Excellent list. Sounds like a wonderful discussion. Thank you for a well organized summary. Side income is a powerful thing. Thanks for the report.

Brent
Great post and a wonderful synopsis of the session! I believe that almost everything is covered in some capacity in your post, however I think it is important to let companies know that new niches of ancillary services and potential revenue streams continue to pop up in various regional markets (like pet walking/sitting or dry-clean drop off and pick up or even vending markets instead of vending machines).

Companies should task someone (or a team) to continually look out for new services, and service providers, as well as what trends are happening in our industry (like converting from coin/smart card laundry technology to credit/debit/pay with your phone laundry facilities ….which you can track how much time is left in a wash/dry cycle or what machines are available on an app).

Furthermore, implementing an effective strategy to manage ancillary services requires more than just a casual glance each year or two at the services; then “putting them back in a drawer” and forgetting about them until next year. Contracts need to be continually monitored and managed. Not only new services, but opportunities derived from the pending expiration of existing contracts. Those companies who wish to focus on their core competencies and still not miss out on all the opportunities available to them are turning to ancillary service experts that can help manage and guide their clients through this rapidly changing world. Regardless of whether you outsource or do it yourself, it is no longer an optional aspect of property management.

I was also in that session and agree that this is a great summary of the presentation. I would love to see how the Ancillary Income landscape is changing. What previous sources are fading away and how are companies keeping track of this? What strategies are companies using (and which ones are succeeding) when phasing fees in or out? Are pet fees starting to fade?

I also liked the comment by a presenter that one of the tool their company uses to measure the acceptance of a fee or new amenity is their online reviews. The feedback given in that space allows management to hear resident and prospect perspectives and to determine if changes need to be made in either presentation or in actual charges.

I wonder if companies are finding more success in the "all included" model or the itemized fee structure. One of our comps bundles everything together in one rate - all amenities and utilities. Our company breaks utilities out separately. As a consumer, I know I experience "Fee Fatigue" and generally dislike seeing additional fees on my purchases (airline and train tickets, vacation home rentals etc). However, I also like to know what I'm paying for and tend to value services higher if I can put a number on them. Great discussion, Thanks!

Great topic and great information. I love that the industry is looking at these other areas of growth, rather than just pushing rents higher. I'll be sharing this post on Linkedin for sure.