This is a guest post from Gabrielle Castaneda, who is currently enrolled at the University of South Florida pursuing a bachelor’s degree with a major in marketing, a minor in international business and a minor in management. In her spare time she enjoys doing outdoors activities.
Although advertising on campus and social media is essential when it comes to marketing to college students, there are other creative ways to reach out to the college crowd. Read More
Your apartments are full. Your residents pay on time, take out their trash and keep their apartments clean. It’s a landlord’s dream and you don’t want it to end. What can you do to keep your residents from giving you their notice?
Today’s renters expect more options when they rent. A list of 10 common amenities they want, as compiled by About.com, includes such extras as stainless steel appliances and off-street parking. But as an apartment owner, there is little to be gained by simply adding amenities – just to add them. These amenities must add to your bottom line by improving resident retention. But which amenities will pay off for you?
If you were to ask most property owners and managers if energy efficiency is important to resident retention they would probably say yes! The savings to renters or owners who pay for the energy costs, could be as much as 46%. When resident receives this kind of a break in cost, they are more likely to resign their lease. The problem is that many owners and managers of apartment communities do not know how to implement a plan of action for energy efficiency.
Have you ever wondered how some properties that are in less than perfect condition somehow have excellent resident retention? The reason for that is simple: Resident retention starts with stigma rejection. Too often residents feel as though they were only important to the leasing agent until they signed the dotted line. After that, they are frequently treated as debtors with no right to complain or voice concerns.
As operational costs, property taxes and inflation go up, raising rent is inevitable. Failure to match the going rental rates of your surrounding area, and to adequately cover all expenses, will only serve to hurt your bottom line And if you delay on this change, you’ll be facing an even larger rental gap to cover in the future, which will endanger your ability to retain renters through the transition.
The market for renters is competitive. Regardless of your rental property’s size, any unit vacancy is revenue going down the drain. High renter retention rates can minimize these gaps, but even the best properties will need a strong approach to recruiting new renters as openings occur. Depending on the demand for your property, there are a number of marketing strategies you can employ to fill vacancies and stir up interest in your rental units.
In the business world today, almost all attention is focused on keeping the customer happy. So it is safe to say that the same rule applies for landlords to make their renters happy. Resident satisfaction is very important because it is a way to ensure a sustained retention rate.
In the leasing office, we’re often taught that getting leases signed is our #1 priority. But what happens after the lease is signed? Do we focus on customer service with our renters throughout the year as much as we did initially? If not, we could be sabotaging our chances of resident renewal! Apartments.com was joined by Jen Piccotti, Senior VP of Education and Consulting, and Lia Smith, VP of Education and Consulting, of SatisFacts to help us learn how we can better retain residents by shifting our priorities to focus on retention first and leasing second – 275 days a year!
Without fail, tradition and family are two words that always come to mind when thinking about the holiday season. Home, on the other hand, may not be one of the first words that you think of. While gifts are certainly memorable, the most unforgettable experiences come from within the friendly confines of one’s home. Stories, laughter and food are all shared and the cozy environment is what really makes the holiday time special.
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