Tag Archives: Tenant Retention

5 Tips to Keeping Your Corporate Rental Tenants Happy

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Keeping corporate housing tenants happy

If you’ve been a corporate housing landlord for awhile now, you know that a happy tenant is priceless. They create a more positive experience, pay on time, create less work for you, take care of your home, leave nice reviews on your CHBO profile, and often become repeat clients down the road.

If you’re wondering how you can find – or create – these happy tenants, follow these five golden rules:

1. Aim for Long Term Renters: Skip nightly and weekly stays and rather opt for those interested in one-month or longer stays. Longer stays typically mean less turnover and therefore less work and stress for you and them.

2. Return Calls and Emails Promptly: Your tenants need to know you’re there for them 24/7. Don’t let more than a few hours pass by without returning a call or email from them. If you’re going to be out of town, make sure they have a back-up emergency contact.

3. Leave a Detailed Property Manual: Having a detailed property manual available to your tenants will help lessen the burden required by you. A property manual will empower your tenants to find everything they need to have a successful stay in your property from “how to use the remote control” or “how to work the thermostat” to “where do you keep the cleaning supplies” and “where to dispose of trash.”  Read our blog post on how to create a property manual that works!

4. Keep Your Property in Working Order: Always be sure to keep up with property maintenance and repairs. A broken sprinkler head can result in a dead lawn. A broken window can create water damage to your hardwood floors. Working toilets and clean baths are a must! Between tenant stays, make sure you conduct regular maintenance on the property – and always fix any tenant request promptly too.

5. Communicate Regularly: Make sure you’re checking in with your tenants regularly (twice a month), especially in the begining. You want them to feel welcome and at home and allowing them time to ask you questions goes a long way to building that positive and lasting relationship with them.

Remember, clients who feel they are well taken care of and feel good about renting from you will more likely write you a winning review, refer you to other potential tenants, and come back for more at a later date!

Are you doing everything you can to create a happy situation for you and your furnished rental tenant? Leave us a comment and give us some of your “happy tenant” tips!

Guest Post About Resident Retention Strategies: Tips to Kick-Off a Strong 2012

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Ashley Halligan, an analyst at Software Advice, provides us with some rental property management software reviews and strategies for 2012. Many of these tips can be applied to corporate housing rental property landlords and managers too.

A 2011 SatisFacts study estimated the average cost of a rental property turnover adds up to $3900. After days lost to vacancy, repairs, standard maintenance, professional cleaning and marketing, the overall cost of turnover can sometimes equal several months of rental income. Encouraging lease renewal is a cost-saving focus that all property managers should have strategies for. After conducting interviews with leading industry experts, we’ve gathered three strategies to encourage lease renewal, lessen resident turnover and, subsequently, save significantly over time.

BEGIN WITH CUSTOMER SERVICE

Perhaps it seems redundant to give emphasis to customer service, but another SatisFacts study shows 54 percent of resident turnover is a direct result of avoidable circumstance. Some residents left because they felt customer service was not satisfactory while others felt management wasn’t responsive following maintenance requests.

Doug Miller, Founder and President of SatisFacts Research, suggests focusing first on “exceptional service.”

“The marketing fluff is nice, but only if accompanied by exceptional service,” says Miller. And what determines exceptional service? Miller believes it’s sincerely meeting residents’ needs and not assuming you know what they want. This also includes courteousness and professionalism; promptness of responsiveness; and, follow-up on completed service requests.

FOCUS ON VALUE

Value can be perceived beyond monetary savings; by focusing on residents perceived value, longevity can become more secure. According to Jen Piccotti, Vice President of Education and Consulting at SatisFacts, value is defined as how easy it is to be a resident.

“The way residents see it, [value] is defined as how easy it is to be a resident in this community for the price I’m paying,” says Piccotti. “Staff can gain huge amounts of loyalty by thinking in terms of making life easier, less stressful and more convenient for their residents on a daily basis.”

THOUGHTFUL PERKS & GESTURES

Gables Residential offers a handful of incentives to residents. They offer the Gables Great Rewards Program which rewards residents for tenure. Additionally, Gables hosts social events to infuse a sense of community in their communities. Some properties offer electronic vehicle charging stations and, of course, pet-friendly policies are always helpful in maintaining retention.

Retention strategies do not have to be a hefty investment; a sense of thoughtfulness and creativity go a long way. Lynette Hegeman, Vice President of Marketing at Gables Residential, explains, “Integration doesn’t always mean you have to spend a lot of money. It’s about innovation.”

Overall, a clear sense of commitment to residents will make a lasting impression when it comes time to renew a lease or seek housing elsewhere. Hegeman suggests that the smallest gestures can really make or break a tenant’s perception, “It can be as simple as handing out newspapers or coffee in the morning.”

Read the original story here.