It is essential for Property Managers to retain residents and improve occupancy rates.  It is an imperative part of keeping your property running well. Happy residents can save you money on the cost of acquiring new residents as well as on reducing eviction notices and broken leases.

With these four ingenious techniques, you’ll be on your way to higher referral rates, fewer complaints, better retention rates and a happier community.

Set Expectations From the Get Go

People generally like to know what’s expected of them and what they can expect of others. You’ve likely encountered residents who feel their expectations have not been met or are accustomed to a different set of regulations from their previous rental property.

Avoid costly and embarrassing misunderstandings by investing time into a clearly written lease, which outlines all of that key information. However, don’t just assume your residents will read everything and understand it all. Instead, set up a meeting to go over the responsibilities of each party.

Answer any questions and be sure to clarify the information and policies for rent, late payments, repairs, complaints, etc. Investing extra time developing a relationship with residents can pay off big time in the long run.

Communicate Clearly and Regularly

Of course, you’ll need to be responsible and accessible to your residents. But good communication goes beyond that. Start by getting to know your residents, make it a priority to greet them by name and follow up on previous concerns or suggestions. Some residents may be chattier than others, but a personalized approach is generally appreciated.

Create a clear and well-posted policy for returning phone calls and stick with it. With any process, communicate the timeline of the procedure and steps along the way to your residents. While it may be old hat to you, it’s likely new to them.

Keep Things Accessible

Maintenance Requests:

An online portal can be useful for organizing and following up on maintenance requests. Not only is it a great way to save documentation but it can also be accessed by residents from various devices. Acknowledge the request and deliver information about progress through a phone call.

Package Delivery:

As a Property Manager, you wear many hats, one of them often being the hat of the mailroom manager.  Make this an area of where you delight your residents.  Use a digital package tracking system to keep up with your tenant’s packages. With this type of software, you can inform residents of deliveries, delays and more through email or text message. These items are important to your residents and it is often an area overlooked by property managers.  If you are interested in learning more about organizing your mailroom processes, you will find our 5 Steps to Optimize Your Mailroom very helpful.

Show Your Appreciation

Being appreciative of your residents is a great way to continue building a solid relationship. Managers who reward residents and focus on a communal feeling make their property stand out from the rest.

When a new resident moves in, deliver a welcome letter with information about the property, how to access its amenities and important contact information. Raffles, giveaways and referral programs are easy, creative ways to create a positive living environment. Don’t forget to share updates on your property’s Facebook page and newsletter.

Master these four techniques to watch your residents’ satisfaction levels and your retention rates go up, up, up.

Source: HubSpot

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>