroll providers.
At the same time, evolving tenant expectations after COVID exposed operational gaps that legacy systems could no longer support.
“Tenant expectations changed after COVID as the world shifted digitally,” said COO Jack Atkins. “We started seeing gaps in what we could execute competitively.”
Cash flow also became a growing concern. Traditional credit card processors and ACH systems delayed access to funds, creating operational strain when trying to manage payroll, vendor payments, and property expenses.
“When your payment processor is holding funds – sometimes for a long period of time – it makes paying bills, mortgages and making payroll difficult,” he explained.
Evans Realty needed more than a standalone payment processor; they needed a fully connected financial ecosystem that could eliminate inefficiencies, improve visibility, and help the company scale sustainably.
The Solution
Evans Realty first partnered with Priority Commerce through Prisma Prop Tech, the property management platform, which immediately modernized payment and operational workflows.
“What Prisma offered us was time,” said Ali. “It gave so much back to our staff, employees, and regional teams. Instead of looking at 17 different systems to get one thing done, everything became more organized.”
In addition to implementing digital resident payments, the Prisma implementation streamlined:
- Resident payment processing
- Automated payment posting
- Utility billing
- Work order management
- Accounting workflows
- Online leasing and screening
- Manual transaction elimination (100% digital resident payments)
What began as a work order software conversation quickly evolved into a broader operational transformation.
“Priority Commerce didn’t just solve work orders, it solved resident payments, automation of payment posting, utility billing, and so much more than we expected,” Ali explained.
From there, Evans Realty expanded deeper into the Priority Commerce ecosystem:
Priority Payables
Priority Payables dramatically reduced manual accounts payable work and accelerated vendor payment processing.
“Putting together payments manually with checks used to take forever and was very costly, between the manual time, the antiquated and lagged process of cutting checks, and the fraud with having our banking information on every check sent,” the team explained.
By automating vendor payments and virtual card processes, Evans Realty reduced labor costs while also generating new revenue opportunities.
CashBuilder+ and Passport, Priority Commerce’s Treasury Solution
CashBuilder+, Priority Commerce’s Treasury solution, addressed one of Evans Realty’s biggest operational concerns: cash flow.
“The ease of moving money solved major cash flow issues for us,” Ali noted.
By optimizing how funds were stored and transferred, Evans Realty now increased their savings growth by 500%. This increased yield has allowed them to provide additional coverage for insurance and property tax accounts across their communities.
Ali from their team explained “With CashBuilder+, you move your money into a different account, interest is calculated DAILY, and so now you make more money without changing anything operationally. It was so easy to do.”
Priority Payroll
Priority’s Payroll solution transformed Evans Realty’s payroll process from a multi-day manual workflow into a streamlined digital system. Their original payroll process was extremely tedious and time-consuming. Property managers were required to manually fill out Excel workbooks and send them to the Head of Accounting and Payroll Benefits. From there, corrections would come back to the managers, then be resent to the previous payroll processor for additional manual entry and edits, before returning again for another round of review.
The process created constant back-and-forth communication between departments and consumed valuable operational time every single payroll cycle.
Before Priority Payroll:
- Property managers filled out Excel workbooks
- Payroll teams reviewed and corrected entries manually
- Files were repeatedly sent between departments and payroll providers
- The process consumed at least two full days every payroll cycle
With Priority Payroll:
- Payroll workflows became centralized
- Property managers gained secure access within one system
- HR onboarding became digital and seamless
- W9 collection and banking integrations were automated
“There’s no more back and forth, it’s just a seamless process.” – Ali Swindle, Comptroller
MX Build
Most recently, Evans Realty adopted MX Build to streamline operational management, dispatching, and project coordination, continuing its strategy of consolidating operations into a unified ecosystem.
The Results
The operational and financial impact of Priority Commerce solutions was immediate and substantial.
Massive Time Savings
By eliminating manual payment posting and accounting workflows, Evans Realty saved Two weeks of time per month for its property accountant.
That efficiency gain enabled the company to double operational capacity:
“One property accountant went from managing 6 properties to 12 properties! We increased our properties without increasing overhead,” Ali proudly stated.
Faster Access to Funds
One of the most transformative improvements came from faster payment processing.
“The 24 to 48 hour turnaround time was a huge game changer,” Jack said.
Instead of waiting extended periods for ACH and credit card settlements, Evans Realty gained faster access to operating cash, reducing stress around payroll and bill payment cycles.
Increased Revenue and Savings
Priority Commerce solutions didn’t just reduce costs, they created entirely new financial opportunities. It drove a measurable jump in NOI — and across Evans Realty’s portfolio, this translated to roughly an 8.34% increase in cap valuations in the first year.
Evans Realty reported:
- A 500% increase in savings growth through CashBuilder
- Significant new revenue from CPX virtual card programs
- Monthly operational and collections improvements estimated between $50,000 – $100,000
“The amount of money we made for our managed properties by implementing Prisma and the revenue from CPX vendor virtual cards became equivalent to a salary,” Ali explained.
$41 Million Increase in Cap Valuations
Perhaps the most impressive outcome came from the cumulative impact of operational improvements, tighter accounting processes, improved collections, and increased NOI performance.
“Within close to the first year, there was a $41 million increase in cap valuations.” Jack said.
By improving revenue performance without significantly increasing expenses, Evans Realty strengthened overall asset value across its portfolio.
A Long-Term Partnership
Beyond the technology itself, Evans Realty emphasized the importance of Priority Commerce’s responsiveness and partnership approach.
“Everyone’s been fantastic and responsive. The response rate is what’s most impressive. Everyone feels like they’re on your team.” Ali and Jack shared.
Conclusion
For Evans Realty, partnering with Priority Commerce became much more than a software implementation. It became a complete operational transformation.
By consolidating payments, treasury management, payroll, AP automation, and operational workflows into one ecosystem, Evans Realty eliminated costly manual processes, improved tenant and employee experiences, unlocked new revenue streams, and scaled its business without increasing overhead.
As Jack summarized:
“You don’t know what you don’t know. Regardless of your current policies and procedures, you’re missing opportunities to leverage funds, make more money, improve tenant experience, free up labor, and improve accounting. Priority Commerce helps address all of those things.”
For property management companies looking to modernize operations while improving profitability, Evans Realty’s success demonstrates the measurable impact an integrated fintech ecosystem can deliver.
Download the case study here.
