Developing a good reputation and the necessity of pleasing prospective residents is understood by most property managers and apartment firms. They have also learned to cater to the needs of specific demographics. Students, seniors, and Millenials (known as Gen Y'ers) fall into these demographic categories.
An increasingly hot market is the Gen Y demographic – those born between 1978 and 1995 – and they are highly sought after by the rental industry. Why? They are 80 million strong and most are less interested in homeownership than other generations. Most of the Gen Y crowd are young professionals who are unwilling or unable to commit to a permanent place to live and a lot of them are still in college and seeking off-campus housing.
Courting Gen Y residents has become a full-time job for most property managers because of their unique needs and preferences. They must pull in features that will appeal to young adult renters which means they need state of the art amenities as well as technology friendly features. It also means they have to avoid these four mistakes so that they avoid driving potential renters to other more accommodating communities.
No Mobile Presence
Gen Y renters depend on their smart phones to do research and this includes searching for rental properties. This means that it is more important than ever to have a mobile-optimized website that appeals to your Gen Y renter and that they can access with the push of a button.
Outdated Communication
Gen Y renters prefer text messaging and email over any type of verbal communication. If you’re a savvy property manager, you will understand this and cater to their preferences. This includes the ability to accept scanned drivers’ licenses and social security cards as well as basic rental processes.
Ability to Pay Online
Millennials do not carry a checkbook with them! You should meet their technology savvy-ness with the convenience and mobility of online and web-based payment options.
Only Open 9-5
If you ask Gen Y’ers to wait for the office to open before they can make contact, you’ll lose them as renters. It is necessary for your website to provide them with a form to fill out online. Whether it’s to ask a question or to request a repair; they want the convenience of requesting it on their time. It also keeps them from seeking out your Facebook page and leaving nasty comments!
Other important features that fall into the online category are:
• Ability to search properties online
• Completing applications
• Paying rent
Keep in mind that any barriers placed before the Gen Y renter will cause them to seek out the next property management company. If you provide them with technology friendly processes, you will find that they in turn leave you more positive reviews as well as promote and protect your properties reputation as a great community to live in.
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