Deep Dive into the Renter’s Journey: Tour Booking

We learned from our Renter’s Preferences study that renters go on tours in the “Decision” stage of their apartment hunting search. But what is the renter’s tour experience actually like? When do they decide to book tours vs. walk in? And what causes them to skip tours?

Historical Insights

From our previous research, we learned that renters reach out to properties primarily to:

• Schedule a tour
• Ask about pricing and availability
• Ask about amenities and unit-specific information

Renters often reach out to properties to verify information, as they’ve experienced receiving inaccurate or a lack of information from an ILS. Rental rates and available move-in dates are the two pieces of information renters most commonly inquire about.

How Do Renters Contact Properties?

We learned that renters preferred to call when they were looking for immediate responses and the ability to ask multiple questions live. If renters were in less of a rush, they preferred the convenience of email.

Booking a Tour

Renters book a tour to finalize their decision by confirming the unit's price and availability, rent specials, the vibes of the community, and how accurate the property is in person compared to how it’s presented online. When renters discover a property they're interested in, they go on the property website or call directly to verify pricing and availability. If the pricing and availability work with their criteria, they ask to book a tour or ask about walking in.

Renters also book a tour to be efficient with their time, especially for those moving from a different city who have a limited timeline to tour and make their decision. They also found that coordinating multiple tours within their schedule was the most challenging piece of the tour journey.

Why Do Renters Walk-in for a Tour?

Renters plan tours around a cluster of compelling properties in their preferred neighborhood. Once they’re there, they will check out the neighborhood and casually walk into nearby properties that they were initially interested in. Renters will also tour properties they weren’t initially interested in or didn’t have on their list before because they’re in their preferred neighborhood.

One of our renters spoke to this:

“I had looked at [the apartment] before. I had seen it online. I think I assumed that I was able to walk-in, [especially] if I had time and was in the area.”

Another renter had a similar experience. She happened to be in the area, so she thought, “let’s just go by there!” Fortunately for her, the timing was right as she and her family were able to get a tour that day.

Why Do Renters Skip a Tour?

One renter voiced that she decided to skip the tour since she already felt “satisfied” with the other apartments she had seen earlier that day. This thought was echoed throughout the other participants’ experiences.

In addition to this, renters cancel or “ghost” scheduled tours for a few reasons:

• they already found a property they like
• they find it cumbersome to cancel
• they don’t want to interact with a leasing agent to cancel.

They also assume that they were just another prospect to the site team and that the leasing agent would have other work to do anyway if they’re not giving tours.

How Do Renters Decide if Their Apartment is “The One”?

Renters eliminate properties based on the impression of their tour, the unit, property, neighborhood vibes, and the perceived quality of the management (site team).

After the tour, renters review notes, photos, and videos recorded during the tour. They weigh the pros and cons of properties toured and check the pricing and availability, considering rent specials and move-in dates. For example, a renter may want their move to coincide with a new job's start date.

Research Findings

From our research we learned:

• Renters ultimately book tours to finalize their apartment decisions.

• They want to be efficient with their time, especially for distance movers with a limited timeline and renters coordinating multiple tours.

• Renters typically plan tours around a cluster of properties they’re interested in often in the same neighborhood.

• Renters casually walk into properties on and off their Short List¹ of properties if they’re nearby.

• When renters find a property they like, they may cancel or not attend other scheduled tours.

• Renters typically don’t follow up with properties asking to cancel since it requires the additional effort of talking to a leasing agent.

Apartment List’s Goals

After gathering this feedback along with conducting data analysis, Apartment List will be prioritizing the tour booking experience this year. We already have a few new features launching this month!

Instant Tour Booking on web using Knock Tours launched!

Instant Tour Booking for iOS will be rolling out later this month.

This year, we are working on integrating with more systems. Keep up to date with our Marketing emails to learn more! If you have any questions, please contact your CSM or us at support@apartmentlist.com.

Want to List With Us

Apartment List operates on a pay-per-lease model, so our incentives are aligned – we only get paid when we deliver a renter that actually moves in! We're constantly striving to improve our product and the renting experience. For example, we recently lauched an integration with Knock, so we can schedule tours directly to your community calendar.

Interested in Learning about Virtual Tours

Keep your eye on your inbox and stay tuned for our next Renter Journey piece on Virtual Tours. We'll cover the pros and cons of three different touring methods! You won't want to miss it.

Notes