FirstKey Homes
Dedicated to Growth & Its Residents Going into 2024
By Carole VanSickle Ellis
In 2015, when FirstKey Homes opened its doors, the single-family rental (SFR) market was still in its infancy, with researchers at the National Bureau of Economic Research still publishing papers with theses illustrating now-ubiquitous sentiments such as “There is considerable interest in single-family rentals as an asset class.” At that time, FirstKey debuted on the market, declaring it would “set the standard for excellence in SFR management with an approach that combines the dedicated, personal attention of highly experienced professionals with the technology and support of a world-class service provider.”
A lot has changed since then and, FirstKey Homes CEO Colleen Keating said proudly just nine years later, the really important elements of FirstKey have remained the same.
“We are a leader in the SFR space in resident experience,” Keating said, noting that the company established a keen focus on hiring the best talent early on in order to optimize that experience. She continued, “Our ‘Keypers,’ which is what we call our team members nationwide, are truly dedicated to making a difference in the lives of our residents each day and contributing to the growth of FirstKey Homes,” she said.
Today, FirstKey Homes has nearly 53,000 single-family homes nationwide. Ryan Bowes, FirstKey’s chief investment officer (CIO), recalled joining the company in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and helping lead the charge to acquire housing and then make it available to residents seeking single-family options during the early days of the pandemic.
“We challenged our real estate teams, our closing teams, our corporate team, and our acquisition teams to make this happen,” he said. “It took an incredible amount of effort not just because of the growth we achieved but because our field teams were out there renovating, overseeing assets, renting properties, and working with residents on a daily basis. We believe that good real estate business requires the human touch.”
Bowes explained the FirstKey business model requires every home have effective and thorough due diligence performed prior to acquisition as well as direct company supervision of or involvement in renovations, repairs, and underwriting.
“There are platforms where the homes are purchased sight-unseen, but that is just not our business model,” he declared proudly. “At the end of the day, we want to be sure each home leads to a great lease and a great experience for our residents. If we have not had human involvement, we are not comfortable with underwriting or acquiring a property.”
Those acquisitions made it possible for tens of thousands of residents to live in SFR properties at a time when this asset class was in incredibly high demand, an achievement of which Keating is extremely proud.
“There was, of course, a lot of uncertainty in 2020, but I had faith in the resilience of the SFR sector and the need for quality housing,” she said. Keating noted she is proud of FirstKey’s portfolio but takes particular pride in “what that portfolio represents: building a great team that could rapidly grow and scale in a healthy way, being part of a much-needed housing solution, and providing even more American families with high-quality homes in great neighborhoods.”
Keating, whose role in the company involves, among other things, extensive travel to visit and connect with Keypers around the country, walking homes in FirstKey developments, and working with teams nationwide, added, “Aligning a company’s offering, values, and mission with the right strategic partners lies at the heart of our ability to make a meaningful, positive impact on local communities. We are so proud of our growth and the contributions we are making to creating communities where our residents can thrive.”
Relentless Pursuit of Talent, Growth & Positive Impact
FirstKey Homes has certainly demonstrated meteoric growth since its inception, and, under Keating’s leadership, the company’s talent pool is thriving right along with its communities.
“I believe it is imperative we remain relentless about surrounding ourselves with the very best talent and create an environment where top talent in the industry can thrive,” Keating explained. “Truly break-through results can only be achieved with a ‘blue-ribbon’ team.”
Bowes said he is particularly excited about bringing in new team members who are excited and passionate about real estate. A self-proclaimed real estate enthusiast, Bowes observed working at FirstKey Homes is a perfect fit because he and his team “live and breathe real estate.” He continued, “We love every facet of real estate, especially taking care of our residents, and there is no better asset class in the industry to be in right now than SFR.”
FirstKey Homes employees are known as “Keypers,” and the company’s employee policies are dedicated to helping Keypers feel welcomed and included while providing ongoing opportunities for growth.
“We have an entire learning and development team dedicated to the career growth of those within our organization because we know that when employees feel valued and heard, they will be co-creators and co-collaborators within the business, going above and beyond to deliver that great resident experience,” Keating said. “We place a high priority on development of individuals as well as corporate growth.”
The decision to not only prioritize Keyper development but also to verbalize specific goals and policies surrounding this goal has resulted in FirstKey’s ability to attract young, excited professionals to its rosters. Keating said an overt company policy of inclusion has aided in this effort as well, particularly when it comes to bringing in top Gen Z and Millennial talent. “To be able to seize that creativity and innovation, you have to maintain an inclusive culture within your company,” she said. “Our people know they are contributing and their voices are heard, and that means a better experience for everyone involved, from a top-level executive to a brand-new resident and those with whom they work and interact.”
For the Keyper community, part of being heard and involved in the company includes participating in a vast array of employee-driven community-service activities. For example, a leadership summit within the company is likely to include community service elements like filling move-in baskets for families transitioning from homelessness into new homes or assembling cleaning kits for use in those homes. “It is an honor to support this type of mission,” Keating said, “and we are proud and grateful for every opportunity.”
Maintaining Momentum with Cautious Optimism
During 2021 and 2022, FirstKey Homes was in a period of rapid expansion. Thanks to low interest rates and an existing investor base, the company nearly doubled the size of its holdings during that period.
“So many people had a fear of missing out during that time, and we were lucky enough to have a platform that enabled us to excel,” Bowes recalled. “This was good not just for the company and its investors, but for our existing residents as well,” he continued. “The more homes and markets you operate in, the more efficient you get thanks to density and scale benefits.”
“The industry went through an incredible period of growth post-pandemic,” Keating added. “I think new entrants to the space saw the strength of the business and the fact that they could do important, purposeful work by providing terrific homes for families at great value while offering solid, long-term investment returns through strong relationships with residents.”
Over the course of 2023 as acquiring assets became more challenging thanks to limited SFR inventory nationwide, FirstKey elected to control its growth outlook and maintain steady expansion primarily in existing markets via multiple formats. The company invests both in build-to-rent communities, which tend to be fully contiguous and entirely rental communities of single-family homes, and in individual properties purchased from developers or previous owners — excluding bank-owned and repossessed homes. In 2024, Bowes predicted an increased emphasis on acquiring new-construction properties.
“We partner with many of the top public and private builders and acquire homes in their traditional retail communities as well as investing in standalone, dedicated rental communities,” Bowes said. “We feel very strongly about continuing to partner with builders to deliver new construction homes because our residents love living in them.”
Bowes described FirstKey’s acquisition strategies for 2023 and 2024 as “cautiously optimistic” but not as aggressive as in 2021 and 2022. He added, “I entered 2024 really enthused about continuing to grow and also to become increasingly efficient at doing what we do really well. We are all so proud of what we have built, especially over the last few years, but our proudest achievement is how we take care of our residents each day.”
One element of that growing efficiency takes the form of FirstKey’s Fleet Inventory Program, which debuted in 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. The program involves tracking and replenishing company maintenance vans preemptively with products that are most often used to cater to resident maintenance requests.
“Our technicians’ fully stocked vans are their mobile workshops, and this program helps save time and trips to the hardware store so technicians can keep doing what they do best: taking great care of our residents and maintaining our homes using consistent, quality products,” Keating said. The Fleet Inventory Program is the brainchild of several Atlanta-based Keypers and now is in use in many FirstKey markets.
“Our primary goal is always to provide unbelievable service to our residents, and we have built a platform that can do this while still supporting growth,” Keating concluded.
“We are getting really good at this, and we plan to continue in 2024 and beyond.”
SIDEBAR
Evolving with the Market
How FirstKey is Addressing Growing Rental Fraud Issues in the SFR Space
Rental fraud is a growing problem around the country, and SFR companies often make ideal targets because scammers expect there will be little human involvement with the properties. FirstKey, however, has remained largely ahead of the curve when it comes to averting and mitigating these issues.
Since 2022, the FTC and FBI have been issuing warnings about spiking instances of rental scams, and large-scale investors often receive outsized allotments of blame for the problem. At FirstKey, Ryan Bowes, explained, the human element is always there, which dramatically reduces the chances that a con artist could take in a potential FirstKey resident.
“We are always looking for new ways to mitigate risk, especially since the scammers’ victims are people who truly want to rent from us,” he explained. “We use a lot of smart technology to ensure we limit risk and we know what is going on in our vacant properties so we can prevent illegal entrances and occupations.”
The company has continued to successfully offer potential residents self-touring options and provides comprehensive virtual tours of properties as well.
“Technology has been at the forefront of our growth to date,” Keating added. “As technology matures, we will continue to enhance the resident experience at every point in that experience and make it easier and safer for residents and future residents to interact with us.”
Bowes concluded, “We are fortunate to have many tools at our disposal through our platform to help protect our residents and potential customers.”
SIDEBAR
By the Numbers
53k — FirstKey has nearly 53,000 units currently under management
29 — Number of markets in which FirstKey has properties
18 — Number of states in which FirstKey has properties
47 — Rank in the Metro area’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution “Top Workplaces for 2022” in company size category 150-499
49 — Rank in the Metro area’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution “Top Workplaces for 2021” in company size category 150-499
24 — Hours that the FirstKey Homes call center is available to residents
3 — Number of distinct, customized programs available to FirstKey residents, including:
FirstKey Difference — A program offering a variety of incentives, discounts, and benefits to residents
Purple Perks — FirstKey has partnered with local and national brands to bring deals and discounts to residents, including free subscriptions, discounted pet services, dining discounts, and deals on computers
FirstKey Homes Loyalty Program — Residents earn points by paying rent on time, connecting with FirstKey Homes on multiple platforms, and other actions, then redeem points for gift cards and other rewards
