Today’s leasing agents are shifting and adapting the way they showcase their properties and connect with prospective residents. That shift is toward offering apartment virtual tours.

Not only is the leasing landscape changing, but prospective resident preferences are also changing as well. Whether it is a luxury apartment tour or a small studio for a student, prospects are increasingly looking to tour apartment communities conveniently. They want leasing on their terms.

Taking those factors into account, there are many reasons why apartment virtual tours are worth it to prospective residents. Offering a variety of touring options to prospects is necessary to compete in today’s evolving leasing process. Let’s dig into it a bit further.

The Evolving Leasing Process

The multifamily industry is no stranger to technological advancements. For a while, the industry has been adopting different technologies to accommodate prospective residents’ preferences for apartment virtual walkthroughs. Then, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it served as a type of accelerator.

More than ever last year, leasing agents began introducing apartment virtual tours in order to still connect. They could still showcase their properties to prospective residents in a real and transparent way even during area lockdowns.

Today, prospects need to be equipped to provide whatever experience, virtual or not, to prospects. Prospective residents find that extremely valuable and leasing teams need to be ready to handle it.

Get started with virtual leasing and see how your teams can close leases quicker!

The evolution of leasing means apartment virtual tours should no longer be looked at as a “nice to have,” a simple marketing asset or tool that sits on websites. That’s not what we mean when we say “virtual tours” anymore.

94.5% of prospects found that virtual leasing offered a valuable and easy process and over 62% thought it resembled the same experience as in-person touring. Apartment virtual tours are only becoming more popular and are an integral part of a virtual leasing process.

Prospective Residents Preferences

Alongside the changing leasing environment, prospective residents have evolved in their preferences as well. Today’s prospects want the option to tour a property and engage in the leasing experience however they choose. That can mean a number of different things – all of which leasing teams need to be equipped to provide.

The leasing experience can mean a range of different things. It can mean:

  • 100% in-person leasing. Many prospects still like seeing the property in person multiple times throughout the leasing process. And that’s great! However, having even 3D tours or a virtual reality apartment tour on the website homepage can help them come in knowing a bit more about the property and being at a different decision-making phase.
  • Self-guided tours. These tours allow the prospect to tour the property without interaction with leasing agents. They can experience the property on their own. Videos explaining procedures or showing a different way of seeing an amenity are helpful for this type of experience.
  • Pre-recorded video tours. Offering apartment virtual tours in this way mean prospects can have a personalized virtual experience, but one they can engage with on their own time from wherever they are.
  • Live video tours. These tours mean leasing agents are able to connect with those prospects and potentially show them the exact unit they’d be living in. Prospects can quickly get their questions answered and the agents can begin to build that trust and transparency into the process virtually.
  • A combination of the above. In many cases, it’s a combination of the above offerings that are key for a prospect.

Regardless of the experience prospect choose, leasing teams need to be able to provide it. While most leasing teams know how to give the in-person experience most prospects would want, they also need to provide the experience of virtual tours for apartments for rent on their property.

An apartment virtual tour solution will equip the leasing team to provide digital tour experiences with consumers. And that’s where we come in 👋

Need More Realync Content?

Enhancing your leasing strategy with 1:1, DIY or pre-recorded videos will help leasing teams WIN more leases! Get DIY video tips, multifamily marketing, and leasing knowledge delivered to your inbox bi-weekly by subscribing to our newsletter!