managementWays Trainers Should Ask Questions Objection & Closing Toolbox Training Trivia Training...

management 4-10Management Focus:Raising Rents: How, When, and Whyby Tami SiewrukStop Sending Out Renewal Letters in a Soft Market by Doug Chasick In The Management Spotlight: Frank BasileManagement Ideas:Run a Rent Increase RaffleDo It Yourself Goals“Other Income” GolfRenewal Incentive PercentageThey Stopped Sending Renewal Letters

marketing 12-17Marketing Focus:Marketing a Rent Increase by Tami SiewrukIn The Marketing Spotlight: Amy KosnikowskiMarketing Ideas:Raise Rents, But Offer an Early Lease/Sign-up DiscountCreate a Referral CooperativeRace to RenewA Few Radical Renewal Ideas

training 18-23Training Focus:Training Your Staff to Sell Rent Increases by Tami SiewrukCommon Sense Service Not So Common by Teresa AllenIn The Training Spotlight: Trisha Hoffman-AhrensTraining Ideas:Training Quick TipOvercoming Rent Increase ObjectionsTransporting Training MaterialsPuppets Make Role-playing Fun8 Minutes to Focus AttentionWays Trainers Should Ask QuestionsObjection & Closing ToolboxTraining TriviaTraining Activity Saves $42,552

on-site 24-28On-Site Focus:Selling a Rent Increase: The Role of the Service Staff by Tami SiewrukIn The Training Spotlight: Lori SniderOn-Site Ideas:Colorful, Eyecatching RenewalsHandling Residents with “Special” Envy Hug A BuildingOne Positive Phone Call For RetentionRent CouponsKeep Us Developing Outstanding Staff!Create Community Service ZonesPreventive Maintenance/Renewal ProgramResident Satisfaction Study

table of contents

STOP Sending Out

RenewalLetters!page 8

Train Your Staffto Sell Rent

Increases page 18

The Role YourService Staff

Plays in Selling Rent

Increases!page 24

Marketing RentIncreases Leads

to Happy Endingspage 12

2 Multifamilypro

There are two approaches to raising rents and renewing leases. The reactiveapproach happens after the fact: after a resident has had a problem, voiceda complaint, becomes dissatisfied, or has had to bring something to the

attention of you and your team. On the other hand,proactive resident retention begins even before theresident walks in the door or gives you a call. It's allabout making positive things happen now ratherthan making up for problems later. Proactive serviceand retention, with a solid focus on raising rents andrenewals, does wonders for a community's bottomline. In this issue, we’ll focus on “Maximizing Rentsand Renewals.”

May all your challenges find solutions!

Tami L. Siewruk

Multifamilypro (formerly Sales &Marketing Magic for Apartment Pro-fessionals) is published six times ayear, and is available by subscriptiononly.

Copyright 2003The Sales & MarketingMagic Companies, Inc.

ISSN#1078-1412

Reproduction of any portion or theentirety of this magazine is strictly for-bidden without prior written permissionfrom the publisher.

This publication is designed to provideinformation in regard to the subjectmatter covered. It is sold with theunderstanding that neither the editornor the publisher is engaged in ren-dering legal services.

If legal advice or other expert advice isrequired, the services of a professionalperson should be sought.

For subscription information, letters tothe editor, comments or suggestions,please write, email or call:

The Sales & Marketing Magic Companies

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Telephone: 800-363-7384Fax: 727-784-7978

email: [email protected]: www.smmonline.com

Chief Imagination OfficerTami Siewruk

Director of Order, Reason and Reality

Barbie Figueroa

Director of Making Stuff WorkMonique Guion-Kimball

Director of Getting Stuff Done Now

JoAnn Follert

Director of Making StuffLook GoodLeslie Zane

Director of Getting Stuffto the Right Address

Jeff Marriott

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Raising Rents: How, When, and WhyBy Tami Siewruk

A s we all know, in order for an apartment commu-nity to consistently maximize its net operating

income, rent increases are a necessity. They help offsetincreases in operating costs, thereby keeping profitshealthy; and they increase the community's value. Anycommunity that is not periodically evaluating their rentalschedules (even during difficult times) and makingincreases as the market will bear, is simply not managingfor maximum NOI (Net Operating Income) or ROI(Return on Investment).

Is It Time?

There are lots of excuses for not raising rents. If a com-munity is already making a nice profit and resident reten-tion is high, it is easy to adopt the "if it ain't broke, don'tfix it" approach. Alternatively, if a community is alreadystruggling with less-than-stellar occupancy levels andretention is uncomfortably patchy, or they are offeringconcessions, they may feel that a rent increase would bethe death knell for the community.

Certainly, there are some markets and some commu-nities that simply can't afford an increase; but there aremany, many cases where communities are simply cryingout for one. In my experience, many communities believethat to implement a rent increase, they need to do it acrossthe board; or they believe that if they're offering conces-sions, they can't increase rent at the same time. Thesecommonly held beliefs are simply not true!

Before You Get Started…

Of course, raising rental rates is not as easy as it sounds.In fact, it can be terrifying. This is especially true in arenter's market, where even a small bump can send bothcurrent and potential residents sailing out the door anddown the street to a better deal; so tread with caution! Thefollowing strategies are good ways to ease in, withouttaking scary chances with your occupancy level.

Vary increases by apartment type and demand.Rather than making an across-the-board increase for allyour apartments, assess the popularity of your various floorplans and locations and tailor your rates to reflect demand.

Visit our website at www.SMMOnline.com to subscribe or call 800-363-7384 5

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This will help you strike that all-important balance betweenmaximum income and maximum occupancy.

"Try out" the increase on new leases first. Before youspring an increase on renewing residents, test the newrental amount on vacant apartments to see how the marketresponds. If new residents, most of whom have been outthere shopping, find the rate acceptable it's a good bet thatyou are in line with the market. Knowing this can give yourleasing professionals both the confidence they need to sellthe increase to existing residents and an excellent tool forovercoming price-based renewal objections.

Softening the Blow

Once you've tested the new rates and become convincedthat it's time to move forward, you are faced with the taskof selling the increase to existing residents. Obviously,you need an approach that will result in the least possibleresident turnover. The strategies below can help.

Give them time to adjust. There are differing opinionson how much notice you should give residents of a rentincrease. Some believe in providing the shortest possiblenotice - only what is required by law - reasoning that toomuch advance notice only gives residents time to find anew home. Others think you should give a longer notice,to give residents a chance to prepare for the new amountand for the community to have a quicker understandingon the marketing efforts it will take to release the turnoverthat was created. When deciding how much notice togive, you may want to consider the size of the increase.While most residents will be able to absorb an extra $10or $20 per month, larger increases may be more problem-atic. A longer notice, then, would give them more time torethink their monthly budgets and adjust to the higherrate. It also gives you more time to overcome their objec-tions and convince them to stay.

Use odd numbers. I don't mean weird! I mean odd asopposed to even. Ever notice how so many retail items arepriced just one penny below the full dollar amount…$5.99,$29.99, $99.99, etc.? There's a reason for that; marketingtheory holds that consumers perceive these prices to bemore fair and honest - that is, they tend to feel that theitems are marked at the lowest possible price. You can putthat same pricing psychology to work for you. Instead ofa $15 dollar increase, try $14 or $16. Residents will bemore likely to perceive the increase as calculated to meeta specific need rather than simply a way to beef up profits.

First improve, then increase. From a fiscal perspec-tive, it may make more sense to raise rents first, and then use the additional income to make any community

improvements that are needed. From a resident satisfac-tion standpoint, this is the wrong order. Remember, resi-dents don't see your operating budget. They don't knowwhat capital improvements you have planned for thecoming year. What they know is that the carpet in thecommon areas is threadbare, the building exteriors arefaded and chipped, and the parking lot needs resurfacing.When you hit them with a rent increase, they're not goingto think "Oh, great! Now they can fix the place up!"They're going to think, "$20 more? For what!?" If at allpossible, make any truly necessary improvements beforeyou ask for more rent. Then you can point to thoseimprovements as justification for the increase.

Don't drag it out. Some managers advocate a slow, incre-mental approach to rent hikes, believing that a series of smallincreases spaced over a few months will be easier to swallowthan one larger one. Actually, it is almost certainly better toget it over with in one fell swoop. Pestering residents everyfew months for a higher rent is only going to keep them con-tinually annoyed. An exception to this might be made in

Run a Rent Increase Raffle!

Everyone loves a raffle! They've been successful foryears, and can serve as a fun and easy incentive whenyour schedule doesn't permit something more elaborate.

What You'll Need

Raffle tickets and a container to collect them. One grand prize, and/or a few smaller prizes.

How It’s Done

1. Select the goals you want the community to reach forthe week, then announce the Rent Increase RaffleContest to your staff.

2. Here's how it works: allow each leasing professionalto drop a raffle ticket into the fishbowl each time heor she leases an apartment at an increased rentalrate, moving the whole team closer to the overallcommunity goal. You can include the whole teamby setting goals for each of the areas that willimpact the overall community goal.

3. Pull out the winning ticket (or tickets) at the end ofweek with a grand prize drawing at the end of themonth!

Continued next page

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cases of large increases - for example, when a residenthas been paying an extremely low move-in incentiverate, and you are attempting to bring him or her withinstriking distance of market rate. In these cases, youmay want to take a more gradual approach. Even then,however, it's probably best to let the resident know thefull amount of the increase up front, and explain thatyou are spacing it out only to make the transition easieron him or her.

Give them an upgrade. It's not news to anyone inthis industry that residents don't like the idea of payingmore money for the same old apartment. They hear"increase"; they look around at their carpeting (at leasta year old, maybe more) and their paint (not as fresh asit used to be); and they start asking the inevitable ques-tion: "Why should I pay more for an apartment that's ayear older?" So give them a reason. Roll one or moreapartment upgrades into their renewal offer, and every-body wins. The resident feels like he's getting some-thing new for his higher rate, and the communitybecomes more valuable through the improvement.

Give them a chance to opt out of the upgrade. Thistactic is feasible only if you are planning to offer a fairlysubstantial - and pricey - upgrade. If you are offering a

major upgrade, like new carpet or appliances, you maybe able to use it as a sort of reverse negotiating tool. Forexample, if a resident was extremely resistant to theamount of the increase, you might agree to a lowerincrease if he or she would waive the upgrade. Beforedoing this, be sure to do your homework and make sureyou are accomplishing what you need to accomplish interms of income. Remember, too, that an upgradeincreases the value of the community. Therefore, even ifthe dollar amounts come out even between the money youlose by accepting a lower rent rate and the money yousave by not upgrading, you are not truly breaking even.

Along with the Rent Increase…

If your occupancy is high and your market is strong, youmay want to consider also raising your rental criteria.Remember, you will have already done so to an extentby increasing your rent and thereby requiring residentsto have a slightly higher income level to meet yourincome standards. Adjusting your qualifications upwardjust a bit, can refine your overall resident profile.

Some ways you can improve your resident profile include:

Requiring a "good" credit history for a longer period of time.

Requiring a higher overall credit rating by allowingfewer low-rated items.

Reducing or eliminating any incentives or concessionsyou offer.

You owe it to your community's success to manageyour community's rent - not merely to collect it. Consistentlyevaluate your rental rates, increase them as the market willbear, and manage for maximum NOI and ROI.

Do It YourselfGoals

What You'll Need

Lottery tickets or some other small prize. A grand prize. A fish bowl or similar container.

Getting Started1. At a team meeting, challenge your employees

to set their own leasing goals for the week.

2. Follow-up during the week, encouraging yourteam and applauding their progress towardreaching their goal. ("Great job, Lisa! Onlyone more lease and you'll reach your goal!")

3. At week's end, award those who met theirleasing goal with a small prize, and entertheir name in a drawing for the grand prize atthe end of the month. Every apartment leasedor renewed above and beyond the goal nets another drawing entry.

For more great management ideas visit our web site at

www.SMMOnline.com. Available inour “PRO” section under Management

are these downloads:

Resident Communication Card (Form)

Rethinking Your Lease Renewal Strategy... Be Flexible

The Four R's: Rentals, Renewals, Retention and ResultsFrom Concessions...to Rent Increases

Community Utility Log (in Excel complete with automatic graphs)


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Frank Basile Sr. Vice President

Gene B. Glick Company

Located in: Indianapolis, IndianaResponsible for: 18,719 Apartment Homes Years in the Apartment Industry: 28 years

What does it take to be the best?Set specific, time-tabled goals and work in an organ-ized manner to accomplish them. Surround yourselfwith competent associates who are also goal-directedand organized, then recognize and compensate themin accordance with their productivity.

What is your favorite idea, tool, tip, or technique?No amount of training will overcome the wronghiring decision. We must hire people who are rightfor the job, for the department or community and forthe company.

This requires not only that they know how to do thejob for which they are being hired or have the aptitudeto learn, but that they also have the right personality tomaximize their comfort level and productivity and thatthey possess good personal skills, such as time man-agement, human relations, communications and goalsetting. This requires testing, background checks andinterviewing designed to understand the applicant'spersonality and personal skills as well as his or herjob-related skills and knowledge.

Generally, we hire for technical skills but we firefor lack of personal skills and/or for personality prob-lems. A major study showed that people are not firedfor incompetence, but because they didn't get alongwith others or they lacked a crucial personal skill.

“Other Income” GolfLooking for a fun contest that's sure to increase perform-

ance and hit a hole-in-one with your staff? "Other Income" Golfwill not only bring out the Arnold Palmers and Nancy Lopezeslurking within your team, but will also promote suggestiveselling of the ancillary services that your community offers.

What You'll Need

A scorecard for everyone involved in the contest. The item (or items) to be featured in the contest.A prize (or prizes) worthy of the effort for one round of"Other Income" Golf

How It's Done

1. Determine the menu item or items you want to feature inyour version of "Other Income" Golf. Featuring four itemswould be the simplest approach, but you could also choosemore than four.

2. Lay out your "Other Income" Golf Course. 3. Explain the rules to your team. Every "hole" is a par 4. The

team member starts out 2 over par at each hole - or, inother words, a double-bogey 6 - for every item sold(ceiling fan, upgraded phone service, renters insurance.etc.) and the score now is reduced by one. For example, ifduring the contest, a team member sells Internet access(your featured item), the score there is a 2 (6 minus).

4. At the end of the contest, team members add up each scoreon their scorecard and the one with the lowest total wins!Award the second and third winners, too.

Contest Rules

Write your featured item numbers in the spaces provided. Eachtime you sell a featured item, place a small hash mark in theappropriate "number sold" box. Each hole is marked andyou're starting out with a double-bogey 6 (2 over par). At theend of the contest, tally the marks in each box and subtractfrom 6 to calculate your score on each hole. Then add up thescores for your total. The team members with the lowestrounds win the big prizes!

PROsp tlight

PLAYER NAME

Item Number

Starting Score 6 6 6 6Number Sold

Hole Score

TOTAL SCORE

“Other Income” Golf Card

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Here's a PROVEN strategy to deal with residentturnover in a soft market. I've used it many times and theresults have been far superior to sending out renewal letterswhen my market disappeared! This idea is based on mybelief that there are two kinds of residents who move: thosewho have to, and those who want to.

1. Residents who move due to necessity (job, marriage, divorce,financial condition change, roommate add/subtract, buy house,etc.), are going to move - no matter what you say or do -because they have no choice. Stop trying to "save the notice"and do whatever it takes to make their move as stress-free aspossible. It's your last chance to let them leave with a goodimpression of you and can result in referrals later on!

2. Most residents who don't have to move due to necessityaren't really aware that their lease is expiring until we tellthem it is - with our array of 120/90/60/45/30 days prior-to-lease expiration letters. The residents who want to movebecause they can't stand living somewhere know exactlywhen their lease expires. They're marking the number ofdays left on their lease on the living room wall, the wayprisoners do in jail!

So, in a soft market, where concessions and specialsabound, most people who are reasonably happy with wherethey are currently living do not peruse the real estate sec-tion. They're not reading the various specials, because theyaren't thinking about moving. If we don't send them arenewal letter or notify them that they are now month-to-month residents (the other part of this strategy is that we donot send them a MTM letter and we do not charge them aMTM fee), in almost every jurisdiction, under the LandlordTenant law, the lease will automatically convert to a MTMlease. The only real reason to send them a MTM letter is tobe entitled to collect MTM charges and to notify them thatwe are/will seek relief under any holdover tenant provision.So, the majority of residents will stay put, paying their renteach month and living their lives.

When the market "comes back," we now have theability to raise rents to whatever the market will bear witha 30-day written notice to all of those MTM residents. If wehad followed "conventional" property management proce-dure, we would have signed new, one-year leases with allthese residents at depressed rental rates (possibly withrenewal specials), and we would have to wait for their leaseexpiration before we could take advantage of the stronger

SendingOut

RenewalLettersWhen Your

Market GoesSoft!

By Douglas D. Chasick


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market. Plus, we could have forced turnover by "telling"the residents to shop around for the best deal.

While I don't have any "hard" statistics for this sinceI left all of that stuff at whatever company I was workingfor at the time, I can tell you that it works (see the resultsone company had on the next page at the end of thisarticle). In the approximately 16 years I have been usingthis strategy, I have always had less turnover during the"no renewal letter" period than in the rest of the year,and my occupancy was higher than my comps withoutspecials. Then when the market came back, we realizedsignificant (15 - 25%) rental increases even if I had toforce turnover, eat the turn costs and have some vacancy.We did have residents who just stayed put and signed anew one-year lease at the current market rate. Try it.What have you got to lose? It really works!

Some other thoughts about succeeding in asoft market:

1. It's the service, stupid! The three most importantaspects of real estate will always be location, location,location - and the three most important reasons to reneware service, service, and service. Let's focus on mainte-nance service for now: Are you A) Taking care of yourresidents the way they want to be taken care of, or are youB) Twisting and squishing and otherwise reshaping theirrequests so that it fits your policies and procedures? If youchose "A", you're on the right track; if you chose "B",read on . . .

Do you have a service tech who works on Saturday?

How about several evenings a week? Automobile dealersdiscovered this a long time ago. Some of the dealers nearme have service departments that are open Saturday andSunday, as well as being open until 9:00 or 10:00 p.m.each weekday evening. Why? Because that's the onlytime many of their customers can come in to get their carsserviced! "Oh, but Doug, the apartments are right here -the resident doesn't need to go anywhere, and nobody hasto be home and we don't do appointments and I can'tafford overtime and blah, blah, blah…"

Call me wacky, but most residents want to be aroundwhen someone is in their apartment, even if we thinkthat's silly or inconvenient. We may have the right to enterwithout their presence; but when our residents aren't happy,they have the right to move. Follow the Platinum Rule: dounto others as they want to be done unto. Schedule aservice tech to work Tuesday through Saturday. Schedule aservice tech to work from noon until 8:00 p.m. two or threedays a week. Accommodate the wants and needs of yourresidents and they will stay put!2. Beauty (and service) is in the eye of the beholder (or,you can't manage what you don't measure). How do youknow when you are doing a good job? Actually, have youdefined what a "good job" is, as far as resident retentionis concerned?

Do you measure the percentage of expiring leasesthat renew?

Do you factor in how early they renew - 90 or 60days out vs. the day before the lease expires?

Continued next page

Renewal Incentive Percentage (With a Twist)By Brenda Coons

Many management companies offer an incentive to the resident for renewing in some form of discount, etc. TheGene B. Glick Company wanted to offer a similar program company-wide for the sake of consistency, but they werereluctant to use an accelerated percentage program that would deduct too much from the bottom line over the courseof several years. During a Brainstorming session on the topic, one of their property managers came up with the ideato reduce the amount of the increase by a percentage, rather than the entire apartment rent.

It was a perfect solution! As a result, each resident receives 20% off their increase when they renew their lease.It provided exactly what their residents wanted... recognition that they're valued and the realization that they are get-ting a better deal than market renters.

Has it worked? The first property manager to implement it changed the minds of two residents who'd given intentto vacate notices, the FIRST day the idea was implemented!

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Do you factor in the amount of the rent increase vs.the value-added (stays with the property) renewalbonus or renewal concession?

Do you keep track of whether they called you beforeyou sent out the first renewal letter (they love it somuch they want to make sure they don't miss theirrenewal), or how quickly (or even if) they reply toyour renewal invitation(s)?

Do you review their service request and generalcomplaint history and the completion/resolution satisfaction rate?

How often do you talk to your residents when youaren't trying to renew their lease or collect their rent -do you call them after a service request is completed?

Do you make NAR (No Apparent Reason) calls? Ifyou schedule 5 to 10 each day, just to say "Hi" andfind out if they need anything, you can end up talkingto each resident 4 - 8 times a year!

Are you using "Rate Our Maintenance" cards? Yes,using, them - not just attaching them to service requests,but following up on each one, enrolling your entirestaff to encourage residents to return the cards, andrecognizing service delivered at the level you haveestablished.

Are you using "Rate Our Service" cards for the officestaff? Wanna be really bold? Call these "Are you gettingyour money's worth?" cards, and read the responses. Ifyou want people to renew their leases, their responses onthese cards will become your road map!

People who have a choice of staying or moving willstay put when they are getting their money's worth;when they feel special; when living at our property savesthem time, money and aggravation; and when they enjoyinteracting with you and your staff. We know why theymove and why they stay; so why not establish specificperformance thresholds? Meticulously measure youractions and refine your policies, procedures and tech-niques to produce the results you know you need to keepyour residents happy. Now, let's get to work!

Doug D. Chasick, CPM®, CAPS, CAS,Adv. RAM, CLP, is The ApartmentDoctor™, a Multifamily Speaker andConsultant specializing in restoring rentalhealth to ailing apartment communities and

management companies. Doug is also the Editor of NOINews™, a subscription-only newsletter for propertymanagers. You can reach Doug at (321) 956-2188, byemailing him at [email protected], or by visitinghis web site at www.NOINews.com.

This community ’s occupancy rose by more than

20% when they stopped sending renewal letters!By Karen Blanchard

ur occupancy dropped to 79%, and we had to do something. As soon as we had nine apartments rented, ninemore would become vacant. We had a revolving door, and my intent was to put a stop to it! Here's how: we

simply stopped sending renewal letters. In our leases it states that we must give a 30-day notice if we plan to raise the rent, otherwise the lease will con-

tinue on a month-to-month basis, with additional month-to-month fees. Because we were in the middle of a downmarket, and were not increasing rents, we thought we would try this approach. After all, what could it hurt, and whyremind residents to take a look at what the competitors have to offer them? They're giving away the farm to get newmove-ins!

We started this approach in Mid-September 2002; and as of January 2003, I am proud to say that our occu-pancy has not only re-bounded, it has exceeded our wildest dreams. Current leasing occupancy is 99.5 and wehave only had two notices for the end of this month. Most residents still renew about a month late when wesend a bill for the month-to-month fee. We offer to waive the fee in order to get the renewal. Remember,waiving the fee is less than what you may be giving to a new resident in move-in incentives!

O

Over the last several years, the multi-housing industry has seen some dramatic marketingchanges: newspaper ads migrated to guide books, the Internet went mainstream and nowthere is something new on the horizon, C.A.T.S.

C.A.T.S. is the “Current Audio Tracking System” introduced by For Rent Magazine®. Thisrevolutionary tool does what our industry has struggled to do for so long - manage leadsand track ads. Can you imagine knowing exactly how well an advertising source trulyworks? C.A.T.S. is a system where follow up and follow through are just a mouse clickaway. It provides market trends so complete they literally shape your community for you.Industry giant, For Rent Magazine®, provides C.A.T.S. with its print ads so that you cancheck every single lead generated over any time period to your community. C.A.T.S. also

provides the phone numbers of the callers and, even more helpful, the names andaddresses for most leads. Every call is also announced with “Another lead from For RentMagazine®”. Tom Jenkins, Regional Manager of HMI Property Solutions, had no idea thebook was responsible for so much of their traffic. “We actually thought about dropping ForRent Magazine® because we thought we weren’t getting much from them, but C.A.T.S.proved just how well For Rent Magazine® works. Many leads were not sourced correctlyand without this system, we would have made a huge marketing error. This is the bestmarketing tool our industry has seen in years!”

I recently spoke with Terry Slattery, Vice President of Marketing of For Rent Magazine®, andTerry commented that, “Tom’s comment has been consistent with feedback we are receivingthroughout the country.” He adds, “We’ve known for years that printing more books and hav-ing such a strong distribution network had to translate into a tremendous lead pool for theapartment communities. Now we know this for sure. Our Atlanta book alone has generatedover 66,000 leads this month!”

For Rent Magazine® now has this product available nationwide, so if you want a marketing sourcethat can provide results, give For Rent Magazine’s C.A.T.S. a try!

by Jennifer Nevitt

Tour industry has seen in years!”

-Tom Jenkins

"We actually thought about dropping For Rent Magazine® because we thought we weren’t getting much fromthem, but C.A.T.S. proved just how well For Rent Magazine® works. Many leads were not sourced correctly andwithout this system, we would have made a huge marketing error. This is the best marketing tool our industryhas seen in years!"

- Tom Jenkins

M arketing Made Easy

his is the best marketing tool

Advertisement

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As marketing experts, we're used to selling. We sellour communities and all their many values. We sell ourexpert staffs and the services they provide. We sell ourlocations, our move-in specials, our amenities…and,when necessary, our rate increases!

As we all know, selling a rent increase does not start60 or 90 or even 120 days before lease expiration. That'sbecause selling an increase is inextricably linked toselling a renewal itself. If your resident loves living inyour community because of the fantastic service hereceives, he's not too likely to balk at a $20 or $30 bumpin price when it comes time for renewal. Conversely ifhe's miserable in your community and dissatisfied withyour service, he's probably not going to renew even at thesame rental rate, and almost certainly not at a higher rate!

Making a resident happy enough to renew is an on-going process that begins at first contact and ends onlywhen residency ends. In that span of time, we must use allof our marketing superpowers to keep that resident con-vinced he is living in the very best possible place. To dothat, we must unleash our two most powerful weapons:communication and service.

Constant Contact, Amazing Service

"We have found that it is a lot easier to sell a rent increaseby keeping in constant communication with the residentthroughout their lease term," explains Megan Harrison,Director of Marketing for Legacy Partners. "This leads toa much happier resident with less of a 'what have youdone for me lately' attitude, so they're much moreamenable to any increase."

John Unnasch, Regional Marketing Director forMcKinley, agrees wholeheartedly. "In this industry, theonly time we communicate with our residents is when wetell them we want more money or when we're repri-manding them for disobeying the lease terms," he says.McKinley has implemented a policy designed to ensuremore positive office-to-resident communication. "Wehave a policy we call 'One for One', which means thatevery time you send out a negative, you should send out apositive. Every time the manager sends out a ‘nastygram’to Mr. Smith for not cleaning up after his dog, he has to

send out a positive as well - say, to Mrs. Jones for alwayscleaning up after hers."

But communication is only part of the battle. Nomatter how many upbeat notes you send or friendly phonecalls you make, they will matter little to the resident whocan't get his leaky faucet fixed despite multiple calls to theoffice. Nothing, absolutely nothing, takes the place ofgood service or makes up for poor service.

Start Early and Have a Plan

So let's assume we've been using our communication andservice superpowers since Mr. Resident first moved in.Our office staff has established a personal, positive rela-tionship with him. Our maintenance team has providedunparalleled service. And now he's past the mid-point ofhis year long lease. It's time to start thinking aboutactively pursuing a renewal.

Properties with the best renewal percentages tend tofollow a very structured approach to asking their residentsto sign a new lease. They start well in advance of leaseexpiration and typically, the first few contacts are so subtlethat the resident is unaware he or she is being "sold."

For example, John Unnasch's properties begin theirrenewal efforts 120 days before the end of a resident'slease, with a "Ten Star Tuneup." Residents receive a letterfrom the office, notifying them that the property managerand maintenance supervisor will be conducting (on aspecified date and time) an annual inspection to ensurethat the home is up to both the resident's and the com-pany's standards. During the inspection, the manager andmaintenance supervisor address any small problems thatcan be fixed on the spot, and write up work orders for anylarger ones, leaving a note for the resident that says "Wewill return within 24-48 hours to repair problem A,problem B, etc." Also, during the inspection, the managerassesses the apartment and makes a list of upgrades thecompany will be willing to make at renewal time. That listis quietly placed in the resident's file for future reference.

Ninety days prior to the lease-end date, a leasing pro-fessional makes another contact - a simple "just wanted tomake sure everything's okay in your home" phone call,again with no mention of renewal. The leasing profes-

Marketing a Rent Increaseby Tami Siewruk


sional also uses this call to make a gentle referralpitch. At 60 days before lease-end, the leasingprofessional makes the first mention of leaseexpiration and renewal, phoning the resident andasking him or her to come in for a visit. Theissue of price is avoided; if the resident asks, theleasing professional dodges the question with,"We don't even really know yet….my concern isjust whether you're happy in your home."

Finally, at 45 days before lease expiration,the resident gets the "price" letter. "We mentionthe anniversary of their lease and tell them we'dlike to offer them a new lease at only…whateverthe new rate is," says John. "We also assign thema day to come in and have a private session withus which is during one of our lease renewalweekends." The lease renewal weekends are heldeach month, and are themed. They typically pro-vide some sort of incentive for residents to comein and sign on the spot.

Lauree Fellows, Regional Marketing Directorfor Archon Residential Management, also has aplan for drawing in renewals. At 60 or 90 daysprior to lease expiration (depending upon themarket), her leasing professionals send residentsa note saying they have a package in the office.When the residents arrive, they find a "thank youfor being a great resident" gift, along with aleasing professional who wants to talk to themabout renewing their lease, of course! Laureehas found this to be a great way of capturingbusy residents who are otherwise difficult to pindown. "If you try to make an appointment, ifthey know what it's about, they'll put it off untillast minute," she says. "But with this approach,there's only a very small percentage who don'tcome in."

So You’ve Got Them in theOffice...Now What?

Getting a face-to-face renewal meeting is animportant hurdle; but it's by no means a guar-antee that the resident will renew, especially ifprice is an issue. Once you've got them there,you may have to deal with a number of objec-tions. It's important to be prepared - to knowwhat to expect and be armed with the informa-tion you need to conquer any objection.

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Megan Harrison sug-gests having three tools: acost of moving work-sheet, a summary of rentsin the local market, and acompetitor comparison

notebook. "Thecost of movingworksheet helpsresidents makean informed deci-sion and points out many moving costs theymight not have thought about," she says."The competitor comparison notebook out-lines communities in the market and everyamenity and service they provide. This canbe a really good way to show someone thatthey can move to ABC Apartments, but they will notreceive this service or that amenity. The summary of rentsshows the resident that any increase is in keeping withwhat they will find at other communities." Megan notesthat it's also important to point out the value residents arereceiving at your community and to highlight any upcomingcapital improvements they can look forward to.

John Unnasch justifies a rate increase with simplemath. "A lot of times, it's just getting them to understandwhy we're raising rents. They think we're just doing itbecause the owner or the management company wants tomake more money," he says. John dispels that misconcep-tion by listing the property’s operating expenses that haveincreased in the past year. "I'll take the $30 rent increaseand I'll break it out for the month….I'll say 'Water billshave gone up 3 percent, so there's $5. Trash bills havegone up 3 percent, so there's another $5…' Pretty soon,you'll have enough 2 and 3 percents added up and - BAM,there's your $30 increase."

Of course, it's always possible that facts and figureswill not prove convincing enough. That's why many prop-erties offer some sort of renewal incentive. The incentivemay range from a simple carpet cleaning or paint touch-up to a free month's rent, but it serves the same purpose:to give them a reason, beyond the great value inherent inyour community, to stay.

Remember the list of potential apartment upgrades

John Unnasch's managers make during the “Ten StarTuneup?” This is where it comes into play! "When theresidents come in, we have the file in front of us," Johnsays. "We're prepared. We know they have bad carpeting,bad tile, an outdated lighting package, etcetera. So whenthey come in and say, ‘I have horrible carpeting,’ we'renot blindsided. We're ready to offer them new carpetingon the spot, because the manager has already authorizedit." In addition to unit upgrades, the company offers itsrenewing residents the same special it's currently offeringnew move-ins, and an automatic lease-renewal reward

that starts out at $25 and increaseswith each subsequent renewal.

Megan Harrison's company alsooffers both apartment upgrades andrent discounts for lease renewals. It isalso currently running a specialrenewal promotion. "Currently, anynew leases or renewals from October 1through January 31 are entered into a

drawing to win a 24-month lease or a Mercedes SLK 230,"she says. "It has been very effective with lease renewals andhas residents very excited."

Lauree Fellows says that another incentive her com-pany uses is flexible lease terms. "We try to avoid havingtoo many lease expirations in the winter months, so thatallows us to sign shorter-term leases," she says. "That'sanother negotiating tool that may help move residentswho are undecided."

For more great marketing ideas visit our web site at www.SMMOnline.com.

Available in our “PRO” section under Marketing are these downloads:

Above And Beyond Services

Community Fun Day

How to Get a 5% Increase

60 Day Renewal Invitation


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By Rick Brown

None of us want to pay more money for the apartment weare renting. Most of us have trouble increasing rents at thetime we are asking for a new renewal commitment. Oneof the things I've learned is that perception is reality. Sothe key to raising rents while keeping resident retentionhigh is that your residents perceive they are getting abargain.

The Program: Three months before the lease renewaldate send the resident a rent increase/lease notice. Includean early bird incentive to encourage them to sign andagree to the rent increase while preempting them fromsearching for a new place to live. Lets say that you aretrying to increase your rental rate by 5% on an $800 permonth rental unit, or $40 per month. Send them a rentincrease for 8%, but offer them a 3% discount if theycome in and renew the lease within the next two weeks,2% within four weeks, and 1% within the next five weeks.

Design the letter to outline the savings for each per-centage offer, for example:

· The 3% discount would equal $24 per month or $288 per year.

· The 2% discount could equal $16 per month, or $192 per year.

· The 1% discount would equal $8 per month or $96 per year.

The resident perceives that they are saving $288while you're increasing revenue by $480 per year. Theresident may ask for the full percentage of savings duringthe course of the three months but that's okay. You still getthe same perception and same revenue.

Projected Results: You will be able to test this pro-gram on a monthly basis and determine the net effect. Therisks are small but the rewards are large. One communitythat implemented the idea received a 65% early birdordering response rate!

Create A ReferralCooperative

By Adrienne Hill

We all know that our particular communities offersomething that our competition doesn't and vice versa. So,why not capitalize on that and work with the competitionto fulfill each other's needs? For instance our Greenville,South Carolina community, The Plantations at Haywood,offers an abundance of three bedrooms, while our compe-tition does not. As a result, we have established a rapportand a referral program with area competitors that areturning away customers due to a lack of needed floorplans.As an incentive, we offer a tiered referral program: $75for a 3-month lease referral, $150 for a 6-month leasereferral and $200 for a 12-month lease referral. Not onlyhas it resulted in more qualified leads and ultimately,leases, it has also strengthened our relationships with ourcompetitors so we can count on them to keep open com-munication about our market.

Here is an example of our promotional flyers,"Leasing Checks." They can be printed on coloredpaper and then cut into thirds and handed out. The costfor this is minimal. Your cost per lease should just bewhatever referral is given out!

Raise Rents, But Offer An Early Lease/Sign-up Discount

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Located in: Charlotte, NCResponsible for: 4,000 Apartment HomesYears in the Apartment Industry: 10

What does it take to be the best? Push yourself with an inner drive to never accept mediocrity in yourself oranyone on your team.Be aware of all the factors that affect success.Surround yourself with positive and motivated people.Stay open to fresh and different ideas, no matter how untraditional or unconventional.Don't get stuck on "old-school" ideas.Change with the times.Motivate and inspire while recognizing excellence.Realize that sometimes silence, listening and observing, is the best path to take.Don't do it if you can't do it right.Enjoy and be happy with what you do and with whom you do it. Happiness shows in your performance.Practice what you preach.

The most important tip or suggestion I can offer to someone who is new tomarketing to increase his or her performance is:

Never be afraid to take a risk and fall forward.Speak up for yourself and what you believe in.Set priorities for projects and for your attention.Develop efficient time management skills and tools.Complete a project before moving on to the next.Focus.Performance is evaluated by results, not by activity.Be proactive and ahead of the game versus reactive to demand/needs.Give your team the best in tools and support to be successful in their jobs.

What is your favorite idea, tool, tip, or technique? Use your local service providers (vendors). They're a priceless resource for education and knowledge.Keep in contact with other multifamily professionals… another invaluableresource for information.Look to other industries for success stories that can be applied in our industry.Research, study, read everything and anything pertaining to trends within our industry, then share that information with your team. Think of technology as your friend, and seek out ways to use it to be more efficient, professional and progressive.Success starts with the right people in the right positions with the correct tools, training and support.

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Race to RenewBy Casey Reid

During the month of May, Indianapolis isthe undisputed auto racing capital of theworld. The Indianapolis 500 lasts for theentire month of May, so it presented an idealopportunity for us to create a fun and memo-rable renewal theme that revolved around therace. We sent a total of 90 letters to all resi-dents whose leases expired in June, July andAugust. The letter offered three decisiondates with different rates.

There were prizes for the first 33renewals. (The number 33 was chosen to rep-resent the 33 drivers in the Indianapolis 500.)There were special awards for the Pole Sitter(six months free storage and a ceiling fan) &

the other two membersof the front row (ceilingfan and two free movietickets). Everyone elsereceived two free movietickets. The program was

very successful - a total of 32 renewals wereobtained. We had a "Race to Renew" banneron the outside of the office, flyers sent toevery door and racing posters on our officedoor. The event was initiated with the detailsexplained in the May newsletter.

What made this renewal promotion sucha winner was that our residents could renewat today's increase, not August's. It was a veryappealing proposal to those that intended toremain in our community, and probablychanged the minds of a few who might havebeen considering leaving, as well.

There was one negative aspect ofsending letters to August renewals. Many ofthem weren't quite ready to decide, andwanted us to extend the timeframe of theoffer. With a little persuasion, we got past theearly renewal objections, and are not onlywilling to try this idea again, but highly rec-ommend it to anyone else who has a longtimeframe, city-wide event taking place.

Amy KosnikowskiRegional Marketing Manager

CWS Apartment Homes


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Resident retention must be top priority for leasingprofessionals. So… I thought I'd share with everyonesome of our ideas. I hope this aids you in gettingrenewals for those big months with ten or more leasesscheduled to expire!

First, decide on a good incentive up front forthose renewing, and advertise it to them. Advertise ita lot. People need five hits to pay attention to yourmessage!

Perhaps a "sooner the better" incen-tive that gives graduated incentivesif they renew two months out andon down to two weeks before leaseexpiration in two week incre-ments: from a $400 renewal twomonths away, to a $25 incentivetwo weeks away.

What are you going to offerto make staying as attractive asbuying a new house? (No sarcasticcomments here!) How desperate isthe situation? Consider the fact that youmight have to offer extreme concessions tolure completely NEW residents. How much can yourproperty afford to spend to keep the current ones and saveyourself the headache of the turn over?

Are upgrades enough? Carpet cleaning? A newmicrowave or under-the-counter television? Whatabout a gift certificate for a rent discount that theymay use at any time they choose during their lease?What about "mall money" or other shopping gift cer-tificates? What are your demographics? What do youknow about the individuals who are moving and whatthey like/dislike?

Get personal. Can you write a personalized letterto each resident and invite them to a renewal partywith facts about their lives sprinkled throughout the

letter? Do you take the time to actually know yourresidents? You need to in this specialized world.What would make your residents want to stay atyour community?

What have you done to improve the communityin the time they've been there? Write them a letter andtell them! Have you told them all of the things you'redoing to exceed their expectations? Are you exceedingtheir expectations?

Send lunch to their office (a foot-longsub or something else that's big

enough to share will help you getyour word out to others too)!

Again, include all of thepapers, ready to sign.Renewal and outreach atthe same time!

Send a "pet gift" ifthey have a dog/cat with a

little note attached that usestheir pet's name. For example:

"Fido told me just yesterday heloves it here! He/she doesn't want to

leave Pointe West's great big yard! MakeFido a happy pet. Renew with Pointe West

today!" (or something like that. I'm sure y’all can be a littlemore funny and clever than this Fido stuff).

Flowers are always a great choice, especiallywhen they're delivered to your female residents attheir office - or drop off a long-stem orchid or rose attheir company's reception desk with a big thank youcard and a renewal letter (personalized, of course).

Give them a free bottle of wine when they comein and renew! You can buy little bottles of plasticchampagne at any party store to attach to your invite.This is a great idea year round!

AFew

Radical

Renewal

Ideas

By Krista Cozad

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Getting residents to swallow a rent increase has neverbeen easy; but it's more difficult now than everthanks to today's market conditions. Many commu-

nities are engaged in an all-out concession war for newmove-ins. In order to successfully increase rents, your teammust be ready for battle. They must understand why theincrease is necessary and be confident in explaining it, overand over again. They must be prepared to resolve objec-tions and show residents why living in your community isworth a little extra. In short, they must be well trained!

START FROM DAY ONE

One of the most important things to realize is that the sellingprocess starts from the first day of a new resident's lease. Ifyou wait until 60 or 90 days prior to lease expiration to startselling an increase, you will have very limited success.Instead, you must build value throughout the lease term bydelivering superior service. "Show value to residents everysingle day, not just a month before their lease is up," saysJoe Kaye, National Trainer for Homestore.com. "Showthem that what they're getting now is worth more than whatthey're paying - so they'll be willing to accept the increase."

That means that your staff must be well trained in thebasics of good customer service from the time they begininteracting with residents. "You can't pass on a rent increaseunless you've given good customer service," says EveBradford, President of Excel Training and Consulting. "So

you have to train them from the beginning of their tenurethat it's all about service. You do that through dailytraining, through interactions with the staff throughout thewhole training program."

Sue Garcia, Director of Training for Fairfield Properties,says that her company's training is premised on the fact thatpeople will pay a little more for superior service. Therefore,on-site staff members know that if they offer that superiorservice, they can confidently ask for an increase.

GET THEIR BUY-IN

You have undoubtedly had experiences with sales profes-sionals (to use the term loosely) who weren't really"behind" what they were selling. Perhaps you could tellby the tentative way they asked for the sale…or the waytheir voice sounded listless and bored when they recitedtheir product's features…or the way they gave up at thefirst hint of an objection. Hopefully, you've also had theopposite of that experience - the salesperson who believedso strongly in their product, who was so contagiouslyenthusiastic about its miraculous benefits that they werepractically irresistible.

In order for your leasing team to perform like thesecond type of salesperson, they must "get behind" therental increase and want to sell it. The best way to get thiskind of buy-in is to explain the increase to them. If youfail to do so, your on-site staff may view it as just another

T R A I N I N G Y O U R S T A F F T O

Sell Rent Increases

TRAINING QUICK TIP

Each time you begin a class, ask each partici-

pant to state one thing that they're confident

that they do better than anyone else in the room.

The answer doesn't have to relate to their job. This

exercise gives the team members a chance to come

out of their shells; starts the session on a positive

note by making the participants identify and share

something that's great about themselves; creates

an opportunity for them to find out something

about each other that they might not other-

wise learn; and it's a great icebreaker!

BY TAMI SIEWRUK


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obstacle to their ability to lease and re-lease apartments oras a misfortune for their residents. "Associates who arenot educated in the financial matters of the property tendto 'give away the farm' on specials," says Amy Abdallah,District Trainer for Trammell Crow Residential Services."They extend apologetic empathy to residents and makethe manager look like the bad guy, so the manager thenhas to blame it on the corporate office."

Show them why it's necessary to raise rent in real,numeric terms, not just in vague generalities. Share thebudget with them to help them understand the economicsbehind the decision. "Give them a chart so they can seewhere the money goes…what percentage goes to serv-ices, what percentage to maintenance, to payroll, and soforth," says Eve Bradford. "If they understand how themoney is spent, they'll understand why we need anincrease." Eve also uses a demonstration to show teammembers what a difference a $10 dollar increase canmake: "Show them a formula for the increase, by unit, bymonth or by year. Explain that it is derived from the costof their newsletters, their moving programs, and so forth,so they can see the big picture."

It may also be necessary to remind teams that you arein business to make a profit - that your owners expect to seea return on their investment, and it is the responsibility ofevery employee to make that happen. Amy Abdallah sug-gests using a training class that asks associates to meetROI/NOI by forecasting income. "They soon see thatsometimes the only avenue to increased revenue is in rentalincome. Making them do that really drives the pointhome."

The team also needs to view the community's rentalrate in terms of value, not price. "They need to understandthe value of the product they offer," says Carrie Morelan,Training Manager for Shea Properties. "That it's not justfour walls, a floor and a ceiling…it's the service they pro-vide and what sets them apart." Sandra Barfield, Directorof Training for Trammell Crow, agrees: "Train them tosell value. They have to know why you're increasing therent, why you think you're able to do that, and what you'regiving the resident in return." Sandra suggests chal-lenging on-site teams to go back to their properties anddiscover for themselves what warrants the increase. Thiscan be an effective way of building support for anincrease on a community-by-community basis.

Another way of gaining support is to have propertymanagers ask their on-site teams: "How much of anincrease do you think we can absorb?" According to SueGarcia, it is not uncommon for on-site staff to suggest aneven higher increase than you ultimately decide upon.

"When this happens, it can be very motivational for them.They think, 'If I said I could get $25 more, and I only haveto get $15 more…that's not so hard.'"

GIVE THEM THE TOOLS THEY NEED

Anticipate the objections your team will receive, and armthem with the information they need to overcome thoseobjections. Some tools that can be useful include:

A "cost of moving" worksheet that calculates all theexpenses involved in a move: phone and cable hookupfees, moving truck rental, a day or two off work, secu-rity deposit, etc. Total all the expenses and divide by12, to show that it will be more expensive to move thanto stay.

A "value by value" comparison showing how your com-munity stacks up to your competitors. This is useful fordeflecting the "They're charging less down the street"objection.

A worksheet showing how expenses have increased.Collect data on your operating costs - vendor charges,taxes, insurance and utility bills, if applicable - and letyour leasing professionals use that information toexplain to residents why the increase is necessary.

A breakdown of the increase amount by day. Showingthat a $25 dollar bump comes out to just under 85¢ aday is a great way to minimize it.

A bargaining chip. Leasing professionals should have something to offer residents who are facing an increase. Itmight be simply offering to repaint, clean carpets, replacetheir vinyl flooring or their kitchen sink. It might berefunding part of their security deposit for each year ofresidency. It doesn't matter so much what it is, the idea isto show residents that you value their residency and wantto make them happy.

Encouragement. Fielding resident objections about arent increase can be frustrating, and lead to employeeburnout. Be sure to have your on-site managers build inopportunities for "venting" and for morale building.Also, be sure your on-site managers know the impor-tance of listening and responding to associate feed-back. "Listen to your associates," Sandra Barfield says."If they're getting stressed out because they're gettingall these objections, the property manager must be ableto act on that. Otherwise, you will get burnout."

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MAKE SURE THEY FEEL PREPARED

"I think the number one thing they have to have is confi-dence to overcome the objections," says Sandra Barfield."You have to get them comfortable with what they'reselling. They have to have that level of assurance to beable to justify an increase." Sandra says that level of con-fidence comes from being well trained in the basics. Hercompany accomplishes this through classroom training:position-based workshops; weekly meetings of on-siteteams; and a two-hour "leasing blitz."

Sue Garcia agrees with the importance of a firm foun-dation in the basics. "Being able to handle the telephone,e-leasing, and on-site presentations comfortably…allthose kinds of things add up to a leasing professional’sconfidence. Which will help them know how to handlethemselves whether it's a big increase or a small one."

Sue also notes that one great way to build confidenceis to let team members practice. "One of the things we doin the training environment is to let staff 'try things on' ina safe or protected environment," she says. "We put themin role-playing situations, and let them practice handlingresident objections. That gives them the chance to workout any kinks in their presentation and feel comfortablewith it, because if they're not comfortable doing it in reallife, they won't be able to."

Your community's continued success depends onreceiving the maximum return on your investment. Sellinga rent increase is a tough job; but a solid strategy, that bringsyour team on board from the start, will make it much easier.Start from day one, get your team's buy-in, give them thetools they need, and make sure they feel prepared. The bestsales tool you can possibly have is a team that's totally soldon the idea they're tasked with selling!

OVERCOMING RENTINCREASE OBJECTIONS

By Amy Aguiar

1. Ask your audience to come up with ten common objections to a rental rate increase.Depending on the training need, you could ask specifically for objections that are typi-

cally given by residents only, prospects only, or both. 2. Write the objections on a large flip chart, and number them. 3. Prepare a large, "target" poster with rings on the target numbered 1-10 to correspond to

the objections.4. Divide the audience into teams.

5. Have the teams take turns shooting at the target with a Nerf™ dart gun. The numberthat their dart lands on indicates an objection on the chart. The team has 45 seconds to

come up with a response that would overcome that objection. If they answer correctly,they receive one point.

6. All members of the winning team receive a small prize.

TRAINING QUICK TIP

Transporting Training MaterialsBy Jeannette Foster

When you have to transport flip charts, use verysharp scissors to cut most of the cardboard off theback of the pad, leaving about ½ inch of the card-board remaining. Roll the paper around the card-board and place in a large mailing tube. Markerswill fit perfectly in the end. This makes it veryconvenient to carry and protects the pre-preparedflipchart from wind and rain!


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Puppets Make Role-Playing FunBy Lori Snider

Try this idea when your staff is hesitant to role-play.Create puppets from socks. Add eyes, earrings, hair, etc.and give the puppets a name. At the meeting, use a sofaor large chair as your stage, then divide your staff intogroups and inform them that they will be conducting apuppet show on your subject (i.e. touring a vacant,answering objections, etcetera) give them 15 minutes toprepare and assign roles. Let each group then put on theshow. Not only does the staff learn new techniques, thepuppet shows tend to be absolutely hysterical. Your staffwill leave laughing. It also really builds team involve-ment and allows your trainees to practice skills withoutbeing put into a traditional role-playing situation.

8 Minutes To Focus AttentionBy Eileen Brownell

Do something different every eight minutes in thetraining process. Do individual exercises. Put an over-head on the screen, use the flip chart, turn on music,role-play, etcetera. The adult mind is only able to focusfor eight minutes at a time. By constantly changingtheir focus you will be able to maintain their interest.

Ways Trainers Should Ask Questions

1. Plan them 2. Have a purpose for each 3. Relate to your audience’s point of view 4. Go from general to specific 5. Confine questions to one topic at a time 6. Ask short and concise questions 7. Ask the group first and then individuals 8. Avoid questions that can be answered yes or no 9. Once asked, do not interrupt 10. Make logical transitions between questions

Trisha Hoffman-AhrensVice President, Education Services & Marketing

CamdenLocated in: Houston, TXResponsible for: 55,000 Apartment HomesYears in the Apartment Industry: 17 Years

What does it take to be the best?Being the best requires comparison to others, it can putone in a win/lose scenario. I prefer to focus on doing mybest everyday, seeking the win/win as the outcome. Eachday I learn something new, gain greater wisdom andinsight, and have my intellectual capacity stretchedthrough the interaction and exchange with others whoshare my commitment to doing their best. Occasionally,the outcomes of our combined efforts are considered thebest. For this, I'm grateful. Just as I'm inspired by themany gifted people around me, striving to be the besttakes the willingness to share your talents, to motivate andinspire others, and the relentless pursuit of excellence.

What is your favorite idea, tool, tip, or technique?Zero-based thinking: not looking at a problem or chal-lenge and asking "what do I need to modify or adjust?"But looking at it as if it was the first time you had seen it- much as you would a blank sheet of paper, withoutassumptions or preconceived notions - and asking "whatcan I do today that will provide positive results fortomorrow?"

The most important tip or suggestion I can offer to someonewho is new to training to increase his or her performance is:The focus of every good trainer is to transfer knowledgeand skills in a way that is meaningful and useful to thelearner. If you are doing most of the talking throughoutthe training session or you are answering most of thequestions, you are acting as a teacher or enterTrainer.Adult learners want facilitators - someone to guide themthrough the material using effective communication skills.Create a positive learning environment by engaging thelearners in discussion and leveraging their expertise andexperience. Thoroughly review the materials prior to thetraining, and practice the material using any requiredaudio/visual equipment. After each training, take time toreflect on the day. Review the learners' evaluation of thetraining, and make adjustments accordingly. Lastly, havefun and take time to celebrate your successes!

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Visit www.SMMOnline.com and go toCorrespondence Central! You will find freerenewal e-cards to send to your resident!

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Common Sense Service Not So Common By Teresa Allen

Sometimes I think the phrase 'common sense' is an oxymoron. It just isn't thatcommon anymore. Business today is so focused on the latest technology that we

seem to have lost touch with the reality of the customer experience...the experiencethat says customers are human beings, not machines, and should be dealt with

accordingly.In my book, Common Sense Service: Close Encounters on the Front Lines,

I relate the true story of an encounter at a seafood restaurant. I ordered snapperwith a crabmeat hollandaise topping. The $16.95 entree was delivered to me sans

the topping. Upon hearing my complaint, the waitress fetched the manager who toldme that they were going to credit my bill $1.50, the value of the topping. I stifled laughter

as he left the table, but my 12 year-old daughter could be heard exclaiming, ''A DOLLARFIFTY?? A DOLLAR FIFTY??'' Sad, but true, my daughter had more common sense than themanager of the restaurant. The reality is that this type of thinking is pervasive in today's

world... what is the minimum we can get by with, instead of...how can we meet andexceed customer expectations and keep them coming back for more?

Look at your current training budget. What is the percentage spent on machineor technology skills vs. people skills. If the ratio is 80:20, realize that you get

what you pay for, and you may be driving off 80% of your customers due topoor people skills. Today's generation doesn't come with what previous

generations would have dubbed 'common sense' or 'common courtesy'.These skills must be taught; and not only at the front line level, but asthis story demonstrates, at the management level as well.

Also important to remember is that teaching people skills witha computer screen is akin to teaching swimming on the school'sfootball field. People skills are still best learned in a live environ-ment. The concepts have to be experienced, not just read about.

I am told repeatedly by clients that a simple exercise in my pro-gram, requiring people to stand, shake hands and introduce them-selves with a friendly greeting, has made a marked difference in

how they do business. We would assume that this is a skillfamiliar to most employees, yet experience in the real

world dictates otherwise.

Have your troops been through basic training lately?Have they heard a stirring message that they can relate to onan emotional as well as logical level? If not, I would behappy to bring such a program to you...

To expect the best is one thing, to prepare for it pavesthe road to success!

Teresa Allen is owner of Success Strategies, a NationalTraining and Consulting Firm. She is a ProfessionalMember of the National Speakers Association and

recipient of the Professional Trainer of the Year Award fromthe American Society for Training and Development. Teresa hasbrought customized training and keynotes on customer serviceto businesses and organizations nationwide for over ten years.Teresa can be reached by calling 800-797-1580 or by e-mail at:[email protected]

Hear Teresa speak at The 14th Annual Multifamily Brainstorming SessionsTM WEST October 8-10, See back cover for details!


train

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Objection & ClosingToolboxBy Stacey Becker

When Danna Lynde and I presenteda seminar together on Closing andOvercoming Objections; in order tomake the material stick, we hadeveryone bring a card file box,dividers and index cards to the sem-inar. We used these to develop a"Tool Box" to fill with objectionsand closing statements for eachperson to take back to their property.

It was a very interactive trainingsession as participants brought upobjections they needed help in over-coming, including the old, "This isthe first place I've looked." or "I haveto bring my wife back." They wrotethe objections on the dividers and theanswers on the cards. It was greatbrain food for the new employeesand fun for the veterans because theygot to share in the teaching. By theend of the session, we had exhaustedevery objection we could think ofand had at least three possibleanswers for each objection. For fun,we supplied odd and crazy thingsthey could decorate their boxes with,like glitter, feathers, buttons, maga-zine pictures, etcetera.

Everyone walked away with acolorful box full of closing tech-niques they can keep within arm'sreach. My employees pull these"tools" out of their boxes when theyget stuck, or when they help train anew employee. It has proven to beone of our more effective trainingtechniques.

Training TriviaBy Donna McKinnon

When conducting training, use triviaquestions to encourage participants toreturn to class on time followingbreaks. The classroom is divided intoteams of three or four at the beginningof the training session. The partici-pants are then told that their team hasthe opportunity throughout the day toearn points and win prizes, however,all members of each team must beprompt in returning to class in orderfor the team to be eligible to partici-pate in the game. Immediately at theend of each break, present the classwith a trivia question (i.e. How manytimes a day does the average humaneye blink?) Only teams with all mem-bers present are allowed to answer,and the team with the correct answer(or the closest to correct) earns points.At the end of the class/day, scores aretallied, and the team with the highestscore wins a prize - usually motiva-tional materials or lottery tickets.

I have used the game in theclassroom (for both business andmaintenance training) and deter-mined it to be extremely effective.The participants form a bond withthe other team members and enjoythe friendly competition. Even themost introverted participant becomesassertive by the end of the day, andamazingly enough, it is rare thatanyone is late in returning to classfrom a break!

Training ActivitySaves $42,552By Claire Collins

When I noticed that our leasingmanuals were beginning to get alittle dusty on their shelves, I cameup with the idea of sending allleasing team members an open-book quiz. This proved to be a greatway to refresh everyone's leasingtraining, and the response was posi-tive and enthusiastic.

What I didn't anticipate was theoverwhelming number of incorrectresponses to the question: If a resi-dent moves in on May 15, and therental rate is $700, what will his orher pro-rated first month rent be?"Many of the responses were $350.Rather than count the number ofdays (17), respondents had dividedthe month in half, yielding 15 days.

Using one month as a basis, ifevery resident who moved in to ourcommunities mid-month was chargedtwo days less than the actual pro-rate,we'd have lost $3,456 company-wide.On an annual basis, this wouldamount to $42,553 in lost revenue.

Potential savings aside, thistesting method was easy to imple-ment and fun for all. We later sentout customer service quizzes withmovie passes as prizes, which wasalso very popular."

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By Tami Siewruk

Let's face it, convincing residents toswallow a rent increase is never easy. If youdon't understand why, simply think back to the last timeyour utility company or insurance provider raised its rates,and think about how you felt. It's hard to be enthused aboutpaying more money for essentially the same service orproduct.

Residents, like most of us,often get disgruntled abouthaving to paying more for "thesame old thing." And if they arealready unhappy with someaspect of your community,especially if you've failed to fixa problem they reported in theirapartment, the level of "dis-gruntlement" can rise to out-and-out hostility.

In order to effectively"sell" an increase to our resi-dents, we have to sell thevalue of our community andservices.We have to convincethem throughout the leaseterm that they're getting morethan their money's worth, sothey won't balk when they'reasked to pay a little more. Italso never hurts to do a littlesomething extra for themaround renewal time, whetherit's an apartment upgrade or atotal repaint job, so they don'tfeel like they're just payingmore for "the same old thing."

While every employee of your community must dohis or her part in making this sale, one group ofemployees plays an especially critical role. That's right,it's the people who are truly on the front line: your servicetechnicians.

Start-to-Finish Service

The service team's role in selling a rent increase beginsthe very day a new resident moves in. To be technical, itbegins even before move-in. Why? Because the first thingmost new residents do is inspect the condition of his orher new home. They open closet doors, peek in showers,

and perhaps check the appliances. If the maintenance staffhas done a fantastic job of readying the apartment so thatit looks clean and fresh, everything is in good workingorder, and nothing is missing or broken, the resident's firstimpression will be positive. That impression puts thefoundation in place for securing a renewal, whether at anincreased rate or not.

Once the move-in is complete and the new residenthas settled in, the level of service provided by the service

team continues to be critical."Maintenance techs and whatthey do on a daily basis,whether it be the first weekafter move-in or the generalday-to-day stuff, is very impor-tant to whether someone is goingto re-rent or not," says JohnNuernberger, Regional Managerfor Sterling Properties. "If main-tenance does not do a goodjob - if they only fix two outof three things on the ticketor if they fix somethingincorrectly so that it immedi-ately breaks again - thatleaves a negative in the resi-dent's mind. So when we saywe're going to raise theirrent, they're already unhappyand they just get unhappier."

Jim Aliberti, Senior Directorof Property Management for theSouthern California HousingDevelopment Organization, agreesthat maintenance service(both in individual apart-ments and in the commu-nity's common areas) plays akey role in keeping residents

happy and willing to stay. "We feel that our residentservice techs are paramount in the overall retention. Theiravailability and overall daily interaction on the propertyhelps the office team retain residents."

Maintenance technicians can play yet another role inkeeping retention high. Because they typically spendmore time around the residents than any other staff mem-bers, they may have their "finger on the pulse" of thecommunity's population. "They can give the valuablefeedback they hear from residents," says Lynn Ogie, aCamden Community Manager in Las Vegas. "We havemeetings every week to discuss customer service andsolicit feedback."

Selling aa RRent IINCREASE: The Role of the Service Staff


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Having your maintenance staff serve as your eyes andears can yield other kinds of valuable information as well.For example, service techs may have a good feel forwhich amenities are getting the most use and why, whichservices residents wish were available, how safe residentsperceive your community as being, what happens duringthe evenings when you are off property, and any numberof other bits of knowledge. Jim Aliberti says that hisservice techs are instructed and trained to listen. "If theycannot help the resident, they are trained to turn theirrequests, complaints, or comments in to the managementoffice." The more you know about your residents andtheir likes and dislikes, the better you can serve them, andthe better you serve them, the better able you will be tosell a rent increase. "No one is going to be jumping for joythat they get a rent increase," says John Nuernberger. "Butwhatever you can do that is positive throughout the yearis going to help outweigh the negative feeling they'regoing to have about the increase."

A Strong Finish

Remember: while the most important aspect of selling arent increase is simply providing excellent servicethroughout the lease, you may want to provide an "aboveand beyond" level of service near the end of the lease. Forexample, 90 days before the end of a lease, you may wantto contact residents to ask them if their apartment needsany work. Alternatively, you can send a maintenance tech,in person, to ask if there's anything he or she can do in theapartment. Not only is this a great way to show that youcare, but it is also a way to ensure that the residents' apartmentis in tip-top condition when you notify them of the increase,thereby eliminating any service-related objections.

Your service team's skill and time can also be used asa renewal incentive. Sometimes all it takes to get resi-dents over the "more money" hump is just a little gesturethat lets them know you care about their satisfaction.While gifts and concessions are one way of making thatgesture, extra maintenance service is a better choice. Notonly does it improve the property, but it's actually whatresident's want. According to Doug Miller, of SatisFactsResearch (a provider of resident satisfaction telesurveys),there is a very high correlation between maintenance andrenewals. "If you have a lot of residents with outstandingwork orders, you're wasting money on resident retentionefforts," he says. "There's a better return in hiring anothermaintenance person."

One way to use your maintenance service as arenewal incentive is to offer residents some of yourservice technician's time. For example, you might offer tosend in a team for a few hours to "make the apartment likenew again," including carpet cleaning, paint touch-up, and

any other service the unitmight need. Alternatively,you might simply "lend" aservice tech to the residentfor an hour or two, for helpwith light maintenance(hanging pictures, wiring orrewiring electronics, movingfurniture,etcetera). Finally,depending on your commu-nity's abilities and needs,you might undertake largermaintenance-related issues,like replacing flooring orappliances.

A Little Extra Incentive

Because maintenance plays such an important role in resi-dent retention, some properties have structured a bonussystem that rewards them. Garth Doering, Area Managerfor Penobscot Management, says he has tried various pro-grams over the years to increase maintenance's stake in therenewal process. "At one property, our maintenance staffshares equally in the renewal bonus," he says. Lynn Ogiealso includes her service team in the bonus plan."Depending on the lease term, we pay a specific dollaramount on every renewal, and every employee on the prop-erty gets a percentage." I also have a 10 percent discre-tionary amount that I can choose to give to any employeewho has done a little extra to retain that resident, andservice techs are definitely eligible for that."

Even if you are not able to provide your maintenancestaff with financial rewards for renewals, you can motivatethem by explaining the importance of renewals to theoverall business. When preparing for a rent increase, it isalso important to be sure the service techs, like the officestaff, understand why rates are being raised. Maintenanceteams are sometimes resistant to the idea of an increase,because it can result in more move-outs, and more apart-ments to turn. If they do not fully understand the need forthe higher rates, they might inadvertently pass on their atti-tude of resistance to residents. By providing them with acompelling, fact-based justification for the increase, youcan ensure that they support it and can justify it to any res-ident who may complain to them.

Though convincing residents to swallow a rentincrease is never easy, you can make the job much easierby ensuring that your service team understands its crucialrole in retention and renewal, and performs that role withexcellence.

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Lori SniderSpeaker & Consultant

The Lori Snider Company

Located in: Aurora, ColoradoYears in the Apartment Industry: 16 years

What does it take to be the best?Determination and a passion for what you do. A senseof humor helps too. It is also important, as a leasingprofessional to understand overall operations and to beable to "do the math." I remember the first time I fig-ured out a number in my head faster than my regionalVP. He didn't believe the number was right because Ihad come up with it. In my head. That day he realizedI was more than "brochure girl." I understood the num-bers and how they impacted the bottom line. From thatpoint out, my opinions were held in higher regard andI enjoyed greater creative freedom.

What is your favorite idea, tool, tip, or technique?A resident retention piece called a "Just a LittleSomething Card." The inside goes somethng like this,"At XYZ Properties, we believe that unexpected sur-prises are the best surprises. Please enjoy this ‘just alittle something’ on us." The resident receives lattecoupons, carpet cleaning, flowers, whatever, with nostrings attached. This program enhances resident per-ception, gets people talking about you and is an excel-lent way to make yourself and your community teammemorable to the resident.

Colorful EyecatchingRenewals

By Vicki Russell-Webber

Lease renewals can be a touchy subject when a rentincrease is involved, and a little bit of humor can some-times help. Try leaving something fun, colorful, and"showy" on the resident's door about 60-days beforelease expiration. To open up the subject of renewals,Vicki Russell-Webber of the JC Hart Company uses col-orful plastic toys or sports items, most of which can bepurchased at a dollar store. Items should be 6-12 inchesor larger so that they create visual impact. Some of theitems she's placed on resident's doors include:

A toy golf bag with the message, "Having you here isbetter than a hole in one!"

Two cans of orange or strawberry crush taped together(side by side) with colorful balloons attached, along witha cute computer generated greetingthat reads, "We have a crush onyou!"

One-pound aerobic hand weightswith colored plastic coating andthe message, "We couldn't weightto tell you how happy we are tohave you here!"

A plastic baseball and bat with the message, "You're ahome run with us!"

These are all corny but fun and people are very sur-prised to find them on their front door. Other items thatyou can use include toy fishing poles with fish, umbrellas,toy musical instruments, etcetera. Balloons are awesomefor adding fun and color to your gifts, but remember thathelium balloons will lose their "lift" after a day in the sun(and nobody wants to come home to a bunch of saggy bal-loons), so a colorful pinwheel or pennant might be a betterchoice. Your neighborhood dollar store probably has lotsof great, inexpensive, fun things that you can use to openup the subject of renewal without a form letter. Use them!

sp tlight

PRO

Handling Residents with “Special” EnvyThe next time a resident who's up for renewal walks into your office and asks why he's being asked to pay an increasewhen the banner or sign outside is offering free rent (or some other special), try this idea. Tell them that choosing to renewtheir lease with you will automatically include them in a drawing to receive a half-month of free rent, not to mention thatit will save them the headache and expense of moving. At one-half the value of a month's rent, it's a relatively inexpensiveway to keep residents; and presenting this idea along with your renewal invitation can not only support your retentionefforts, but may also speed their response!


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Hug A BuildingBy Lori Brauer

Each month we choose a building andgive that building special attention for theentire month. We call it "Hug A Building."We send out a letter on beautiful paper toeach resident in that building to informthem that they're the lucky ones to be"hugged" that month. The letter explainsthat their building will be given extraTLC, and invites them to send in specialservice requests via phone, e-mail, or fax.We place a sign in front of that buildingthat reads "Hug-A-Building - Call forDetails!"We also place an announcementon the marquee sign at our entrance gateso that residents, guests of residents, andfuture residents know about the program.You can choose the building by a randomdrawing, or simply choose the buildingthat needs it most.

During the month we pressure washand do an extreme cleaning job on thebuilding; take special work orders whichinclude (but are not limited to) hangingextra shelves, touch-up paint, accentwalls, and anything else that we can do -within reason. This makes the residentsfeel special; and also slows down mainte-nance orders in the future, because weare also doing preventative maintenanceas well. Depending on your property, youmight want to schedule the special "hug"events for a part of the day or week whenthings are typically slow.

Residents are always happy to knowthat we care about them and are workingto keep the property looking good. Ourmanagement and maintenance staff lovethe program because it keeps our residentshappy, supports preventive maintenance,and helps us to keep up with the needs ofour property and residents on a regularlyscheduled basis.

One Positive Phone Call For RetentionBy Roe Pope

Everyone on my team is required tomake one positive phone call to a resi-dent each day. They might be calling tocheck on a work order to see if it was

done to the resident's satisfaction, orjust calling to ask if the resident needssomething done in their apartment, orjust to say "Hi, we haven't seen you in awhile." It's important to use a pleasantand sincere tone of voice. You'll end upmaking at least 250 phone calls per year(of course weekends and holidays arenot included in this count), and you'llsee the results in increased renewals!You'll also notice that your team willtake retention and great customerservice more seriously!

Rent CouponsBy Robynne Credico

We use rent coupons for residents facing amonthly increase of at least $100.Renewing residents receive one printed$50 coupon for every two months thatthey renew. For example, a resident whorenews for a year will receive six coupons,totaling $300 in savings for that resi-dent… and a net annual increase of $900for the owner. Creating the coupons iseasy. They can be printed right in theoffice on Avery Business Cards (around$10 for a pack of 200) or postcards andgiven to the resident at the time they

signed their lease (use a special paper oroffer code to ensure authenticity and trackredemption). We promote the program atour renewal parties, and with letters andphone calls to our residents, etcetera. Theresults are gggggggreat!

Keep Us DevelopingOutstanding Staff!By Heide Bakke

Motivate your staff with K.U.D.O.S. byinvolving other employees AND yourresidents!

This is a great way to measure theextraordinary efforts of your staff. It willnot only motivate your employees to dothe best job they can, but it will alsoencourage employees to congratulatetheir peers for great efforts, and stimulateresidents to reward a job well done! Startby posting photos of your staff membersin a place where your residents will seethem and get to know them. Begin givingK.U.D.O.S. slips to your residents andteam members (slips of paper with a coinor crown printed on the front and blankson the back where a resident or teammember can note an extraordinary act ofservice and include their name) replenishresidents' supply when they pay theirrent, as needed. Instruct each teammember and resident (via your newsletterand with a flyer or letter) to award aK.U.D.O.S. slip to a member of the staffeach time they do something extraordi-nary. The K.U.D.O.S. that are receivedcan be placed in a glass jar or bowl nearyour employee photo area to show themoff. At the end of the week or month,review the K.U.D.O.S. to see who hasreceived the most, and reward theEmployee of the Week or Month with anextended lunch hour or an hour off tocome in late or leave early, etcetera. Youmight even go so far as to place a "crown"on the photo of the top employee for thatperiod. A larger annual prize can be givento the employee who earned the mostcoins at the end of the year.

This process can be reevaluated on aquarterly basis or annual basis - dependingon $/reward, and can be customized towork with your budget.

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Create CommunityService ZonesBy Keith Flores

If you have enough service techni-cians, divide your property into areasand make each technician responsiblefor working on the units in his or herassigned area. The idea is that theytake some sense of ownership ofthose units. They walk the grounds oftheir areas, picking up the trash,noting any exterior problems anddealing with the residents on a one-on-one basis. In doing so, they get toknow the residents and build relation-ships with them. If the residents arekept happy because of the personalservice, they will most likely stay inthe community. In addition, becausethe technicians are working hard tokeep residents happy and in theirapartments, they can be rewardedwith a commission (we give $50)upon a resident's renewal. It hasworked very well for us, and I think itwill work at most properties.

By Doug MillerThe focus on resident retention has grown dramati-

cally. Many firms have implemented a myriad of programsincluding social activities, newsletters, and move-in gifts.They have invested a great deal of staff time in planningthese programs and events. While it's terrific that moreattention is directed to retention, our research shows thatthe key to maximizing renewals does not include these"bells and whistles." The most dramatic way to impactretention is to focus on the basics of customer service:have capable, fully staffed service teams who are therewhen the resident needs them, and who promptly andproperly take care of their requests.

The results of our last 7,000 resident satisfactiontelesurveys provides powerful evidence to confirm this.For example, we ask residents how likely it is that theywill renew; those who don't respond "Very Likely" arethen asked why not. While social activities were ranked49th on the list of reasons "why not," 14 percent of resi-dents cited the staff's inability to provide prompt andquality service as the reason for not answering "verylikely." In addition, three of the top ten reasons citeddirectly relate to how maintenance requests were handled!When asked how to improve their community, less than 2percent of residents cited social activities but 20 percent

cited staff responsiveness, work quality, and related areas.And our research has also shown a clear correlationbetween how service requests are handled and the likeli-hood of a renewal.

What does all this mean? Save the money spent onresident events, social activities, move-in gifts, andnewsletters, and use it to help fund the hiring of additionalmaintenance personnel! Our results confirm that maxi-mizing renewals begins and ends with taking care of yourresidents' basic service needs.

Preventive Maintenance/RenewalProgram

By Melissa Levesque

Ninety days before leases expire; we perform preventive maintenance inthe resident's home and leave the following card:

Apartment Home LubeTo keep your apartment home running as smoothly as your car on the

day it received its annual check-up!

_____A/C filter change_____Thermostat calibration (energy conservation)_____Caulking - bathroom tub & sinks_____Electrical outlets_____Plumbing - kitchen_____Plumbing - bathroom_____Smoke alarms_____Window & door locks_____Weather-stripping at doors_____Visually inspect ceilings & walls_____Other

Sincerely,Your Service Team Representative

For more great on-site ideas visit ourweb site at www.SMMOnline.com.

Available in our “PRO” section underManagement are these downloads:

Doug Miller’s article, Resident Satisfaction Study Confirms the Correlation Between Lease Renewals & How Service Requests are Handled, in it’s entirety,including graphs of the research

And the Survey Says...Improve Maintenance to Retain Residents!

Improved Service Creates Potential $1.4 Million Improved Bottom Line for 5,000 Unit Portfolio

60-Day Renewal Invitation

Resident Satisfaction Study Confirms the Correlation Between LeaseRenewals & How Service Requests are Handled

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