Before we start in on the benefits and deficits of Contactless Leasing, let’s first understand what it means in board sense.
Contactless leasing is a process of renting out apartments or units in a multifamily property without the need for in-person interactions between the tenant and the staff, or the use of physical paperwork. Contactless Leasing takes advantage of modern technologies and methodologies to streamline the leasing process and reduce personnel overhead. The term rose to common prominence during the COVID Pandemic, and many multifamily operators incorporated contactless processes during this time. But, it turns out, these processes aren’t just beneficial during a pandemic, they are fundamentally changing many leasing operations and their approach to customer interaction, data gathering, and move-in processes.
Contactless leasing at it’s core is the adoption of digital technologies like; online applications, internet based communications, electronic signatures, virtual tours, and automated move-in procedures.
Now that we are all the same page about the fundamentals of Contactless leasing, let’s look at a few of the benefits and drawbacks.
Increased Convenience
Contactless leasing offers a more convenient and efficient experience for both prospective tenants and property owners. Prospective tenants can research and gather information without leaving home, they can easily apply and sign leases online, and they can even move in without hurdles of waiting for staff assistance. From the perspective of property owners the convenience factor is also a huge improvement - leasing specialists can focus on attending to more prospects and can be more productive with application systems that are well codified and procedural.
Improved Lead Conversion
By offering a seamless and efficient leasing process, contactless leasing can help to convert more leads into signed leases. Where there is an enormous demonstrable improvement is with the point of first contact for prospective tenants. By having contactless communication options, the friction in the initial leasing process is reduced, and prospects are more likely to enter the leasing sales funnel simply because there are no barriers to their entry. Prospective tenants are more likely to choose a property that offers a user-friendly and convenient leasing process.
Enhanced Safety
Safety can be looked it from a couple different perspectives. Obviously in the context of COVID, taking measures to reduce in-person interactions will improve the health and safety of the participants. As the pandemic has subsided, the personal health aspects of safety are greatly reduced, but there are two more aspects of safety which are still greatly improved through Contactless leasing.
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Payment Safety - By offering online payment options and removing the human element from handling cash, checks, and credit cards, there is a great reduction in the risk of fraud, theft, and also counterfeit payments (which happen more than one might think). This isn’t to say your leasing staff are skimming, there are many points at which a payment can be mishandled, stored, entered, or left out, which can make it vulnerable to a variety of fraudulent uses. Leaving payment handling to online payment services is a great way to reduce these risks, and also make things easier for your customers.
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Data Safety - Have you flipped through the filing cabinets in your leasing offices lately? In many offices, mountains of important tenant data and personal information is left unattended and disorganized. By housing data in a CRM system or similar digital property management system, the risk factors of having printed customer information at hand and having to store and protect it is greatly reduced.
Increased Accessibility
Contactless leasing can make the leasing process more accessible to your prospects and tenants. The most obvious use case is to improve access for those with disabilities or limited mobility, but there is a lot more to it. There are huge advantages for prospective tenants who live out of town and are trying to find a place to live in a new city. Multifamily communities that provide contactless options are more likely to win over these prospects who can’t easily come in for a visit. Similarly, and perhaps most importantly, the improvements in accessibility will help people who are simply busying during the normal working hours of your leasing offices. People with families and jobs and busy lives, people who you want to live in your multifamily communities, but they are finding it difficult to come in for a visit between 9 and 5 on a weekday. Having contactless options for all these people will not only increase the number of leads your properties are receiving, but will also speed these prospects through the leasing process and get them moved-in faster.
Reduced Costs
Reduction in cost is another big factor you should consider when adopting technologies into your leasing workflow. Contactless processes will allow fewer leasing specialists to interact with more prospects and residents, and not only interact with more, but solve more problems for them and provide better overall service. Leasing offices are notorious for being busy and losing track of leads or not communicating in an effective or timely manner. By incorporating digital services your leasing specialists will be more productive and will feel more supported and competent in themselves as well.
Not to even mention the cost of organizing paperwork, mailing out forms, processing check payments, etc. The time and cost savings touch all aspects of the leasing process and improve the experiences of everyone involved.
Final Thoughts
There is always more to say, but I think we’ve made our point. If you are here reading this, than much of these basics you likely already know and understand. You can dive into some of our other resources for more in depth details about particular aspects of contact leasing, or our services and how they can help.
In closing I will leave you with this..… We work with property management companies and multifamily owners in many locations and at many scales. In our experience, the leasing offices that incorporate more technologies, codify their process more specifically, and include analytics and checks and balances, have greatly improved performance in terms of occupancy rates, time from first-contact to move-in, and resident satisfaction. Ask what we can do to help you interact better with your prospects