Where did you grow up? Urban or rural there is a place (or places) that make you think of home. What are they and what do they represent? Collectively, they are more than just single address.
There is home, of course, and places that represent a combination of the corner store, your favorite burger joint, the place where you always buy socks; your church, school and dentist. Maybe its a park or favorite walking trail. All of these addresses represent a sense of place.
With respect to multifamily assets, each represents a sense of place. Does your leasing staff present the property's "sence of place" to a prospective resident? Whereas a home is more than windows and doors so too is the "home" represented by a multifamily unit for rent. Where is the nearest coffee-house? You mean there is a real bookstore nearby? How far is the walk to kindergarten?
In property management we represent ownership. It is our responsibility to engage the public on behalf of ownership. This includes providing prospective residents with the sense of place as represented by the apartment home available for rent on the open market.
This is not the selling of sizzle versus steak. People want a home to come to, a place that has a character and uniqueness. To the best of our ability we can represent this best by differentiation in the multifamily assets we represent by knowing what makes them distinctive within their community. It's not rocket science but it does take planning and implementation.
Mr. Wilhoit is the author of two books: How To Read A Rent Roll: A Guide to Understanding Rental Income and Multifamily Insight Vol 1 - How to Acquire Wealth Through Buying the Right Multifamily Assets in the Right Markets.
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About This Blog: Multifamily Insight is dedicated to assisting current and future multifamily property owners, operators and investors in executing specific tasks that allow multifamily assets to operate at their highest level of efficiency. We discuss real world issues in multifamily property management and acquisitions. This blog is intended to be informational only and does not provide legal, financial or accounting advice. Seek professional counsel. www.MultifamilyInsight.com