What do investors analyze most closely when reviewing potential multifamily property purchases? Is its loan terms, interest rates, and fees? Is it the likely cap rate of the property? Is it the cap-ex or rehab needed to stabilize the property?

All sensible questions to contemplate, but how regularly do you consider your anticipated resident? What are they scanning for in an apartment, and more importantly, what can you be doing to attract them to yours? Examining these topics will lead to flatter vacancy rates and may expose ways you can improve rents over the long haul.

So how do you answer these questions?

In many markets, millennials and other junior members of the workforce are continuing to form a healthy percentage of your residents because the preponderance of them don’t have ready access to capital to acquire a home. Renting to younger folks is nothing unusual, but the length of time they are lasting as renters is building. A 2019 survey of Millennials found that about 12% of renters plan to “always rent”—more than the 10.7% that said the same just a year prior.

Many millennials are long-term occupants who are not qualified to buy a home anytime soon but want elasticity in their dwelling arrangements if they need to relocate for work or a relationship. They might have substantial student loan debt and need predictable expenses so they can carve out funds to pay their loans.

With that large of a bracket looking for multifamily rentals, we want to examine what we can do to draw in these likely residents. Let’s take a look at genuine must-haves. 

Location

Millennials still desire to go out and relish life. They favor apartments positioned near restaurants, bars, cafes, nightclubs, parks, gyms, and other places they can hang out, be social, and entertain themselves. 

Maybe the most significant distinction between urban and suburban life is walkability. City-dwellers can do most of their day-to-day chores without ever requiring their vehicle, or they use a ‘twist-and-go’ last mile scooter solutions.

Nevertheless, as millennials have youngsters and move back to the suburbs, they decline to abandon high walkability neighborhoods. The indirect outcome is a quiet revolution in suburban cities seeking to increase density and shift towards being more walkable. Instead of developing standalone properties, many developers are grouping their communities around walkable retail districts and suburban downtowns. The goal is to give residents a village where food, shopping, and entertainment are just around the corner. 

LEED Certified | Environmentally Friendly

Millennials genuinely consider the environment. They insist on recycling at a minimum. They want to curb water and electricity usage and dig discovering new ways to conserve, reduce, and reuse. Swap to energy-efficient appliances when upgrading units. Showcase all the eco-friendly measures you take on social media and on your website to pull renters who care about their environmental impact. As much as these renters love being online and using social media, they also like to hang out in person, give back, and add value to the community.

Parking

We heard this one a lot. Millennials said they didn’t want covered parking spots. They just wanted a parking space close to their door—and preferably a space that doesn’t cost extra. It is inherently frustrating to live at an apartment complex that neglects to offer accessible and protected parking. 

Imagine living in a mid-rise and reaching home from work and then be required to spend the next 10-30 minutes circling in a garage or on the street for parking. Folks want to be able to pull ‘up and in’ immediately. Also, they rate guest parking highly, considering that many will want to be ready to offer an invitation to their friends or romantic connections over without any weighty hassles, like towing or fines. Many renters voiced frustration that they only get one spot for their unit, when they may have two to three people living there.

Connectivity

They were raised in the Digital Age and choose to stream content on the internet, so high-speed internet is key to maintaining happy residents. They’ll use technology for anything from work to play. Because of that, it’s hard to think of anything more frustrating than a slow or congested Wi-Fi network. The internet is their first-choice medium for everything from ordering up food delivery to looking for apartments. 

It would be best if you were online on multiple platforms to connect with these renters. Millennials also tend to be phone shy. Rather than calling you on the phone or meeting with you in person, they’ll probably opt to send a quick text or email. 

Smart home tech goes without saying. Providing resident portals to pay rent, for communication and work order requests makes it much easier to attract and keep millennial residents.

Recent appliances

This one surprised us. There is some fluctuation as to what “good” means because not everyone shares the same grading scale, but the desire for quality appliances was strong. The convenience of being able to wash your clothes the home is a massive win for this generation. They don’t want the difficulty that comes with the dorm room clothes-washing experience: either wasting a trip to the laundry mat and expecting an open washer and dryer unit or worrying about being late on a return, praying that no one moved or stole their belongings.

Shiny stuff brings lease ink. They desire a kitchen that feels fresh and smartly designed. As a result, you should modernize the appliances at least every few years, since young people are far more disposed to pass on an apartment that feels dated. Beyond that, Millennials are more likely to cook more often than Gen Xer’s. There can also be an opportunity to increase rent with updates.

Security

Providing on-site security gives them peace of mind and acknowledges that their safety is not a concern. To ensure this atmosphere of protection, consider adding: 

• Fencing around the apartment.

• Electronic fobs for getting into the complex or parking structure.

• 24/7 security services and monitoring.

• Cameras installed throughout the property.

• Smart door security systems

 Responsive management

There is a crucial need to find a good management team for your investment. That fact that millennial renters mentioned it often emphasizes that need.

Here are five fundamental approaches to building trust with residents:

1. Following through on promises

2. Making repairs promptly

3. Upgrade fixtures, flooring, and appliances, with regularity

4. Keeping the property well maintained, as the developer intended on both inside and out

5. Being dedicated and proactive

These insights into the minds of youthful renters can help you, whether you’re evaluating a multifamily property or looking for better ways to manage your current portfolio. With Millennials encompassing such as a large share of today’s renting demographic, keeping their preferences in mind is always a wise idea.