Apartment Investing: Why These Amenities...

If you're into apartment investing, then you're also familiar with the term "millennial" - or at least you should be...

The Gen Ys, as they're commonly called, were born between 1982-2004, and they are absolutely one of the largest demographics of renters today.

Hey Moguls, Chris Urso here today to talk about appealing to a younger audience as you invest in apartment complexes. Knowing how to appeal to millennials is going to be the key to getting and keeping those apartments occupied with new tenants.

Why Do I Want to Attract Millennials?

Here’s the deal with millennials – most don’t have the bank account to purchase homes just yet, so the next best option is apartment living. But not just any kind of apartment living. Younger (professional) audiences are no longer okay with living in beat-up bachelor pads and busted apartments (man, if some of those walls could talk!)…

Younger apartment seekers want to live large – but on a budget – and they desire that college feel, that sense of community and close proximity to friends. You want to target young adults just out of college or in grad school – those who probably still need a roommate to share rental costs.

Even though this generation has been hit by a slow job market, student loans and stricter credit requirements, they want to feel like they’re living beyond their means, even though they’re not.

And that’s where you come in.

Know Where to Spend Your Money

The key to investing in apartments is spending your money in the right places...

Investors often focus on the interior and neglect the oh-so important curb appeal. They forget to invest money into the grounds and the amenities that make apartment living feel like community living.

At the end of the day, you want to transform a basic apartment into an attractive, must-live-here oasis for these younger professionals.

The plans for one of my recent apartments included an outdoor kitchen, concrete staining, a pool and even an outdoor fire pit. From start to finish, the project took about 7 months – and it was worth every penny.

The grounds are now an inviting place for tenants to relax and chill with friends. And that’s what I mean by oasis. Create a space where they want to live… and play.

From C to B Class Investment

So we know why we want to clean up and upgrade these types of properties, and we know who we want to market to.

But what is this upgrade called and how much does it typically cost?

reno1 The apartment I renovated (that I mentioned above) was a transformation and renovation that I like to call the “C to B Class” upgrade. We needed to add and upgrade certain amenities to take that property to the next level, one that would appeal to a younger demo, as we talked about.

When the renovation was complete, I invested about $2 million – for both interior and exterior upgrades. Now, that may sound like an astronomical amount of money, but the return made it all worth it – and then some.

Reno2 We then quickly leased out 54 apartments and continued to lease more daily. And, we’d increased the average rent per unit by $275, and the space hadn’t even opened yet!

The Take Away

So the moral of the story is this – go in with enough capital to complete your plan quickly and efficiently, and whatever you do, don’t run out of money.

reno3 Keep the momentum going and be prepared – more than prepared – for the worst, because I can assure you there will be hiccups and unexpected costs along the way.

Have the bucks to back up the job, and always have the right people on the ground and on your team. Remember, you can’t do it alone. I leverage my relationships and other investors all the time to extract the maximum benefit from them – and so should you.

reno4 Understand that the scalability of this business allows for a full-time project manager to take your project to the next level (there’s the right person “on the ground” I mentioned). So rely on someone who can get the job done right.

I mean, just check out these after-reno pics!

With the right team and the right budget, you can create amazing apartment complexes that aren’t just homes to these tenants, but true communities where they enjoy living, relaxing, and socializing. So aim high, and use these pix as inspiration for your next apartment investment project!