RENEWING VS. MOVING
Let’s Do the Math…The Savings of Renewing


By renewing your lease for another 12 months it will cost you no more than
about the cost of a dinner and movie date night once a month!

Moving to a new home will cost you much more!
Thinking about moving at the end of your lease term to save money? Other communities move in specials may look pretty temping, but we think you’ll be surprised exactly how much a “move in special” can cost you. Let’s look at the costs of moving…


• Moving Truck Rental $100 - $200
• Gas $50
• Moving/Packing Supplies $75 - $150
• Cleaning Supplies $10 - $50
• Food/Drinks for friends that help you move $25 - $100
• Eating out your first week until your new home is set up $75 - $150
• Buying new food & household supplies lost in the move $50 - $100
• Utility transfer fees $75 - $100
• New Security Deposits $300 - $500
• New Pet Deposits $150 - $400
• New Application Fees $25 - $50
• First Month’s Rent $600 - $800
• Stress of searching, packing & moving? Priceless!

When you add that all together, you could be looking at close to $1200 on the low end and $3000 or more on the high end to move from your current apartment. $3000 is pretty unlikely but $1000 – $2000 in expenses is quite reasonable. Even if rent is a little cheaper at the new place, compare that with what it’s going to cost you to move.

In most cases, staying at your current place makes more sense economically. Don’t forget about the inconvenience of an address change, the annoyance of trying to sort out what cable plugs into what appliance and where, packing & unpacking, and the search for that new place to live.


Don’t Delay, Renew Today!

As a thank you for renewing we will have your
carpet cleaned at no charge to you!

I'm with Nate on this issue.

If residents are leaving your community over a $5-$15 monthly increase, then surely there is some other issue or issues that are a factor in their decision. Our community raises rates by that much yearly. This year on top of that normal increase, we had a separate increase which raised 1 bed room apartments by an extra $25 and 2 bed rooms by an extra $45.

My position in our community and the image that I have tried to foster with our residents allows them to relate to me devoid of the direct anger and personal affront that they bring to management when discussing their feelings about many issues.

While I can assure you that the cost of moving elsewhere IS a determining factor in several more upset residents decision to stay, the audacity of hanging a flyer on their doors "reminding" them of those facts may well have driven some of them over the edge into leaving. It also bears mentioning that any visitors that our residents have who may be considering moving to our community or who happen to read one of these flyers may leave us with the opposite results that we are trying to attain.

Communication is key here and utilizing your full staff is critical. Many residents, justly or unjustly, see management and all the office staff as "living in an Ivory Tower", unable to relate to them and their issues. Who among us feels comfortable opening up our true, untainted feelings to the guy or girl that calls us on the 7th to remind us that our bills are overdue?

Maintenance staff and commonly employed outside contractors can uncover more about resident's true positions in a few minutes of casual banter than the office staff can ever know from upset or irate phone calls and office visits.

I love Nate's way of setting up a face to face meeting that apathetically seeks to give residents an open and somewhat private forum for their concerns. Nothing says "management cares" like giving a resident individual, undivided attention. This alone can help to dispel the "Ivory Tower" image.

For far more than just a rental increase situation we must focus on the issues of our our particular communities on an ongoing basis and do everything that time and budget will allow to address those issues in a preemptive fashion.

As far as the "cost of moving" flyer, I think perhaps that would be received best as part of your community newsletter. A bit less "in your face" but still delivered to every door.

FYI those wanting the cost to move flyer and door hanger. Brent is working on the fix to get these available. Apparently there is a problem with the file bank download.

I guess I would first look at the reason for moving. If they have another job in another state that is one thing. If they have a change in jobs and getting less pay, that is yet another, and I could go on. The ones I really look at are those which are moving and staying in the same town and there have not been changes which would cause them to move.

Then it comes down to the real reason for the move. It maybe the Customer Service they are not getting in maintenance and other areas. It may be they no longer feel safe and I could go on. Money may not be the issue.

I would want to know the reason for the move and when you have that, then you know how to approach retaining your tenant. Tenants move for a reason and money is not always the reason. Focusing always on the money may cause us to miss the real issue.

My deal was calling and either visiting the tenant or if they felt better being at the office and I openned up with, you are moving and I just wanted to know if there was someplace we let you down and did not meet your expectations and what can we do, to make it better? Sometimes one is surprised in a possitive way what comes out and what they learn.

Some may see this as being weak and I see it as careing about your residents and wanting to know how you may improve upon their experience or present and future tenants.

Found it. Just an example of one I have used. Will search for the others.

Here you go. This is the door hanger. I need to find the flyer on my other computer and will forward when I can find it.