Resident Retention Rates Hit Close to 10-Year High

Earlier this week, MPF Research announced a major win for the multifamily industry. Over half of renters (51.5%) whose leases expired last month decided to renew their leases rather than move out. Of particular note, the average rent also increased by 5.4% during the same period. According to Jay Parsons, director of analytics for MPF, resident retention rose due to “the absence of any sort of affordability crisis in conventional, investment-grade apartments.” Read the full digest here.

For us, it’s further proof that resident retention strategies work. Over the past couple of years, multifamily companies across the U.S. have upped the ante on improving resident satisfaction. They’ve gone above and beyond to offer residents amenities, from state of the art fitness centers to top-of-the-line game rooms and pools. At long last, they’re finally beginning to reap the results of their labor – MPF’s report shows we’ve hit a nearly 10 year high in resident retention rates!

While the industry should take some time to pat themselves on the back, we still have a lot of room for growth. Residents deal with a number of pain points, such as resident move-in, which property managers can leverage as a unique opportunity to step in and help out their residents. As an industry, we need to think of resident satisfaction at every stage of the resident lifecycle if we want to truly win the satisfaction and trust of our residents. Remember, resident retention isn’t something that just happens – you have to earn it!

Property managers, have you heard any out-of-the-box ideas for increasing resident retention? Let us know in the comments below!