by Todd Katler
In the realm of property management, rentable amenities present an often-overlooked revenue opportunity. We’ve all seen it – the empty bike rack, empty club house, the vacant parking spot from that resident that moved out of 2B. It’s not that residents don’t want to use these spaces, it’s often a matter of not knowing how. Many property managers put more focus on traditional rentable items, but these other items can generate new income streams while enhancing the resident experience.
With the right platform, owners and operators can more effectively offer short- and long-term rentals and manage amenities like garages, storage, bike storage and more. Technology has significantly reduced the challenges to implementation and streamlined the entire process. In these volatile times, who doesn’t want to boost revenue while meeting modern residents’ expectations of convenience?
Identifying Pain Points and Moving Beyond Traditional Methods
Two of the challenges that property managers face is inefficient communication and underutilized amenities. The evolution of renters has opened the door to more ancillary revenue opportunities than ever before.
These amenities, however, often take paperwork or require onsite teams to handle setup of payment. Teams are often busy with other important responsibilities and this method also leaves open the door for miscommunication and a corresponding decline in resident satisfaction. According to NMHC, 94% of residents want to utilize parking in their community — this is where a platform that allows for easy access and customizable rental periods comes in very handy.
While parking is one of the most popular rentable amenities, multifamily communities are filled with diverse options to meet the varying needs of residents:
Exploring Other Rentable Items
Storage Spaces: Residents often have more things than they have space, no matter where they live. Making it easy to snag a storage space when they want to reduce the clutter is a massive benefit in the eyes of residents and prospects.
Garages: Some residents want more than just a place to park, preferring a spot where their vehicles are protected from weather. Or, maybe they just have a lot more stuff that their unit just won’t hold. If these amenities become available after their move-in or they decide they want it later, they’ll have an easy way to snag a garage.
Bike Storage: Bikes are becoming more expensive and advanced, especially e-bikes, which are growing in popularity. Bikes can take up a lot of space in a home, so having readily available rental storage for these will be a positive
Common Spaces: People living in communities typically prefer to hold large gatherings in a clubhouse as opposed to their homes. These spaces are convenient and can offer access to other amenities such as the pool.
This is just a short list, of course. Customization in a rental platform is critical because every community offers different amenities. Owners and operators need to have the flexibility to make the technology their own and personalize the experience for residents. The addition of this method also creates a competitive edge in multifamily, which is moving toward stability but still faces uncertainty in the coming year.
New Revenue With Less Management
The benefits of implementing a platform to handle rentable items can be fully realized with a system that easily integrates into a community’s existing property management system. This method means that the availability and management of short- and long-term rentals is handled by the technology with little to no assistance required by onsite teams. Owners and operators will still want to make sure, however, that this portion of the business can be easily accessed and assessed via a dashboard.
Successful property management goes further than rent and fees and offers a focus to value-added amenities. Owners and operators need to be able to adjust their revenue opportunities to changes in the market. Short- and long-term rentable items offer vast growth options essential for modern operations.