What Technology Do Residents Actually Care About

Want to attract more leads and convert them faster while making your life easier in the process?

Install more smart technology in your community.

As of July 2023, there are roughly 15.14 billion Internet of Things (IoT) devices in the world, which is expected to double by 2030.

But more doesn’t necessarily equate to better.

You don’t need to offer residents every type of technology available to make your community stand out.

Instead, you need to find the ones that matter the most to your residents while simultaneously streamlining your business.

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Smart Tours

If you're tired of finding time to offer tours to residents, there’s good news.

Studies show that over 60% of renters now prefer self-guided tours when searching for a new home.

The trend towards self-guided tours was already shifting, but the pandemic accelerated the trend.

👉 Smart tours offer residents a combination of safety, convenience, and preference to tailor their experience with self-service solutions.

👉 There’s no waiting around or playing phone tag to book a tour and schedule a leasing agent.

👉 Your team frees up more time and resources to help speed up the conversion process among leads who want more flexibility in their decision-making process.

However, you’ll need a combination of smart locks and smart sensors to help future residents safely tour your community.

Tip 💡: Good news: Safety technology also ranks for what residents want, giving you a chance to show off your tech amenities.

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Energy Efficiency Technology

Energy-efficient technology like smart thermostats are in high demand among residents.

The ability to control the temperature even while away from work provides cost savings and more convenience to their day.

According to Energy Star, switching to a smart thermostat can lead to an 8% reduction in energy bills.

For community management, overall energy efficiency in your community leads to cost savings across common areas and shared spaces.

Cost savings aside, adjusting according to the weather makes the community more inviting and welcoming to come home to.

Tip💡: Make sure to market your smart thermostats according to residents. Hiding them on your list of amenities won’t stand out to residents who want them the most.

Safety Tech

Residents want to feel safe in their community and are willing to pay more for it.

A survey by Rent.com shows keyless entry and smart locks rank among the top three technologies residents want the most.

Beyond just keeping the building smart locks and keyless entry systems to their units, it also makes your job easier.

✅ Leads who want more safety features are more likely to convert.

✅ Your community stays safer.

✅ Your property managers are spending less time helping residents who lose their keys and get locked out.

Tip💡: While you’re enhancing your safety features with technology, you can also upgrade security cameras and a front desk presence.

The combination of technology and hands-on support staff keeps residents feeling comfortable, especially if they work late at night.

Smart Lights

Smart lights are also covered by residents looking for a combination of convenience, safety features, and energy efficiency.

The Rent.com survey shows 45% of respondents in homes and 42% in apartments wanted smart light technology.

It makes sense.

Sure, they offer convenience, but smart lights are also a safety and energy-efficient feature that adjusts to the conditions within each unit.

Smart lights are also a good addition to your lobby, laundry facilities, swimming pool, fitness room, and anywhere else your residents gather.

Adding smart lighting throughout your community for a cohesive approach to convenience and safety offers more security and peace of mind for residents.

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Smart Package Lockers

Smart lockers aren't readily available in the community, with Rent.com showing they're only present in 3% of rentals.

They are more complex to install, but the effort can pay off.

Residents tired of dealing with lost packages and theft are more likely to look at communities with smart lockers as having less stress and hassle.

You also free up the bandwidth of your front desk personnel or property managers by alleviating the need to handle packages themselves.

Studies show that by 2026, 230.6 million people will be shopping online, meaning more deliveries and parcels collected in your community.

Smart lockers ultimately save space, eliminating the need for excess packages to be collected in your offices or in a storage area.

Smart technology is an asset to your community, but it should benefit both you and your residents to make your investment worthwhile.

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