Leasing season, a time of change for renters, is coming up fast. So what changes can we expect to see in the multifamily industry? We asked Sarah Greenough of Princeton Properties, Kevin Thompson with Carlisle Residential Properties, and Zillow Group’s Kristin Glascock and Skylar Olsen for their insights on the issues and technologies that will dominate in the months to come.

What innovations do you expect to see in 2019?

“With the increased use of voice assistants — Google Home, Amazon Echo, Apple HomePod — we will see a substantial focus on voice search optimization. Co-living housing models will rapidly grow in popularity, particularly in urban markets and dense collegiate environments.”

— Sarah Greenough, Chief Marketing Officer & Executive Vice President, Princeton Properties

“As we say at Zillow, ‘Push a button, make magic happen.' For us within Zillow Group, our focus is to get closer to the ease and the convenience that consumers demand. Those looking to rent an apartment home are inundated with options on the web. How do they really choose? The faster they can get an answer on when they can move in and how much that costs — push a button to make magic happen — the sooner they’re going to make a decision.”

— Kristin Glascock, National Sales Director, Zillow Group

What’s the top skill multifamily marketers need in 2019?

“The leaders will be focusing on big data and how to harness it, filter it and apply it to their advantage. There are so many tools available to us now — market trends, revenue management, social media, reputation tracking and Google Analytics. The winning marketing teams are those that are not just looking ahead but studying what’s around them today.”

— Kevin Thompson, Chief Marketing Officer, Carlisle Residential Properties

“A commitment to continuous learning and mindfulness. Big data can sometimes become overwhelming — don’t get lost in data and reports. Report on information that would impact your strategy, reports that give information to effect change. Customer service-centric focus. Focus on the people who choose to live with us and on the people who choose to work with us.”

— Sarah Greenough

What’s the biggest challenge renters will face in 2019?

“Though rents aren’t going up as fast as in years past, rent burdens are still high. The national average for percent of income spent on rent is just above 28 percent, but in rapidly growing places like Los Angeles, San Diego and Miami, it’s over 40 percent. The solution is building more and building more affordably. For multifamily companies, that is going to require some creativity.Developers should be thinking about alternative-lifestyle units and different ways of building them, as rent burden will be a persistent concern in 2019 and beyond.”

— Skylar Olsen, Director of Economic Research & Outreach, Zillow Group

What are the most important features to renters who are considering apartment communities in 2019?

“Convenience — in all aspects. Convenient location for shopping and recreation as well as proximity to a desired neighborhood, work, family and friends. Convenient, easy and quick processes for web-based paperless applications, approvals and rent payments, smart-home technology, parking and flexible lease terms.”

— Sarah Greenough

What tactics can multifamily marketers leave behind?  

“What we’re hearing from top clients in the space is that you don’t need to be everywhere on social anymore. You need to have a social presence that complements your consumer journey. Two, three years ago marketers and the rental industry thought they needed to be everywhere. You name the social platform, you had to have it all. But what we are seeing is that the more you understand the true consumer journey for your community and your brand, you realize that you don’t have to be everywhere on social. You can then put those saved dollars into the right advertising.”

— Kristin Glascock

What’s your advice on managing change in 2019?

“Don’t change simply for the sake of change. Don't blindly follow trends, know your organization’s DNA and risk tolerances. Make changes to processes that aren’t working well.  Take your time rolling out larger changes; by doing things in waves you can better identify potential issues and mitigate before a company-wide modification is implemented. Spend time talking to property teams — leasing, management, maintenance. Get their feedback before making any sweeping changes.”

— Sarah Greenough

“Don’t resist it. Our industry is generally following in the path of most other industries, so change is inevitable. But more importantly, we can watch and learn from some of the other industry’s pioneers. This industry tends to reward those willing to take a chance and try something new and is forgiving when we fail. Let’s not take ourselves too seriously.”

— Kevin Thompson