Reliable high-speed internet is increasingly a bare necessity for multifamily properties. As employment and leisure has increasingly moved online, tenants have come to rely more and more on stable, consistent internet connections for their daily lives.

This requirement of high-speed connectivity is usually viewed as just one more burden for property owners and landlords, who often must deal with a patchwork of dozens of slow-moving corporations offering unreliable, expensive internet connections to tenants. And when those connections slow down or fail, who gets the blame? The same landlords and owners who merely gave access to outside providers.

But what if there was another way?

What if building owners could not only manage and control the provision of high-speed broadband to their properties, but could also make a healthy profit from doing so? 

Every single month. On every unit. Forever.

This is exactly the model that one company — Southern California’s Commercial Connectivity Services — has designed and implemented in dozens of multifamily buildings across the country. CCS works with landlords to completely rewire whole buildings, essentially becoming the Internet Service Provider for the entire property.

This partnership creates an ongoing revenue stream for property owners. Rather than other companies profiting from the provision of internet service, landlords collect a fee each month from every property that signs up (usually 90%+ of the building). And CCS does all the work — maintaining the network and dealing with customer service.

To top it all, the monthly price per customer is often 50 to 80 percent less than typical mainstream telecommunications companies like Comcast and AT&T.

It’s a win-win-win.

“The resident is going to get better service, faster speeds at a cheaper price and the landlord is going to get profit-share — if that’s something they’re interested in — and an additional revenue stream that’s going to increase the capitalized value of their property,” said Jeff Skolnick, co-owner of CCS. “Everybody wins.”

A new model: Landlords become Internet Service Providers

By optimizing economies of scale, CCS has created custom networks that now serve thousands of units in dozens of cities across the country. Instead of several large companies providing internet connectivity for hundreds of different clients throughout a residential building, for example, CCS builds one ultra-fast network that can serve every single resident.

Typically, in both residential and commercial buildings, vital internet connections are provided by a hodgepodge of different service providers, meaning landlords and tenants need to interact with sometimes more than a dozen different companies — all with their own different technology.

CCS operates differently. Building on more than a decade of experience in the industry, the company surveys properties and consults with landlords and their tenants up front to assess the individualized network plans for each building. Networks can then be customized depending on each client’s needs.

In one development in downtown Los Angeles, for example, CCS provides low-cost broadband internet for more than 1,100 residents, helping to bridge the digital divide, as well as offering symmetrical high-speed bandwidth for commercial properties including a hospital and offices. The seniors who reside in the building benefit from excellent connectivity, but also from CCS’s “white glove” customer service.

“CCS has been our trusted Internet provider for our flagship property in downtown LA for over 5 years.” said Kristal Olvera, a regional administrator for the Retirement Foundation of America, which owns the building. “Their services and products have consistently exceeded our expectations, providing our residents with reliable connectivity and top-notch customer service. We couldn't be more satisfied with their partnership”

Another property, a luxury condominium building near the Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles, is supplied by CCS with state-of-the-art high-speed internet. And at other major properties in Virginia, Washington DC and New York, CCS has built out high speed networks that provide affordable housing units with internet service that is subsidized by non-profit landlords.

Become an internet provider: Unlock a new revenue stream

For private landlords, the chance to recover additional revenue from internet services is an added bonus to the simplicity and peace-of-mind of dealing with one main ISP for the whole building. (While CCS is offered to every tenant, individuals still have the option to choose any provider they want to. Almost everyone goes with CCS, however!)

If they choose to do so, landlords can partner with CCS from the beginning and make an initial investment in the infrastructure needed to set up the network. Typically, this initial investment is paid back within two to three years, and from that point on “It’s pure profit-sharing for the landlord,” said Skolnick.

For eligible properties, CCS and landlords can also tap into federal funding provided to help eliminate the digital divide. And CCS is willing to invest in properties and neighborhoods that have long been overlooked by large companies — sometimes using federal funds to eliminate capital costs.

“Once we have built the network, it’s there for the long run,” said José Valenzuela, co-owner of CCS. “Not only does the property owner get the benefit of an ongoing ROI from the profit-sharing, but they’re also investing back into the property itself by improving the infrastructure.”

Property owners and landlords can start off on their journey to becoming a partner in internet provision by calling 310-990-4147 or emailing [email protected]. For more information, see the video below: