“A lot of our work was performance-based, we only got paid when we delivered results.” – Bob Langlois

Bob Langlois spent 25 years helping real estate clients save money on property taxes before turning his focus to one of the most overlooked line items on a P&L: water. With Bondi Water, he now brings the same performance-based mindset to expense reduction in multifamily buildings, where leaks, inefficiency and naivete silently drain profitability.

“The mindset blatantly is blind ignorance. They don’t know what they don’t know.” – Bob Langlois

Water is rarely managed in real time. Bills show up every 30, 60 or 90 days and by the time property managers notice a spike, the damage is done. Accounting departments process payments; operations juggle competing priorities. No one is responsible for actively managing usage. The result: waste, leaks and ballooning costs that get passed straight to owners or worse, to residents.

“Our biggest opportunity in multifamily is to stop the toilets from leaking and running.” – Bob Langlois

A deceptively simple solution: IoT monitoring and a hydro-powered sensor valve for toilets. By tracking water use in real time, Bondi Water can spot leaks and waste instantly. By retrofitting toilets with self-powered valves, they can prevent the single biggest source of unnecessary water loss. Paybacks often happen in less than 12 months and Bob structures many contracts on shared savings. Aligning incentives so owners only pay when they see results.

“Fall in love with the problem, not with the solution.” – Bob Langlois

His philosophy goes beyond tech. The real innovation is listening: understanding how owners, operators and fee managers feel about water waste. For some, it’s a budget line they review once a year. For others, it’s a constant source of frustration that jeopardizes renewals and NOI. By focusing on the frustration, not just the pain. Bondi Water helps owners move from inertia to action.

“Think of it in the context of celebration. Send a birthday card for the day their water bill dropped.” – Bob Langlois

Bob doesn’t just install sensors, he celebrates outcomes. A year after one project cut a client’s bill by 60%, he marked the anniversary with a note of congratulations. That mindset, falling in love with the problem, aligning with incentives and celebrating wins which turns what could be a dry utility expense into a story of partnership and trust.

Action Items & Follow-Up Questions

• Audit your portfolio: Which buildings (especially 1960s–1980s products) are most at risk for hidden water loss?
  
• Ask operations: Are you still reacting to bills instead of monitoring usage in real time?
  
• Consider incentives: Could shared-savings models align vendors with your NOI goals?
  
• Explore frustration: Where is water waste actually creating friction? Is it with residents, budgets or asset managers?
  

Follow-up question: What’s the worst that could happen by ignoring water and what’s the best outcome if you fix it now?