MANAGEMENT
MATT EASTON | MULTIFAMILY TRAFFIC
10 Ways to Keep Your
Community's Residents, in this
fast growing Denver market
“T
he grass is greener over
there” - We have all
thought it once or twice;
maybe it was about
someone we were dating, our jobs, our cars
or maybe we have done it with our own
apartments. This can make life difficult for
those of us responsible for getting current
residents to re-sign/renew their existing
lease at our community.
For property managers in Denver and
the surrounding area, the “what’s new
must be better” phenomenon is amplified
to the maximum. In 2018 12,000 new
apartments are entering lease-up in the
metro Denver area.
Here are 10 techniques you can
implement starting today to help better
increase your chances of keep all your
residents when their leases come up
for renewal.
1. CREATE A SIGNATURE GREETING
This summer I had the pleasure of
meeting Peter Bowling Managing Director
of the One & Only Palmilla luxury resort.
Peter’s secret weapon in competing with the
thousands of other ultra-luxury resorts of
the world is his people.
When you are on-property at the One
& Only you feel like you are in another
world, almost like you have died and gone
to heaven. The most powerful way Peter
achieved this was by making a “signature
greeting” that everyone working on
property must embrace. As any employee
greets, sees, walks past or is in the presence
46 | TRENDS MAY 2018
of a guest or fellow associate, they make eye
contact, smile and briefly place their hand
on their heart.
Now imagine the impact this would have
on your residents? Do you know how hard it
is to get a smile in 2018? We all want to feel
welcome, recognized and loved, it’s worth
more than all the roof-top pools in Denver
combined. Create a “signature greeting” and
enforce it 100%, make it your culture and
you will find that your residents will never
leave. They want their smile and recognition
when they come home each day.
When someone tells you their
name, listen and repeat it back to them.
Repeating their name in every situation
helps you to remember it. If you forget
a name, you can also go up to them
and reintroduce yourself since they will
generally repeat their name once you have
said yours.
3. FOCUS ON VALUE, NOT RENTS
Any community is going to get some
haters, it’s just the nature of property
management, but if people complain about
their rent, perhaps you are not showing
“A person’s name is to him or her the
sweetest and most important sound in
any language.” – DALE CARNEGIE .
2. LEARN YOUR RESIDENTS NAME
“A person’s name is to him or her the
sweetest and most important sound in any
language.” – Dale Carnegie.
A person’s name is the greatest
connection to their own identity and
individuality. Some might say it is the most
important word in the world to that person.
Make it a goal that your staff learn every
resident's name. Suppose you start working
at a new property. What can you do to learn
and remember all the residents’ names? Set
goals for how many people you will meet
each day to learn their names.
enough value. Your margins are already
tight enough and the last thing you want
to do is engage in price wars with the new
construction down the street. Using price as
your selling point is an indication that you
need to get back to developing what makes
your property unique in the metro area.
For every market, neighborhood and
property type, there is only one community
that's the cheapest. While your current
residents may shop the lowest rent, it is
value that they really want. When value
exceeds rent, rent is no longer the issue.
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