new report reveals what today's apartment renters want

Contractors building new apartment complexes of all sizes may increasingly be expected to also build dog parks and on-site business centers, according to a just-released industry survey.

That survey, conducted jointly by the Washington-based National Multifamily Housing Council and Kingsley Associates of Atlanta, notes that more renters are telecommuting and working in their own apartments, a factor that may be driving the desire for on-site business centers.

Kingsley Associates is a real estate research and consulting firm.

Surveying more than 372,000 renters, the 2020 Apartment Residents Preference Report also indicated some support for their complexes offering voice-operated technology, with more than a third saying they were already using such technology.

More than one third of the responding renters said they were pet owners, with over half of that number having a dog.

Of this group, which is willing to pay a renter’s fee of just over $30 a month to have a pet, more than half said they want their apartment complexes to offer not just a defined park for their dogs, but also dog-washing stations.

While respondents were generally enthusiastic about new technology apartment offerings, they will only go so far.

But on the question of would-be renters touring a property only online, “We found that the majority of renters still prefer an in-person touch with a community representative,” said Rick Haughey, technology initiatives vice-president with the National Multifamily Housing Council.

By Garry Boulard

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