Yardi’s Senior Account Executive, Georgie Drewery joined industry experts at this year’s Bisnow Conference 2023, held in London, to discuss delivering resident value in BTR. The panel was moderated by Katherine Rose from VervLife and included:
- Nicola Fleet-Milne from FleetMilne
- Valerie Cseplo-Jeffery from Lendlease
- James Hart from LaSalle Investment Management
- Grace Oyebunmi Oyesoro from Quintain Living
- Dominic Sherry from Mura Living
BTR vs PRS Value: Understanding Resident Value Proposition
In the rapidly evolving real estate market, the concepts of Build to Rent (BTR) and the Private Rented Sector (PRS) have gained prominence. Starting the discussion, Hart highlights how the “concept of resident value is subjective” and can be “slightly different depending on geography and demographic.” In the BTR sector, certain trends consistently emerge as high-priority factors for residents – these are “location, security and value for money,” states Hart. When compared to PRS, BTR developments excel in offering “urban locations with excellent connectivity, on-site staff and security measures.” However, he notes that the perception of value for money can vary depending on the demographic and location of the building – “What someone might find value in, another person might not.” Therefore, it is “important to look at the granularity of the demographic in the location and who’s in the building,” stresses Hart.
Amenity provision in BTR is a big differentiator between traditional PRS. It “offers residents an extension of their home, beyond the square meters of their apartments,” Hart continues, thus becoming much more in the rental sector.
Following this, Drewery reflects on her rental experience as someone who has lived in both BTR and PRS. Affordability holds a significant value for renters when considering their next move. Drewery notes while “BTR may carry a premium price tag to PRS,” it often offers additional benefits that justify the cost. Residents are “willing to pay a premium for the enhanced services, amenities and management” provided by BTR developments. Cseplo-Jeffery emphasises this notion, highlighting how BTR developments are “built for the renters. Everything is catered to the resident” and that’s an important distinction to make.
Hart rounds off the first half of the discussion by noting the flexibility aspect you can find in BTR when compared to PRS. He explains that the flexible feature in BTR developments “provides residents with a blank canvas to adapt the space and use it how they want to,” helping to form a community that residents want to be a part of and “that’s the ultimate customer experience,” states Fleet-Milne.
The Power of Brand in Rental Housing
The conversation led on to the importance of the brand. Rose asked the panel their views on branding and how important they believed it to be for marketing BTR developments. Sherry’s response – “Brand is crucial.”
Brand plays a vital role in the rental housing market and “it’s always from the customer side.” For BTR operators, establishing a strong brand identity is essential in differentiating themselves from PRS and building a sense of community. Sherry notes that when it comes to his personal experience, Mura Living were able to create a sense of belonging by branding its “tenants as guests and not as tenants.” He highlights how these ‘guests’ “live in a community where they want to feel a sense of belonging” and branding helps facilitate that. He suggests that when developing, providers need to “start with a brand and not with the building,” only then can they ensure alignment of their BTR building with residents’ expectations.
Oyesoro, emphasises this and argues by prioritising branding, BTR operators can create a loyal customer base. She agrees that “branding efforts should extend beyond the physical building to every touchpoint.” But highlights the importance of building a brand that residents can trust and identify with as this will be instrumental in ensuring tenant satisfaction and creating a stronger community.
Drewery expands on this by stressing how branding can be a powerful marketing tool – “It can create longevity and attract the renters,” states Drewery but “without the renters, there is no brand,” reinforces Oyesoro. Therefore, branding plays a critical part in building image, trust and community, but it can also “help to explain what build to rent is,” ends Hart.
Reputation: A Cornerstone of Success
Reputation holds immense value for renters, operators and investors. For Fleet-Milne, a positive reputation “influences lease-up rates and drives resident renewals.” In an era where online reviews can make or break a business, it is crucial to actively manage and respond to resident feedback.
“Responding promptly and resolving issues demonstrates a commitment to continuous improvement,” she states. By “leveraging platforms such as HomeViews” and embracing resident feedback, operators can monitor their reputation, make necessary changes and shape their success in the market.
Cseplo-Jeffery states it’s “important to own up to mistakes.” She further stresses that not responding to bad reviews or feedback “is the worst thing a BTR provider can do” because you want to build a reputation that shows you are a BTR provider that is “listening to feedback, taking it in and making the appropriate changes.” Fleet-Milne agrees and notes that “no one in the BTR industry knows it all,” resident reviews/feedback allows the sector to listen to its audience, take on board what they are saying and helps to “change, innovate and improve” BTR’s reputation. Hart reiterates this point by quoting, “Every complaint has the potential to become a compliment.”
Harnessing the Power of Data
Data has become an indispensable tool in the rental housing industry. The panel were asked, “How important is data regarding understanding resident satisfaction and brand success?”
“Data is super important,” states Drewery. “Data provides valuable insights and guides decision-making from resident satisfaction to brand success. Capturing resident data, including reviews, allows operators to gauge satisfaction levels, identify areas for improvement and refine their marketing strategies.” But gathering data from the moment a “resident is looking for somewhere to rent on the website,” to when they leave helps to reduce “the unit turn process, avoid empty apartments…and helps to plan for preventatives,” Drewery continues.
Oyesoro also points out that data can further enable a comprehensive understanding of the customer journey. Capturing data from initial enquiry to lease conversion and asking tenants about their move-in experience through to their post-notice period, will “empower operators to optimise their operations, deliver exceptional customer experiences” and help to nurture long-term relationships with residents.
The Role of Technology: Enhancing Customer Experiences
Rose concluded the session by asking the panel, how does technology help? – Cseplo-Jeffery highlights how technology, including AI, has transformed the rental housing industry by offering convenience and efficiency. “Technology is all about making the resident’s lives easier,” it’s there to streamline processes, such as “online rent payment, maintenance requests and electronic document signing,” simplifying the resident experience. However, she notes that the focus should be on adopting technology, which is “meaningful” – Technology that not only enhances residents’ lives by saving time and energy but that allows the property management teams to enhance values within the development. She states, “Adding smart features to your unit is great,” but urges BTR providers to find technology that not only “builds a connection with residents.”
Drewery ends the panel discussion by noting that developers need to invest in technology that helps with different touchpoints. They need to implement software that has an “application portal, a tenant portal and a leasing or a maintenance dashboard.” Having this type of “single, connected solution, with that one login, is very important when wanting to improve efficiency and experience for both staff and customers,” Drewery explains.
See what events we’ll be attending in 2023 and meet with Team Yardi or get in touch to see how our single, end-to-end property management and accounting technology for BTR can help drive resident value.