REI INK

AUTHOR DETAILS

Company Spotlight

The Five Features Renters Crave

The Changing Landscape of Single-Family Rentals By Kori Covrigaru Zillow recently released its 2022 Housing Trends Report, and, boy, have renters evolved. Renters are going on fewer in-person tours, are more likely to have pets, care more about floor plans, and put a higher value on amenities than in previous years.  As the rental market continues to change, property managers and single-family rental investors need to know what renters are looking for in 2023. There are five key elements at play in today’s changing landscape of single-family rentals. Use these in your rental marketing strategy to ensure you’re ahead of the curve with your properties. Pet-Friendly Homes Renting to pet owners can be a great way to attract more renters and fill vacancies faster. When advertising your single-family rental, mention that pets are welcome along with any pet-friendly features in the house. This will increase your pool of potential tenants. Consider adding features such as pet doors or fenced yards, which will make it appealing for pet owners to rent your property. You should also have a policy regarding the pets allowed and any additional fees associated with renting to pet owners. Be sure to communicate this clearly, so there is no confusion when it comes time to sign the lease agreement. Finally, remember that your insurance provider may not cover some breeds, so do your research before accepting certain animals into your rental property. Pet-friendly homes are an excellent option for rental investors and offer an attractive amenity that can help increase occupancy and attract quality tenants. Smart Home Technology Smart home technology is increasing in popularity in single-family rental properties. It offers convenience and peace of mind for tenants and property managers. Tenants can use smart thermostats to adjust the temperature from their phones while also providing property managers with data on energy usage. The ability to control smart appliances remotely allows tenants to check if they left something running or shut off after use. Smart locks provide an extra layer of security for both parties and a way to grant access without having to meet up in person. Property managers can even monitor when someone enters or exits the premises through notifications sent directly to their phone. Smart home technology makes it easier for everyone involved in a rental property transaction. Tenants have more control over their environment and greater security; property managers have better insight into the unit’s usage and maintenance; and investors benefit from increased efficiency throughout the process. Safety Safety is always top of mind for families. Smart locks are an easy way to ensure that only the right people can access your property. You can program them with unique codes for each tenant and easily change them when tenants move out. Good lighting around the home’s exterior will also help deter unwanted visitors from entering your property after dark. Security systems provide peace of mind by monitoring activity 24/7 and alerting you if something suspicious occurs. Key Takeaway: Property managers and single-family rental investors should install smart locks, security systems, pet-friendly fencing, and smart home technology to keep their properties safe. Floor Plans Floor plans are an important tool for marketing single-family rental properties. They provide potential renters with a visual representation of the space they will live in and help them decide if it is right for them. Floor plans should include accurate measurements and any special features, such as fireplaces or balconies. Consider how tenants can make the most of the space when creating floor plans. For example, if they could easily convert an extra bedroom into a home office or playroom, highlight this feature on your floor plan to show its versatility. Don’t forget to include outdoor spaces like patios and decks so that tenants can get an idea of what their outdoor living experience would look like at your property. Floor plans also give tenants a better understanding of room size and layout before they commit to renting a property—which helps prevent misunderstandings down the line when move-in day arrives. Be sure to calculate each room’s size so that prospective tenants know exactly what they’re getting when signing up for your rental unit. Including detailed floor plans in your listing materials gives potential renters more confidence in their decision-making process by making it easier to envision themselves living in your property, ultimately helping you find great tenants faster. Floor plans are an essential part of rental marketing, providing a detailed overview of the property’s layout and features. With 3D virtual walkthroughs, you can now give potential tenants a better view of your single-family rental before they even step foot inside. Virtual 3D Walkthroughs Virtual 3D walkthroughs are an innovative way to showcase single-family rental properties. They allow potential renters to explore the property from the comfort of their own homes, without having to physically visit the property. This can be a great time-saver for renters and property managers. 3D virtual walkthroughs are becoming increasingly popular among single-family rentals because of their convenience and cost-effectiveness compared with traditional in-person viewings. Property managers now have access to powerful online tools that make showcasing their properties effortless. At the same time, tenants gain peace of mind knowing exactly what they’re getting into before signing on the dotted line. With the right combination of the features renters crave, you can create an attractive listing that will stand out from the competition and attract more qualified tenants. Are you a single-family rental property owner looking for an effective way to market your listings? PlanOmatic provides comprehensive photography, floor plans, and 3D walkthroughs that help showcase the beauty of your home. Our solutions will give potential tenants a detailed understanding of what they can expect from their future living space while making sure you maximize interest in your listing.  Contact us today to get started by visiting https://www.planomatic.com/.

Company Spotlight

5 Ways to Reduce Days on Market for SFRs

Rental Property Marketing is a Critical Part of the Rental Process By Kori Covrigaru When it comes to single-family rentals (SFRs), the number of days they sit on the market is often the most crucial factor in determining how successful your property will be. Reducing the days on market can be beneficial in many ways, such as keeping your bottom line healthy. The SFR market keeps booming. Compared to the multifamily industry, which Walker & Dunlop projects to be worth $3.5 trillion, the SFR market is worth about $3.4 trillion. With this market growing, SFR investors must prioritize marketing to remain ahead of the curve. How will you make your SFRs rent faster and spend fewer days on market? Start Marketing Before the Property is Listed If you’re a property manager or an SFR investor, one of the things you can do to reduce the days on market of your available properties is to start marketing before they’re listed. It is common for potential residents to make their decision about whether or not to rent a home very quickly. If you get the word out about your rental early enough, it will be considered before it’s even vacant. Early rental property marketing means that when the property goes up for rent, it will not need to compete with as many other properties (and therefore will not require as much work to show). What does this mean for you? It means that if you want your rental to be leased fast, starting marketing well before it is listed is imperative. Price Accurately for the Area Price your single-family rental property accurately for the area. Research what similar properties are selling for in the area and how much rent you will be able to charge. More importantly, it would help to consider how much time and money it will take to get the property ready for sale or rent. By doing this, you can determine if your rental price will appeal to potential tenants. Hire a Professional Photographer Using a professional photographer can help shorten the time your single-family rentals are on the market. Having a clear understanding of your goals is the first step. Do you hope to draw in a specific type of resident? Do you want to highlight all the improvements and good maintenance the house has received, or would you prefer to emphasize the outside space or amenities? Once you have determined the types of images that will best serve your purposes, look for the best photographers that focus on producing such images. You’ll need a real estate photographer with experience, preferably one specializing in single-family homes, to help you with the process and ensure your pictures are web-friendly. Include a Digital Floor Plan A digital floor plan is a virtual picture of your property’s interior layout. You can use this to demonstrate to potential residents how much space they’ll have to work with for their expected arrangement. NAR Home Buyers & Sellers Generational Trends Report found that 80% of buyers view floor plans as beneficial. And it will effectively reduce days on market. Include Smart Home Technology in Listing Smart home technology has been gaining popularity in rental property marketing. According to the most recent statistics on smart homes from a poll published by Oberlo, as many as 57.4 million US households have actively used them in 2022 (defined as using them at least once a month). The bar chart represents the adoption of smart home technology in US households from 2018 and its projected increase to 2025. Providing smart home technology can make it easier to rent out your property quickly. When you are marketing your listing, make sure to highlight features like smart locks and security systems. These features will appeal to renters who want to feel safe in their homes and know they can control every aspect of their living situation. Smart home tech has been shown to help improve the rental experience for tenants, and it can also increase the value of your property. Rent Your SFR Faster From having the best professional photography, which you can optimize with API Integration, to including smart home technology in the listing, there are various ways to reduce days on market for single-family rentals. Ultimately, rental property marketing is a critical part of the rental process. If you don’t market your rental property and make it easily visible to potential renters, you will miss out on potential tenants and make it harder to rent your property quickly.

Company Spotlight

5 Things to Know About Marketing in 2023

Boost Your ROI in 2023 By Kori Covrigaru In today’s world, marketing is no longer just about getting people to your property for viewing. It is about creating an experience that engages them at every point on their journey. According to the New York Times, single-family rental homes accounted for 35% of the 44 million rental units in the United States in 2021. This means the world of property management keeps growing. Marketing has undergone a more radical transformation in the past decade than in the previous century. By 2023, marketing will be even more data-driven and personalized than today—and only continue to evolve from there. Here are the 5 things to know about marketing in 2023. Community-Based Marketing Community-based marketing is the most effective way to reach your target audience and influence their buying decisions. It is a strategy that can be implemented at every stage of the sales funnel, and it works by establishing a relationship between you and your target customers. For this kind of marketing, you give your customers a voice and a degree of agency. Above all, community-based marketing focuses on building relationships with customers and stakeholders in your community by providing them with exact value rather than just selling them things. Symbiotic relationships make customers share satisfactory experiences with others—according to Duel, 72% of customers share good experiences with others. The newly rolled out Whatsapp community feature, where communities can be created, and in-chat polls added, is an excellent medium to leverage for marketing departments of property management companies. Conversational Marketing Conversational marketing is a crucial part of the future of marketing that focuses on building relationships with customers rather than pushing products. It can be used to build awareness for your brand and drive conversions. The idea of conversational marketing borders on providing a personalized experience for customers or potential customers. According to Drift, the demand for immediate communication has grown yearly by an average of 64%. When it comes to property management, conversational marketing has a lot of potential benefits. You can use it to connect with customers before renting from you and then keep them connected after the move-in process. This relationship building can make you more competitive in an already competitive market, allowing you to charge higher rents and attract top tenants. Marketing to Gen Z vs. Millennials Gen Zers and Millennials are two of the most important groups to consider when marketing your products. They are both very different from each other, but they also have some things in common. Both groups have grown up with technology and have been shaped by it differently, so it’s important to know how to market to them as separate groups. The best way to market to Gen Zers is through social media platforms where they can see how involved your brand is with current events and causes. If you can show them your brand has a purpose beyond itself, they’ll be more likely to want what you offer. Millennials are likelier to choose products based on brand reputation than price or quality. This means that if you want to market towards them effectively, it is important that your brand has a good reputation and communicates its values clearly through its messaging and visuals. As a property management company, you must understand how to market to Millennials and Gen Zers. This allows your company to offer better customer service and ensure that your customers always feel heard. User-Generated Content User-generated content—UGC for short—is precisely what it sounds like: content created by your users. It can be a review of your product or service, a photo of them using your product or service in their home, or even a video testimonial explaining why they love your brand. When you produce UGC, you do not only get free exposure. You also provide consumers a chance to share their stories with others and encourage them to think about your company when they need a comparable service. Cohesive Customer Experiences Cohesive customer experiences are the holy grail of marketing. It means that you are creating a consistent customer experience across all your marketing channels—from your website to your email campaigns to your social media presence. Property management companies must give prominence to how the customer reacts or feels through their customer journey map. Below is a visual representation of the customer journey map: Cohesive experiences help create brand loyalty. When people have an excellent first impression of your brand, they are more likely to return for future interactions. A cohesive experience provides consistency across all touchpoints, so there is no doubt about where to go next time you need something from your property management company. Marketing is integral to running a successful property management company. It is not something you can ignore and hope for the best. So, for property management companies, knowing the top marketing trends in 2023 will boost your ROI. For more information on how to increase ROI, please visit www.planomatic.com/roi-study/.

Company Spotlight

Optimize Your Property Management Workflow

When Running a Long-Term Real Estate Investment Business, Workflows Must be Clear By Kori Covrigaru Between contractors prepping the rental, marketing the property, tenant communications, and everything in between, it is easy for workflows and processes to become muddied. There are numerous people, resources, and steps to each process, but it is possible to streamline your processes and increase your profit. PlanOmatic worked with a client who had an issue during renovations. His contractors could not get access to the properties. This issue delayed projects, causing a massive income loss through added days on the market. PlanOlabs looked at their data and found that the access issues were in the same region. They were within the same zip code and managed by one individual. Once they learned that, they solved the problem and reduced the access issues from 30% to less than 10% of the time. How can you increase your profits through optimized workflows? Use the Data to Make Informed Decisions When running a long-term rental business, you have goals but need a real community to help you understand how to meet those goals. What processes are your competitors utilizing that you are not? Having data at your fingertips allows you to make informed decisions for your business. “Big clients are getting bigger with aspirational goals to scale,” said Tim Rose, Director of PlanOlabs, as he explained that they meet these goals through competitor data provided by PlanOlabs. Automate Rental Listing Marketing Automate your marketing materials. Work with a photography company specializing in rental listing photography. With PlanOmatic, in one appointment, the photos and assets are taken for the listing photography, floor plans, and 3D walkthroughs all at once. After the appointment is complete, a simple API integration allows the rest of the process to automate. Simplified Leasing Process Today’s renter wants ease. With tools like Zillow Rental Manager or Apartments.com Property Management Tools, you can screen potential tenants, approve them, and have them sign a lease online. With the popularity of 3D virtual walkthroughs, fewer tenants insist on in-person walkthroughs, so this online experience provides a seamless transition from prospect to tenant. Set up Online Payments Once a tenant has signed a lease, they want the seamless experience to continue. Offer online payments, so tenants can automate their bill payments, and you do not need to wait for checks to arrive. Instead, watch your bank account grow. Digital Maintenance Tickets Continue the seamless experience with digital maintenance tickets. Manage maintenance requests from a dashboard. Tenants can go online and submit a ticket with photos and then stay in the loop to know when the repair will be completed. Property managers can easily manage multiple properties, tenants, and maintenance tickets from a single dashboard. Perform Competitive Analysis When you have a single-family rental business, you have big goals: large portfolios, new builds, and a seamless operation. But to reach those goals, you need to understand what your competitors are doing. “This is a common threshold where they start to feel pain. How are we going to meet these ambitious goals? How do we lay out a solid workflow or process foundation? We use our data, ask vendors, and go to our other clients, so we can help them come up with some answers,” Rose said. Optimize Your Property Management Workflow Many property management marketing departments have a workflow process as in the BEFORE column, which is 11 steps long. After optimizing your workflow, it can be trimmed down to three steps through automation. Rose explains how PlanOlabs supports property management companies in optimizing workflows. “What is the objective of the process you are looking to refine? Look at who is responsible for that piece of the process. Next, look at handoffs. When one person is done with their part of the process, how do they hand it off to the next person in line? Once we understand who is part of the process and when those handoffs happen, we can look at the task. What can be automated?” Using tech-driven solutions reduces manual effort, increases profit, and improves tenant satisfaction. Everyone wins.

Company Spotlight

Create a Marketing System for Any Budget

Make the Best Use of Your Marketing Dollars to Create a Major Impact By Kori Covrigaru As the end of the year is coming to a close, your budget may be running low, or the looming recession might have your CFO reducing budgets for 2023. Now, you must decide how to get the most from every marketing dollar. When working with a reduced budget, utilize this four-pronged approach to marketing: Analyze, Streamline, Automate, and Delegate. Analyze Your Current Marketing What brings returns on investment (ROI)? Once you understand which marketing activities bring in leads, conversions, and sales, you will know what to prioritize. To begin, set up goals in your analytics platform. Utilize tools such as Google Analytics or Hubspot to track which activities influence leads and conversions. The key to proper tracking is setting up a conversion page. In GA4, you can set up event conversions in the Configure tab. Toggle the event as a “conversion” to track those actions. Every marketing activity you test should be tracked for effectiveness. For example, PlanOmatic conducted a study in North Carolina to track the effectiveness of 3D tours for reducing days on market in SFRs. It found that adding a virtual tour to a listing decreased days on market in Charlotte by 8.1 days. Assuming it costs $100/day to hold a vacant SFR, adding a 3D virtual walkthrough saved $810/listing in this particular market. That is a substantial return on investment. What activities bring the most exposure? While ROI is important, exposure matters, as well. Which activities bring your business the most impressions and brand awareness? Analyze your listings. PlanOmatic found that listings with these features get more impressions and conversions:  •         Professional Photography  •         Virtual Tours  •         Floor Plans In short, review those listings! Which ones get the most exposure? What do they have in common? In that analysis, you will find the magic formula for reducing your days on the market and increasing your ROI. Streamline Your Marketing Processes After reviewing your marketing activities, you will understand which ones are worth keeping for 2023. Now it is time to streamline. First, test & choose a project management platform to organize all marketing activities. To be an asset, you will want the platform to:  •         Automate recurring processes  •         Assign tasks internally and externally  •         Share resources Second, review your marketing activities from a birds-eye view. How can you streamline them? Look at each task individually and study the SOP. For example, PlanOmatic uses one appointment to get assets for photography, virtual tours, and floor plans. So, in just one appointment, they can get three major components of your listings done at once. Automate Marketing Tasks Review this checklist to help identify where you could be automating your marketing tasks:  •         Are you automating email nurturing?  •         Are you manually adding social media posts to each platform?  •         Are there APIs that could automate marketing processes?  •         Are you manually assigning tasks to your team?  •         Are you using syndication services for listings?  •         Are there any manual steps in your lead-to-renter process? How many processes are you currently conducting with manual steps? If you have identified at least one process with manual steps, look closely. Can you automate them? Before working with PlanOmatic, many marketing departments manually downloaded photography assets, uploaded them to their listing syndication site, and published them. With PlanOmatic, a simple API integration automates most of this task, saving many hours each month. Delegate Through Outsourcing Finally, it is time to review what tasks can be outsourced. With lower spending, maybe you do not usually consider outsourcing, but it is the right direction if potential subcontractors:  •         Have tools you cannot access.  •         Have a skill that your team does not.  •         Can do the task faster than your team. If you are unsure what to outsource, try the Eisenhower Matrix. Look at the list of activities you created when analyzing your current marketing. Add the marketing activities that provide the biggest impact on the Eisenhower Matrix. Anything added to the Urgent/Not Important column should be delegated. This quadrant is a great place to start when deciding what to outsource. Many marketers will face tight budgets for 2023, but that does not make it impossible to run successful marketing campaigns! Utilizing this four-pronged approach, you can determine the best use for your marketing dollars and create a major impact.

Company Spotlight

Seven Rental Features to Reduce Vacancies

Create an Experience Your Tenants will Love By Kori Covrigaru Highlights •          SFR tenants stay over double the amount of time that multi-family renters stay. •          3D tours and digital leasing processes remove the friction of finding a new rental home. •          Properties with family-friendly features like good school districts and pet amenities have more appeal. Single-family rentals (SFR) have less turnover and more demand than multi-family homes. SFR tenants typically stay in their rental for 5-6 years instead of two years for the average multi-family tenant. But the key factor in ensuring tenants stay longer is creating an experience they love. In this round-up, we have discovered the top seven features SFR tenants want in their rental. 1. Add 3D Walking Tours According to Poplar, people prefer proactive listings that allow them to virtually tour your property. It takes a lot of time to schedule walkthroughs, travel to multiple properties, and make a decision. Being able to save time when searching for a home is important, so make it easy for prospective tenants to understand the layout and condition of your property without having to tour in person. 2. Pet-friendly Design Choices SFR renters are pet people, so make sure your rental is pet friendly. Allowing pets is not enough. You also need to ensure your home is ready for tenants with pets. They want fenced-in yards, custom pet nooks, and storage space for leashes, pet food, or litter boxes. 3. Include Parking Tenants do not want to have to deal with lugging groceries from three blocks away. Make sure you have parking options for tenants. This is usually easy enough in suburban environments, but some homes do not have driveways or garages. If that is the case, arrange a permanent spot for tenants nearby, so they do not need to worry about street sweeping day or an unexpected snowfall. 4. Invest in Great Schools When you are renting single-family homes, your tenant is likely a family. So, choose to expand your SFR portfolio into good school districts. This gives families who might not be able to buy into the school district a way to get their kids better educational opportunities. These tenants are extra motivated to find a home they can stay in long-term so their kids can stay within their school, so turnover will be fairly low. 5. Smart Home Automation Tenants want smart home automation for convenience and sustainability. They want to adjust their thermostat, get dishwasher status updates, and open the front door from their phone. Adding smart home automation like a Nest thermostat, smart appliances, and a keyless entry option are all big wins for tenants. 6. In-community Property Managers According to Jeff Pintar, President of Pintar Investment, single-family rental tenants stay for 5-6 years, on average. Pintar said, “Residents with a better experience want to stay longer.” He says that residents want a community, not just a house. So, hire a property manager who is active in the local community. They could be the coach of the youth baseball team or on the PTA. Pintar says, “The personal relationship is really powerful.” 7. Streamlined Leasing Process Develop an optimized leasing system that makes it easy for tenants to choose your property. The system should accommodate for quickly responding to inquiries, scheduling tours, and allowing them to sign the lease online. How can PlanOmatic help you create a positive tenant experience? Start your tenant-landlord relationship on the right foot with informative listings. PlanOmatic provides rental photography, 3D walkthrough tours, and floor plans all within one appointment. You get your assets within 48 hours, so you can market your vacancy fast. Find out how PlanOmatic can help you reduce your listing’s time on the market.

Load More