We’ve all been new to the real estate industry at some point. And we all know that success takes a lot of hard work and some serious guidance from those who’ve been in the game a bit longer. One area to focus on for measuring success as a new leasing agent in the multifamily space is their closing ratio. So, what is a good closing ratio for a leasing agent who is just starting out?
Here we’ll look at what a closing ratio is, how to track it, and, most importantly, a few tips and tricks on how to improve it.
Closing Ratio?
To put it simply, a closing ratio is the number of deals closed compared to the number of total opportunities. For those in the multifamily industry, that’s often looked at as leads to leases. How many prospects are leasing consultants communicating with? How many tours are they giving? And how many of those prospects sign leases? Or, how many become lead to lease conversions?
When looking at a multifamily closing ratio, there are a lot of factors that can come into play. Closing ratios can vary from season to season and from property to property. The better that ratio, the better off the community is.
Now, let’s take a look at what success means for your leasing teams. What is a good closing ratio for a leasing agent who is just getting started? The answer is that it depends..on ALL those factors we discussed. But the bottom line is that there should be a fairly positive lease to lead ratio. If not, there may be an issue.
Now that we’ve had a refresher on what a closing ratio is and what is a good closing ratio for a leasing agents, let’s look at how to improve it. What are the key factors for improving a leasing agent’s closing ratio? Here are our top four ways to improve your leasing consultant’s leasing conversion ratios.
Effective Training
What sort of training has been provided? Making sure new leasing consultants have the level of training they need is the crucial foundation. They need to know the basics of the business. What’s on your leasing agent training checklist? Does it include factors that will lead to a good closing ratio? Think about what you wish you had known before you hit the phones or what you found most important for your success. Look up leasing consultant training resources – many are free! Add it in to your training and make sure your newer team members are set up right.
Tools and Checklists
While training is critical, it’s also easy for newer leasing agents to get caught up in the moment and occasionally forget what they were taught. That’s where giving them the proper leasing tools and leasing checklists can help them be successful over the long run. Even a simple leasing consultant daily checklist can help them to get through their first few days more efficiently by knowing what to focus on and check off. When the hectic life of a leasing agent becomes a little too much, having the right tools and systems in place will make sure that any leasing agent can still be efficient and successful in their role. It can be as simple as a leasing agent phone script to help close a prospective new resident over the phone or a video leasing platform, like Realync, to be able to show their community more efficiently. Keeping newer agents on track in their closings will mean keeping their closing ratio right where it should be. And that’s good news for them, for you, and the community’s bottom line.
Letting Them Loose
Even the best trainer or best checklist can’t teach some (many) of the most critical leasing consultant skills. These skills are only learned on the job and in the moment. That’s where this factor comes into play. Sometimes, you have to let your new agents out into the wild. There’s no better way for them to learn to think on their feet and adapt quickly than on the job. Knowing how to handle objections, answer questions, and read a prospect to know what will get them excited about the community are all critical skills often learned from simply doing. So, follow up all of that training and all of those tools with some real life experience. Eventually, you’ll be setting them up so that they won’t even be asking what is a good closing ratio for a leasing agent. They’ll just be getting a good one.
Ongoing Coaching and Mentoring
Allowing your team insight into your own experiences and successes is one of the most important things you can do to improve their closing ratio. Continue to work on coaching your leasing team to better success based on their performance. Observe from beginning to end how they interact with a prospective resident. What information are they providing and how? Are they anticipating needs or questions? Are they providing the answers in a timely manner that works best for the individual? Even those leasing consultants with great closing ratios could benefit from a little mentoring every now and then.
No matter what the current state of a leasing agent’s closing ratio, with some of these tips, and some hard work, anyone can become a leasing pro. What is a good closing ratio for a leasing agent and how good can it be? It’s what is needed to get the job done and operate a your multifamily community as profitably and efficiently as possible.
Until next time…keep it real!
