First “smart home” apartments in Arizona coming to Gilbert

Developers of an upcoming Gilbert multifamily project say it will be the first apartment community to offer remote, mobile-device enabled technology to residents, making the apartments “smart homes.”

Cisterra LLC is developing Vistara at SanTan Village, which will offer remote control locks, temperature and lighting to its residents who will be able to control these home features with a smart phone.

The community, which is expected to be finished this May, is a 366-unit apartment community. Every unit will be equipped with a basic smart home technology package. With the basic package, residents will be able to control their thermostat, light switches and locks with a smart phone or tablet.

Residents can expand their smart home offerings to include video cameras, CCTV cameras and entertainment packages. They’ll be able to access everything through a smart phone app.

Lock and leave has been a growing trend with luxury multifamily developments, especially among millennials who have been delaying home-ownership in favor of apartment communities that make their lives easier.

Vistara hopes to capitalize on this trend by creating a worry-free living situation for its residents through flexible living environments and mobile accessibility. Residents won’t have to worry about keys and will be connected right to their home through a mobile app.

Cisterra LLC began construction during the fourth quarter of 2015. The apartment community is expected to be completed in May 2017, and there are already residents living at the community testing out the technology.

Mark-Taylor Residential is managing the community. This community comes on the heels of Mark-Taylor’s roll-out of Amazon Locker Technology in order to allow residents to easily pick up their packages from Amazon.

“We are quick to adapt new technologies to make life easier for our residents,” said John Carlson, president of Mark-Taylor Residential. “We’re eager to deploy (Vistara) and see the benefits, and we’re confident that Vistara will set the stage for more properties in our portfolio to come online with smart home features.”