Technology is the backbone of any modern, forward-thinking build to rent development. The key to unlocking customer experience and delivering a great service lies within the level of integration and alignment of internal systems to meet your residents ever-evolving needs.
Internal systems and processes have a direct correlation to the resident experience and the value perceived. In the latest HomeViews BTR Report 2022, we saw that Yardi developments were rated higher by residents on every HomeViews review category than developments not using the software. By reducing the number of systems and manual processes used, developments can achieve operational excellence and provide a better service to their tenants.
So, how do you redefine the applicant and resident journey? You need to deliver a frictionless experience, which can be achieved by consolidating your internal systems, digitalising the applicant journey and engaging with your residents – keep reading to find out how.
Consolidate Internal Systems
HomeViews found over 617 resident reviews from developments using Yardi software solutions. Yardi developments were rated higher by residents on every HomeViews review category than developments not using the software. This is because residents had fast response times from management, their issues were resolved quickly and they received great communication.
We know that daily tasks can become repetitive and time-consuming, but with better technology, your operational teams can benefit from automation and remove the need for manual processes. They can access dashboards that clearly showcase everything from online enquiries and application pipelines to move-in workflows and resident activity. This includes easier management of maintenance requests, property and unit-level inspections and SLAs.
By utilising a connected platform, you can transform the resident’s journey by empowering them to take control of their application process, payments and more.
Michael Howard, owner and managing director of Urbanbubble said, “Yardi’s RentCafe enables our team to provide a frictionless service from the moment they discover us to leasing the apartment of choice and making use of amenities once they have moved in. The efficiencies we see on the management and operations side save my team time and allows them to focus on what matters: providing our residents with a great experience and building a great community for them to live in.”
Digitalise the Applicant Journey
One of the biggest challenges operators have is data capture, including online payments and setting up direct debits. By digitalising the applicant journey, you can manage each stage of the application process, gain more control and have an overview of the whole process with updates in real-time.
You can start by capturing your prospect’s data through an online application portal. These enable faster data gathering, quicker turnarounds and allow your prospects to apply in their own time. You can also keep track of their progress through one platform that’s easily customised through the cloud-based solution.
Next, you can utilise a branded resident app, such as Yardi’s white-label RentCafe resident app, which provides a frictionless experience to tenants. Your residents can easily submit maintenance requests, receive notifications and manage their payment options in one location. You can increase communication and provide a better community for your residents.
Online Tours
To create a seamless user experience, you need to provide access to online tours and bookings. By adding “tour booking” modules to your website, prospects can self-serve and have complete flexibility over when they view a property. You can set this up as a separate page or as a call-to-action and include special offers to encourage applicants to book tours, such as 10% off the first month’s rent when they book a tour today.
Tour appointments will instantly appear in their calendars with automated communication with confirmed dates and times.
Top tip: Make sure you include an additional information box so the prospect can include more information e.g., their preferred move in dates or special requirements.
Engage Residents Better
When managing residential real estate, keeping your residents happy is the ultimate driver in building thriving communities that boost occupancy and success. Resident satisfaction can be achieved in many ways such as through reputation management, maintenance response times and competitive choice of amenities but at the core of everything is communication.
How do you communicate better? Staying connected and offering convenience has never been so important, and equally, has never been easier.
With Yardi RentCafe, you can fulfil your marketing, leasing and resident services needs with a single connected solution. It’s a powerful marketing and leasing platform that has been created for residential real estate to help streamline the renter’s digital journey.
Discover Yardi RentCafe for Residential
Yardi RentCafe is a powerful marketing and leasing platform that has been created for residential real estate to help streamline the renter’s digital journey. You can fulfil your marketing, leasing and resident services needs with a single connected solution. Use RentCafe to build your marketing website and work with the creative services team to create content that represents your brand and helps generate leads.
See how Yardi’s technology improved services for over 617 residents in the HomeViews 2022 National Build to Rent Report.