Stop, Stand, Smile and Greet

 Ok, so we were taking over the management of an apartment community in a couple of weeks.  The current apartment owner and property management company were gracious enough to let us go onto the community early. I was assigned to go take a look.  

As I drove onto the community grounds I was pleased with the appearance.  There was a little trash blowing in the breeze, but the shrubs were trimmed and the flower beds were weed-free.  I didn't notice any junk cars and the dumpster areas were clean.  I remember thinking, “Not bad, not bad”.  I parked and walked inside.  It was a little after 9:00 AM so I assumed everyone had a chance to get their bearings and start their day.

            The clubhouse/ office area was beautifully decorated.  There was soft music playing and it smelled of sugar cookies.  I could see two nicely dressed ladies visiting just inside an office door to my right. As I walked closer I could hear they were having a personal conversation.   As I approached the leasing area the two ladies stopped talking for a moment and they both turned my direction and looked at me and then, in unison, turned back to finish their conversation with saying a single word to me!  WOW!  Are you kidding me right now?!  They have no idea who I am!  I could be a prospect!  Or I could be the person who may have some control over their future employment!  Whatever the situation, that action was unacceptable.

When someone walks into the apartment leasing office you stop, stand, smile and greet!
They were at least already standing.

 Let’s think for a moment if I was a rental prospect looking for their new apartment home.  Odds are they would not have the same perception that I had.   The general public or in our case rental prospects and residents do not expect anything more than mediocre service.  

That is what they expect. 
That has become the norm.
That is very sad. 

 What if this was a Treat’em R.I.T.E community?  The situation would be different.  As I walked into the community club/office area the two ladies would hear the door and agree to stop their conversation.  One would return to her desk and the other would walk in my direction with renewed energy and a cheerful smiling face and greet me with, “Hi, how are you this sunny morning?”  

Treat Rental Applicants R.I.T.E.

How many prospective apartment rental applications have you processed?  Ok, so you may have no idea, but it may be a truckload and more.  You could run a rental application in your sleep or with one hand tied behind your back.

Please consider how many applications your rental prospect has filled out?  Rather it has been one time, twice or more, it is an uncomfortable situation. Explain the application process to them in detail.   For instance explain you will use a 3rd Party online company to process their credit report, criminal history, and previous landlord history.  Walk-through the application with them and confirm all areas have been filled out.   Review the Resident Selection Criteria with them and note the parts that show why applicants may be denied (this step helps with their acceptance of the denial and the reasoning behind it).

Treat’em R.I.T.E. communities have Respect for the applicant and carefully explain the process and how long it should take.  Treat’em R.I.T.E. communities have Interest in their applicant's questions and are Thoughtful to any issues that may arise with the application. Plus, they will show how Enthused they are to assist them in becoming a new resident of the community! 

Do you Treat'em R.I.T.E. ?      

                         

Linda Hansen, ARM, HCCP, NALP