The New Renter Search - 2021

Recap by Paul Bergeron

Renter behavior and needs have changed significantly in the past year and a half. With over 100 million renter visits per month, Apartments.com can help multifamily marketers make sense of changing renter behaviors and preferences and adjust their listings to appeal to renters today.

Chris Hood shared key findings from Apartments.com renter activity and suggestions on how communities can capitalize on renter trends at the Apartments.com Learning Lounge at NAA Apartmentalize 2021.

Who Are the ‘New’ Renters?

Let’s start with an overview of renter demographics – who are they, and what are they looking for? How might you adjust your listings to appeal to renter makeup and needs?

Following are some national demographic profiles. Your Apartments.com sales associate can share results for the individual markets your communities serve.

Age: Those 18 to 24 represent 20 percent of the market; those ages 25 to 34 cover 26 percent; ages 35 to 54 equal 34 percent; and renters age 55 and above comprise 20 percent.

Bedroom: Two-bedroom apartment home searches are most desirable at 35 percent; one-bedroom equates to 33 percent; three-bedroom follows at 17 percent and studio comes out at 11 percent. Four-bedroom searches are only sought by 5 percent.

Rent range:

• 14% of Apartments.com searches are for rents in the $500 to $799
• 27% of searches are between $800 and $1,099
• 22% of searches are between $1,100 and $1,499
• 17% of searches are between $1,500 - $1,799
• 19% of searches are for rents higher than $1,800

Amenities: The most-searched amenities are in-unit washer and dryer, pets, air-conditioning, utilities, and parking.

Where Are They Looking?

Mobility: 42 percent of Q2 searches were for out-of-market destinations (up 30% from a year ago), and about one-third of renters say they want to move out of state.

Renter sentiment suggests a migration back to the cities after some renters moved away in the past year. According to an August survey of 20,000 renters, nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of city renters plan to stay in the city; 19 percent are looking to suburbs; and 8 percent are looking to move to the “country” or rural areas.

One in four suburban renters are moving to the city, 68 percent want to stay put, and 7 percent want to move to a rural location.

Some 62 percent of renters in rural areas intend to move to suburbs or the city.

What Are They Looking At?

Image popularity: Apartments.com leverages machine learning and trained image classification models to recognize which types of images are most popular with renters (ex. bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, living room, fitness center, pool, etc.).

Apartments.com analyzed featured image room types to determine which are more likely to get clicked by renters. The key takeaway is that living rooms, fitness centers, and kitchens receive the most click-throughs; followed by pools, amenity spaces, and interior shots. Exterior shots trail all of those image types.

What Can You Learn from Lead Submissions?

With millions of leads submitted to clients every month, Apartments.com can also analyze what renters ask for in their leads to help communities advertise this information in their listings. The most popular lead topic is future availability. Make sure you provide visibility into which units are available when.

Additional unit level details like pricing are also top of mind for renters. The third most popular lead topic is for tour scheduling dates and times. Adding online tour scheduling to your listing will make it easier for renters and your leasing team to connect and convert renters into residents. And simplifying the search experience for your renters and your communities is a win for everyone.

To learn more about how to apply New Renter Search activity to your marketing plan and generate higher-quality leads, please contact your Apartments.com sales associate or call 888.658.7368.

To view additional Learning Lounge topics, please visit apartments.com/learninglounge