Chase Harrington

The in-person tour has gone the way of the buggy whip. Today, prospective renters are more reliant on virtual tours and property photos to sign a lease than an in-person tour. Would-be renters prefer the comfort of apartment hunting from home and using technology. In fact, according to research from Entrata, 25% of renters surveyed signed a lease without seeing an apartment at all.

“Virtual tours and photos provide a way for would-be tenants to get a sense of what an apartment and community look like without having to leave their home or travel to the location,” Chase Harrington, president and COO at Entrata, tells GlobeSt.com. “This is ideal in today's fast-paced culture where apartment hunters don't have the time available to stop and see apartments they're interested in.”

Virtual tours are growing in popularity, but necessary information is often missing from apartment websites. The same Entrata survey shows only 9% of online listings have the rental price and floor plans are only available 14% of the time. These details are also important. “One of the biggest things landlords can do is to simply make those options available,” says Harrington. “In a recent study Entrata performed we found that leasing offices are not always available to provide the help they needed, and online options often didn't have the information apartment hunters needed. By simply providing these up-to-date options, I believe landlords will be able to sign tenants at a much higher rate.”