You’re probably wondering how in the world offering cash back for resident caused damages could benefit you and your bottom line as a property manager or owner. Before we explain ourselves, we should note that, it wouldn’t have to be you or your owners fronting this bill.
Companies like Latchel offer this “rental experience perk” for residents enrolled in our resident benefit package offering – we front that bill for you so your residents are happier, and by effect, so are you!
We know that attracting and retaining great residents is now the number one priority for Property Managers, according to the 2022 Buildium State of the Industry Report. We’ve also seen that offering residents perks that elevate the living experience can set a company apart from competition when it comes to leasing.
But, there are more value-adds to consider here. Let’s explore 4 benefits to offering cash back on resident caused damage:
1. Increases resident retention and lowers turnover costs
Offering cash back on resident caused damages helps significantly improve the resident experience. Residents who are happy with their property management company are three times more likely to renew their lease! And, according to a study by 2ndKitchen, reducing resident turnover by just 5% improves operating income for property management companies by an average of $15,000.
Reducing turnover can be achieved, in part, by reducing the amount of bad experiences a resident might have at one of your properties. Most people hate dealing with maintenance issues and consider it, in and of itself, a terrible experience. But, most people love getting money back in their pockets. So, a small perk that makes an innately bad experience a little bit better can go a long way.
By including Latchel’s cash back policy into your resident benefit package, you can elevate your resident’s lifestyle and create an unbeatable rental experience with perks they won’t want to live without.
2. Property Protection – Damages get resolved faster
Providing cash reimbursements for resident caused damages will encourage tenants to fix issues immediately, protecting the owner’s assets. Let’s say one of your residents breaks the garbage disposal and neglects to get it fixed, while continuing to toss food down the drain. This could potentially create a bigger problem and end up costing you more money in the long run to get it fixed.
If your resident knows they have the means and support to get a resident caused maintenance issue resolved, they are much more likely to proceed in a timely manner.
3. Costs you $0 and increases your revenue per unit
You might be worried the cash reimbursement would be coming out of your pockets or the resident’s security deposit but that’s not the case when you offer this as a perk included in a Resident Benefit Package. Resident Benefit Packages are becoming more of a standard in property management. In Buildium’s 2022 State of the Industry Report, 24% of Property Managers said they had planned to implement one if they didn’t already have one in place. If you want to stay ahead of the competition, we highly recommend working one into your operations.
The best part about leveraging Resident Benefit Packages is that it doesn’t cost you a penny. This is a small monthly fee your residents would pay in order to access a hub full of customized benefits. According to a 2021 Consumer Insights Report, 86% of consumers are willing to pay more for a better experience. So, if you’re worried about push back from potential residents, chances are, there won’t be any and they’ll appreciate the perks.
4. Improve your online reputation and marketing efforts
According to a study by Findstack, 94% of consumers have avoided a company due to a bad review. There’s no question that maintaining a positive online reputation heavily impacts your property management company’s success.
Leveraging a property management solution like Latchel will help immensely with increasing your 5-star resident reviews. Latchel handles all your maintenance calls and dispatching efforts, connecting your residents with designated vendors. Upon job completion, residents are sent a link to a survey where they can provide feedback based on the work order. Latchel automatically pushes all 5-star resident reviews to your online profiles, so you can improve your online reputation.
Offering cash reimbursement for resident caused damage will provide more opportunities for receiving reviews and growing a positive online reputation when you leverage a tool like Latchel.
Interested in learning more about how Latchel can help you work cash reimbursements into a Resident Benefit Package? Click here to request a demo today!
