Three New Year’s Resolutions for SFR Investors
Automate Your Processes to Increase Efficiency and Scale Marketing Efforts
By Kori Covrigaru
Demand for single-family rental homes is showing no sign of easing up.
Nationally, rents rose 9.3% in August, year over year, up from a 2.2% year-over-year increase in August 2020, according to CoreLogic.
As a result, investors continue to flood the market and are rushing to buy and build more rental properties, signaling a busy year ahead.
With 2021 coming to an end, now is the perfect time for SFR investors, owners and operators to review their existing acquisition, property management and marketing strategies and consider embracing new tactics to improve their portfolio performance in the New Year.
Here are three New Year’s resolutions for SFR investors to consider for optimizing operational efficiency and growing and scaling their property portfolios.
1. Leverage Technology During Due Diligence
Technology will continue to play an increasingly key role in the SFR space in 2022 and it is time to take advantage of it. Stop acquiring properties in the old manner with a “boots on the ground” approach to due diligence that is largely painful, unorganized, inefficient, and inaccurate.
With innovation in software services, data accessibility, due diligence scoping tools and 3D, the real estate investing process can be made more efficient.
One of the most powerful digital tools to help streamline the due diligence process is the 3D tour. A 3D tour of a home allows you to see both the exterior and interior of the property from afar and can help inform decisions and scopes for renovations without having to ever see the property in-person. By visualizing the layout and condition of the property ahead of time, you will have a better idea of the profit you can make from the investment.
In addition, consider ordering an electronic investment property condition report prepared by an experienced third-party company to provide a snapshot of the condition of the home, along with details of any needed repairs. When you are making new acquisitions, you do not want to leave your investments to chance.
At PlanOmatic, we offer Property Insights services which includes a Property Condition Report and 3D Inspection Tour for properties across the nation and delivered within 48 hours from the time an order is placed.
2. Embrace 3D Virtual Tours for Marketing and Operations
A 3D virtual tour is like a buy-one-get-one-free deal and something every investor should be thinking about leveraging in the New Year.
It is an easy way to ensure your SFR properties stand out against the competition when they are marketed to consumers, and it is a great way for your operations team to get the dimensions of the property to better inform renovation decisions.
3D tours also allow future residents to explore the home in a real-life way and get a clear visualization of the space, creating more qualified leads.
At PlanOmatic, we have captured and created thousands of 3D tours on behalf of our SFR clients and according to them, 3D tours have resulted not only in more views per property, but in fewer lease opt-outs because the leads are more qualified.
In fact, PlanOmatic measured the impact of 3D tours on SFR property marketing and found that property leads increased by 25 percent, and days on the market decreased by 23 percent when a 3D tour was used to market a property compared with only using professional photography.
3. Automate Your Property Marketing
Automation should be top-of-mind in 2022. SFR investors, owners and operators should consider automating the process for all property marketing and operational assets, including the ordering and uploading of property photos, floor plans and 3D virtual tours.
By automating the process, SFR investors can increase efficiency throughout the entire property lifecycle and easily scale their marketing efforts to keep up with portfolio growth.
