How to Improve Relationships with Tenants in Multifamily Properties

Creating and maintaining positive relationships with multifamily property tenants go a long way toward increasing lessee retention rates.

Sure, you understand the value of creating a safe and happy environment for those who choose to live in your building. But where do you start?

Here are 5 quick ways to improve your tenant relationships and limit costly vacancies.

1.   Listen to your renters

Want to provide a better experience for tenants? You can start by listening to what they have to say.

As a property owner, it can be easy to miss the forest for the trees. In other words, you may be so focused on filling a few vacant units that you disregard a major issue that current tenants face every day, such as a faulty elevator or messy lobby.

Your tenants can alert you to these issues. You just need to give them a platform so their voices are heard.

This could be an online message board, a suggestion box, or even a cell phone group chat if the number of tenants is small enough.

What matters most is that your tenants feel comfortable voicing their concerns.

2.   Perform regular maintenance

The faster you can respond to a maintenance issue, the better. Fast service helps reassure tenants that they are being taken care of, and helps them avoid having to deal with an uncomfortable situation any longer than necessary.

Responding to issues is just one aspect of maintenance, however. Make indoor/outdoor maintenance a regular activity to ensure that your tenants spend their time in a clean, inviting building.

These tasks could include lawn care, window cleaning, and general maintenance in areas like bathrooms and lobbies.

3.   Spend on improvements when necessary

A penny saved may be a penny earned, but saving too many pennies at the expense of your tenants’ well-being may cost you business.

The key is to put aside a small portion of your revenue for property improvements each year.

Then you can schedule projects and tackle them one at a time.  Maybe this year you can replace the flooring in an area of the property.  Next year you could update the bathrooms for your tenants.

Be sure to communicate the schedule to your tenants, they’ll feel more confident knowing that you care and that you have a plan for addressing the things they need, even if you can’t accomplish all tasks at once.

4.   Respect your tenants’ rights

You might own the property, but you absolutely need to respect the rights of those who live there.

A major issue involves tenant privacy. Perhaps you already understand that you should not arrive unannounced to make repairs within a renter’s unit. But states have laws regarding the amount of notice you must give tenants in these cases. Set time aside to research these and other issues.

For issues that don’t involve state or federal laws, common sense and good manners should prevail. Tenants will appreciate the standards you set regarding issues like visiting hours, guest parking, and mail delivery.

5.   Exercise Compassion

Your multifamily property may be an investment opportunity for you. But it’s a home for others.

Issues that may seem inconsequential for you could have a large impact on tenants’ quality of life. Putting yourself in their shoes can really help you make decisions that benefit all parties.

The good news is that if you’ve created the feedback loop mentioned in the first point here, you should have little trouble seeing issues from your tenants’ perspective.

It may not be immediately clear how positive relationships affect your bottom line. But happy tenants can reasonably lead to fewer vacancies and therefore a better return on your investment.

To learn more about the benefits of investing in commercial real estate, contact us today. Our team at Investment Property Loans is eager to help you get started.