Housing Technology interviewed experts from Access PaySuite, Mobysoft, NEC Software Solutions, Solvares Field Service, TechLabs London and Voicescape about new technologies for 2026, out-of-sector ideas to consider, proptech vs. enterprise software and how to avoid technological distractions & dead-ends.
New technologies to consider
Engin Yilmaz, director of product innovation at Mobysoft, said, “Beyond the AI hype, the real opportunity is in contextual data. It’s about moving away from isolated spreadsheets and creating a single ecosystem where housing, asset and tenant data actually talk to each other.
“For example, digital twins shouldn’t only be the preserve 3D models; paired with low-code automations for scalability, these should be dynamic engines that combine sensor data and repair histories to predict failures before a resident even calls. This shift is critical because the advent of Awaab’s Law has turned repairs into a scalability problem, not just a data or process problem.”
Alex Common, divisional director of product and engineering at Access PaySuite (part of the Access Group), said, “While AI and predictive analytics have captured much attention, real-time payment platforms, Open Banking integration and digital wallets will continue to streamline rent collections, reduce manual reconciliations and help tenants manage their payments more flexibly.
“Devices such as smart meters and connected sensors offer additional opportunities to reduce costs and detect maintenance problems early, supporting tenants’ financial and living wellbeing. Techniques borrowed from other sectors, such as behavioural design, could be used to encourage timely payments and reinforce engagement with tenant portals in ways that feel supportive and empowering rather than punitive.”
Trevor Hampton, director of housing solutions at NEC Software Solutions, said, “You have to start with AI simply because that’s where we’re at. Large language models (LLMs) are moving phenomenally fast, with a quality and depth that’s beyond anything we’ve seen before. That’s now developing into the next generation of AI, commonly known as agentic agent-based AI.
“Agentic AI will develop a lot this year and will be used to handle mundane tasks where the risks are relatively low and the models can be trained to avoid bias. Compliance certificates for safety checks are a good example. There can be thousands of them (depending on the number of properties) and indexing them manually is horrendous, so using an AI bot to do this can save an awful lot of time and effort.
“While GIS and spatial technology has been around for ages, a new aspect of it is ‘always-on maps’. This means that if you’re looking at data in a regular text format such as a spreadsheet or a document, the spatial technology can create a map version in the background. Then, with just a click of a mouse, you can see that same information displayed on a geospatial map, making it much easier to understand patterns and locations.
“Another area that will be big this year will be predictive cybersecurity, which tries to expose vulnerabilities before they happen. It does this by constantly looking at what’s going on in other areas of the web and at software has been penetrated or is vulnerable, and then recommending preventative actions to mitigate the threats before they become a risk to your own organisation.”
Jeremy Squire, UK managing director of Solvares Field Service (prev. FLS – Fast Lean Smart), said, “In 2026, we’ll see deeper smart-home integration, driven by the Future Homes Standard, with sustainable heating systems, automated lighting, advanced security and motion sensors. IoT technologies will become more embedded in housing strategies, enabling housing providers to use data (further to damp and mould) to predict maintenance rather than reacting to faults.
“In terms of regulations, with the second phase of Awaab’s Law being implemented in 2026, housing providers will have to proactively publish information about safety compliance, repairs and energy ratings, providing residents with wider access to data about their homes.”
Some wilder technologies…
Paul Berry, senior product manager at TechLabs London, said, “At the ‘Stranger Things’ end of future possibilities are prototypes of self-healing building materials that repair cracks on their own, such as concrete infused with bacteria that wake up, eat and fill the gaps. There are also early concepts for digital twins of entire estates, where every home has a virtual counterpart that predicts problems before they happen – imagine SimCity, but with real buildings and real repair budgets.
“We’re also starting to see predictive resident-experience models that don’t just forecast repairs but anticipate tenancy stress or wellbeing needs based on hyper-local patterns such as microclimate, neighbourhood repair cycles or even shift changes at major local employers. Early research combining these local signals with operational data has already shown it can flag households needing support weeks earlier than traditional indicators.”
Mobysoft’s Yilmaz said, “In the physical world, materials science is shifting the frame of reference on long-term costs. Emerging areas such as self-healing concrete and graphene coatings could fundamentally change how the total cost of ownership of social housing is viewed.
“In the digital sphere, context-aware predictive analytics can go beyond standard risk flagging and introduce intelligence that understands the specific circumstances of a household, combining property health with resident vulnerability. This moves us from a mindset of routine repairs to one of personalised, preventative interventions.”
NEC’s Hampton said, “I’ll start with the example of one council that needs to cater for 120 languages. The council uses real-time translation to talk to residents whose first language isn’t English. These technologies now have almost zero delay between the conversation and being able to translate it, even if you’re just using your phone.
“There’s new type of technology for the ‘adaptive detection of personally identifiable information’ (PII) that’s very forward thinking and links back to cybersecurity and personal security. As data is being exchanged, the software informs users that if they release the information with a particular name, address, sex or protected characteristic, they may be exposing that person to risk, making it a very cool bit of technology.”
‘Out of sector’ ideas
TechLabs London’s Berry said, “Oil, gas and advanced manufacturing already include real-time digital twins as standard practice. Offshore rigs, turbines and production lines are mirrored in live virtual models that continuously update from thousands of sensors, allowing operators to easily navigate through systems, predict failures, optimise performance and intervene before anything goes wrong.
“The same principle could be transformative in housing. Imagine real-time property monitoring, where boilers, ventilation, moisture levels and structural indicators feed into a digital model of each home. Asset teams wouldn’t just see problems after they’re reported, they’d know in advance which homes are trending towards damp, which boilers are degrading fastest or which housing blocks need intervention this week rather than next year. It’s essentially bringing the operational intelligence of high-risk industries into everyday social housing, but for healthier homes and better resident outcomes rather than industrial uptime.
“Retail’s obsession with frictionless journeys is another example worth borrowing. Features such as real-time order tracking, proactive notifications and one-click rebooking have transformed customers’ expectations; there’s no reason repairs, lettings or complaints couldn’t feel just as effortless. Housing teams don’t need to mimic Amazon but they can aim to emulate the way retail continually removes micro-barriers from everyday interactions.”
Gary Haynes, managing director of Voicescape, said, “The finance sector has already shown how to deliver a genuine ‘single view of the customer’ without the wholesale replacement of financial institutions’ core back-office systems. Retail banking solved this challenge 20 years ago yet the big housing IT suppliers still insist that customer-centricity requires ‘throwing the baby out with the bathwater.’ This approach is both unnecessary and likely doomed to complete failure.
“Few sectors can prove that complexity can be handled at scale and needn’t mean de-personalisation the way that telecommunications can. While no housing provider serves 20 million+ customers, telcos highlight that good technology solutions can handle significant complexity at significant scale, without reverting to the lowest common denominator of customer specificity or service.
“The healthcare sector’s approach to AI offers some valuable insights. First, it highlights that AI tools should be developed with ethical considerations at the forefront, especially concerning fairness and bias. Second, AI should augment human expertise rather than replace it. Just as AI supplements medical professionals’ judgement, AI can enhance service delivery in social housing without diminishing the importance of the human touch.”
Access PaySuite’s Common said, “There’s a wealth of inspiration beyond social housing. Retail and e-commerce offer lessons in personalisation that housing providers could use in terms of offering tailored support plans, flexible payment schedules or services based on tenants’ behaviour.
“Fintech offers frictionless, real-time payments, subscription-style budgeting tools and micro-savings products that could be adapted to help tenants better manage their rent. Even retailers’ customer loyalty programs could be adapted to encourage on-time payments or community participation.”
Solvares Field Service’s Squire said, “Following the retail sector, housing providers are shifting towards more immersive, personalised AI-driven experiences which residents have come to expect from their online shopping, while advanced CRM similar to retailers’ reward programmes could provide better levels of tenant engagement.
“From the finance sector, AI can help with credit checks and risk assessments for tenancy applications, and digital wallets can streamline rental payments and service fees. And from manufacturing, digital twins will optimise the building and maintenance of the thousands of new homes the government is pushing to build, alongside AI tools to digitise planning documents and streamline the UK’s planning and housebuilding.”
Mixing proptech with enterprise software
Mobysoft’s Yilmaz said, “Innovative proptech solutions can definitely work alongside housing providers’ existing enterprise software, with one vital caveat – integration is non-negotiable.
“The idea of a single housing system that does everything perfectly is risky. A better approach is a modular ecosystem which puts intelligence and automation on top of your core systems without creating new data silos.
“As we’ve seen with our own integrations, when you let specialised tools handle the complex data-processing and feed that back into the core systems, you turn a static record system into a dynamic engine that still delivers specific outcomes and value to the organisation.”
Solvares Field Service’s Squire said, “Proptech can give you a considerable boost but it needs to be securely integrated with housing providers’ core enterprise software to avoid data silos, cyber-security risks and operational disruption. Specialist solutions which have been developed to tackle the problems faced by the UK housing sector often have the edge over wider, all-in-one platforms and should be seriously considered as best-of-breed add-ons.
“The question of ‘build or buy’ remains. Housing providers should be adept at trialling new proptech solutions as a part of their technology stacks but they also shouldn’t be afraid to ‘fail fast’ if a new tool isn’t working.”
TechLabs London’s Berry said, “First of all, it’s vital to have an enterprise solution at the core, providing a stable, compliant system of record for people, tenancy and asset data. With this strong foundation, housing providers can then confidently innovate without risking the integrity of their core operations.
“Proptech software and tools should plug into the enterprise stack through clean APIs, shared data standards and a clear product roadmap, not as disconnected point solutions. When done well, this gives housing providers the best of both worlds – a robust system of record at the centre and a ring of fast-moving, specialist tools that can be swapped in or out as needed.”
New Year’s resolutions
NEC’s Hampton said, “The first resolution should be to make sure your technologies are aligned to your strategic goals, your workflows and your data. You can get a brilliant bit of technology but if it doesn’t flow with your data, complement your current workflows or achieve your goals then you’re wasting your time.
“The second is keep consolidating and simplifying. If you’re entering the world of AI, the fewer touchpoints and connection points you need to make, the better the results, the more autonomous you can be and the better the quality of your data.
“The third resolution is to develop the skills of your staff. For example, when you start to consider AI, you need to have a broad knowledge of a lot of stuff, such as enterprise architectures, data architectures, full-stack technologies, orchestration and security. That broad knowledge is hard to acquire and very scarce, so start building those skills and investing in your staff.”
Mobysoft’s Yilmaz said, “First of all, treat your data as an asset rather than as a by-product, with the appropriate investment in quality, structure and governance.
“Second, address the challenge of ‘doing more, better, for less’. For example, compliance with Awaab’s Law is unavoidable so therefore embrace the challenge while ensuring your solution is agile enough to scale as hazards evolve. Similarly, if you need to ensure reserves for your repairs, the solution isn’t just cost cutting, it’s also ensuring you have the right income management tools.
“Third, transition from reporting problems to predicting them. We’ve moved on from the rear-view mirror of historical reporting to the near view of analytics and AI now letting us see what’s around the corner.”
Voicescape’s Haynes said, “First of all, reframe the challenge of things like Awaab’s Law, TSMs and universal credit into opportunities for innovation.
“The second resolution should be to believe in yourself. It’s paramount for housing leaders to have confidence and belief in their unique expertise and ability to lead relevant and proportionate transformation. Far too many housing providers have been led by external ‘experts’ into over-engineered transformations or one-size-fits-all solutions. You know what your organisation needs most, so don’t fall for grandiose promises from big technology providers that don’t understand or allow for the nuances of housing.
“Put customer experience first – a big part of bringing new solutions on board should be focused on getting the fundamentals right for customers, in terms of better data integration and service coordination. For example, take the time to avoid the situation where information provided by tenants to one department never reaches another, even when both departments interact with the same tenants.”
TechLabs London’s Berry said, “Focus on human-centred innovation because technology isn’t an end in itself. Prioritise solutions that simplify interactions, personalise support and reduce friction in everyday services. Even small improvements, such as proactive notifications, streamlined triaging of repairs or localised insights, can have a big impact on trust, satisfaction and efficiency.
“Dare to experiment and accept failure as part of learning. Innovation requires taking calculated risks, so create space for pilots, trials and new ways of working while fully accepting that not every initiative will succeed. Learning fast from small failures is likely to accelerate the adoption of breakthrough solutions and prevent bigger problems down the line.
“Make technology modular, not monolithic. Commit to a flexible, composable IT approach where enterprise systems provide a strong, evolving backbone and specialist proptech or digital solutions can plug in seamlessly. This reduces risk, accelerates innovation and ensures your technology can adapt as requirements change.”
Avoiding red herrings and distractions
Mobysoft’s Yilmaz said, “Stay focused on outcomes rather than features. A simple test is to ask whether a new tool will get you to your goals faster, will it scale, are there total cost of ownership ‘gotchas’ in store and, very importantly, what happens if it doesn’t quite work as expected. If you can’t answer these confidently, there’s a good chance that your proposed new software or tool is a distraction.”
Voicescape’s Haynes said, “Global technology giants are lining up to sell grand solutions to housing providers, but without sector knowledge, even the most powerful platform is the wrong tool for the job.
“Housing providers don’t need to tear out their existing systems to embrace new digital innovations. Instead, the future lies in integrating smart, fit-for-purpose technologies with trusted platforms and avoiding the ‘bonfire’ approach that burns through budgets and trust.”
TechLabs London’s Berry said, “A new solution is only valuable if it addresses a real operational challenge, improves the resident experience or enables staff to work more effectively. Starting with well-defined objectives and measurable success criteria will help to separate meaningful innovation from novelty.
NEC’s Hampton said, “In short, if you want to avoid red herrings and distractions, don’t apply technology for technology’s sake. Make sure you first understand the use-case or problem you’re trying to solve – if you don’t understand the problem, you’re likely to be dealing with a red herring straight away.”
Housing Technology would like to thank Alex Common (Access PaySuite), Engin Yilmaz (Mobysoft), Trevor Hampton (NEC Software Solutions), Jeremy Squire (Solvares Field Service), Paul Berry (TechLabs London) and Gary Haynes (Voicescape) for their contributions to this article.
