A Place for Everything
Survey Says:42 percent of renters said they would like to have additional storage available—and they’d be willing to pay a fee for it.
We’re a nation of pack rats or, according to Ahluwalia, “junk collectors.” A desire for more storage shouldn’t surprise anyone in the business, but the fact that renters are willing to pay extra for it might raise an eyebrow or two.
“We make some sort of rentable storage space available on 40 percent of our communities,” says Mid-America’s Grimes. “There is a very big demand for that. We’ve noticed that increase over the last 10 years or so.” But renters want more than just a little closet hidden away somewhere on the property. MAAC makes spaces available that are comparable to off-site mini-storage units, with openings wide enough to store items larger than the usual bike or grill.
Volume is key when it comes to storage, says McLaughlin. “One of my favorite exercises is to squeeze out as much storage as possible. Invariably there are nooks and crannies within a building where you can add some storage closets, but they need to be the right size. If I’ve got the choice between two 3-by-4 closets or one 4-by-6 closet, I’ll build the single [bigger] closet. No one’s going to get excited about some dinky little closet in the basement, or be willing to pay for it.”
Downtown Revival
Survey Says:37 percent of renters prefer a downtown neighborhood; 39 percent prefer a close-in suburb.
The message here is clear: Keep an urban outlook, whether that means building more downtown properties, seeking infill opportunities, updating city-center properties, or touting those in close-in suburban locations.
“You’ve got to give credit to the mayors for cleaning up their downtowns,” says AvalonBay’s McLaughlin. His company has been following this trend for the better part of a decade. “Crime rates are way down so people feel more comfortable in an urban setting. With hour-long commutes, being able to walk to convenient spots is about as good an amenity that an apartment builder could offer.”
“Three years ago we started focusing on urban infill sites, high-rises, or conversions, just based on demographic trends,” says Village Green’s Quay. “Everything you’re seeing today is that Gen Xers and Gen Yers are more and more seeking an urban, vibrant environment.” But the trend is also strong with an older demographic, namely empty-nesters. “We built our Regent’s Park product line specifically for a high-income, empty-nester renter, with condo finishes and five-star finishes,” Quay says.
“Know your customer” and “keep up with demographic shifts” are two mantras that make sense when it comes to attracting renters to downtown apartments. “More than 40 percent of renters are single, and they want to live downtown,” says researcher Ahluwalia. Camden’s Baker cautions that you’ve got to have the right floor plan to attract an urban customer. “Our two-bedrooms with a master suite don’t do as well downtown because it can’t accommodate roommates. Here in Houston, inside the Loop, we see more demand for one-bedrooms or two-bedrooms that would allow for a roommate.”