April 29, 2021

Sit Back & Relax While We Innovate

Let’s face it, many apartment communities nowadays are updated and have beautiful amenities. When walking around a property, you may see lush greens and sparkling pools. Those features are undoubtedly pleasing to the eye, but what’s really driving the current multifamily industry – and potentially even your apartment tour through the community – are innovative technologies and ideas.  

Lately, the multifamily industry has been faced with a challenge: how to enable potential and current renters with ways to complete their apartment search on their own terms. That’s where technology, as you may know, has become the most popular kid in school. Not to mention, where Venterra’s Core Value of the Never-Ending Pursuit of Excellence truly shines. We take pride in what we do and our pursuit of a “better way” is never-ending – especially when it comes to innovation and new ideas that will help create positive experiences for current and potential residents.  

Below are a few innovations we launched to meet the needs of renters when they needed us the most. 

Self-Guided Tours 

Moving is stressful. That’s when we asked ourselves, what can make this experience better? Renters were are now looking for options that allowed them to shop for their next home on their own, while maintaining their own standard of comfort. To help create a positive apartment touring experience, Venterra was one of the first property management companies to launch self-guided apartment tours. Through a partnership with SmartRent, a provider of smart home automation products, Venterra integrates its tour process with SmartRent’s platform, which allows prospective renters to tour a community on their own terms, without contacting the office, using only their smartphone. SmartRent’s Self-Guided Tour options help to offer convenient alternatives for renters with busy lifestyles who want to see a space before they rent.  

“Self-Guided apartment tours are a necessity in this environment,” said Stephanie Gonzalez, Vice President of Property and Customer Innovation at Venterra Realty. “The space and opportunity for a future resident to be able to arrive at a community, scan a QR code, select the apartment type they want to tour, and take the tour independent of the office staff sets everyone up for success. We are meeting the needs and wants of our customers and creating the personalized experience Venterra is known for.”    

Engrain SightMap 

Imagine going on your first self-guided tour and not knowing the property – trying to find the elevators, the pool and even the unit could be frustrating. To enhance the prospect experience for renters, Venterra partnered with Engrain to implement their tool, SightMap. SightMap’s interactive map shows exactly where available apartments are located within the property relative to amenities, parking, and wayfinding. Now, residents can get a better idea of where the specific units they are interested in lie on the property through our Community Stage Touch Screen. 

Looking for a new apartment and using these technologies first hand? View our properties list, find a complex near you and schedule a self-guided apartment tour through your favorite unit! 

SMARTLEASING 

Once you have found the perfect apartment through a self-guided tour, next comes the leasing process. Lucky for you, this once dreaded item has been innovated for a seamless quick and easy process. Through Venterra’s SMARTLEASING innovation, it only takes 5 minutes for you to fill out the paperwork, and you’ll pay nothing until you are approved and decide to reserve an apartment. Yet another way to save time and headaches throughout your day spent on the hunt for that perfect place. 

Future Innovations:  

Venterra is always looking for ways to innovate and improve the rental process and living experience. A few innovations taking place in the near future include:  

• A fully integrated resident app, allowing residents to be untethered from their computer and stay in contact with their community
• Visual representations of what garage, storage units and parking spaces are available when leasing
• Interactive 3D site maps to property websites.

Venterra is leading the way in multi-family innovation – and not only at the property level, but throughout the company as a whole. In fact, Venterra employees helped rank Venterra’s innovation in the top 6% of the thousands of companies that participate in the  Great Place to Work Institute’s annual anonymous employee survey sponsored by FORTUNE magazine. In the survey, an Innovation Velocity Ratio (IVR) is calculated based on employee responses, with companies receiving an IVR ratio of 11:2 or higher defined as being in an “Accelerated” state. Venterra  Realty received an IVR of 15:2, meaning for every 15 Venterra employees willing and able to innovate, there are only two who are not. This unusually high ratio highlights Venterra’s ability to quickly harness, mobilize and respond to new information and ideas.   

New ideas don’t have to come from Venterra employees either – we love hearing from our current and future residents on how we can improve! Do you have a suggestion? Tell us! If we implement your idea, we’ll send you $100!