Rebecca Nolan

Leasing Specialist, WPM Real Estate Management Group, 2 East Wells

NALP Market Survey Summary

Being an expert in your market is one of the most critical components of being a

strong and successful Leasing Specialist. This requires a thorough knowledge of your

community and the area which surrounds it, including your competition. An exceptional

Leasing Specialist can tell residents and prospective residents where to shop, dine,

workout and most importantly why their community is the most convenient and well

suited for the prospect’s lifestyle. While conducting the Market Survey portion of my

NALP designation I developed a better understanding of the importance of knowing the

strengths and weaknesses of your own community and your direct competitors. In doing

so a Leasing Specialist is then better equipped to highlight their community’s strongest

assets, overcome objections and convert prospects into your newest residents.

When selecting the right properties to ‘secret shop’ I made sure to choose properties

that prospective residents mentioned to me the most during their tours. This was the

best way for me to put myself in a prospect's shoes and allowed me to directly compare

the communities in the same way they would. Three commonly mentioned communities

in the area are The Zenith, located in Downtown Baltimore, Market Place at Fells Point,

located in the popular neighborhood of Fells Point, and The Eden, located in the

exclusive Harbor East neighborhood. The subject community for my market survey is

my own property, 2 East Wells, a luxury apartment community located in the Federal

Hill neighborhood of Baltimore City.

The first competitor I shopped was the Zenith. The appointment scheduling process

was easy; I called and left a voicemail which was returned within minutes. I spoke with

Janelle who answered all of my questions quickly and confidently before scheduling my

appointment for later that day. The location of the Zenith was relatively easy to find, but

with its downtown location, it could be more difficult for people who are not familiar with

the city. Their attached parking garage, which has designated parking for tours, was

extremely convenient, especially since finding street parking downtown would have

been a nightmare, and as a prospect, would deter me from even attempting a tour.

Getting from the garage to the lobby of the building however was somewhat annoying,

requiring you to take a very industrial looking elevator down a few floors and then

wandering around a bit until you find the front desk. To improve the transition from

garage to lobby I would suggest that the Leasing Specialist be waiting in the garage to

guide the prospect to the lobby before beginning their tour.

Once I made my way to the front desk I was offered coffee, water and tea while I

waited. The lobby was beautiful and had a regal, elegant, hotel type feel and smelled

amazing, like cinnamon apples. Janelle came out a few moments later and introduced

herself before she began asking some probing questions about my apartment needs

and made notes on an IPad. Our tour started with a model 1 bedroom apartment that

was well decorated to make it feel more homey with books and photos, and had even

been painted to show what a difference that can make. The model also overlooked

Camden Yards which I am sure attracts many prospects to the building and also allows

them to charge premiums on specific floor plans. I was not shown any other apartments

due to their limited availability at the time.

After seeing the model Janelle showed me around the rest of the building including

the amazing outdoor patio which also overlooked the entrance to Camden Yards. Their

fitness center was a generous size and had plenty of equipment. The resident lounge

was spacious as well and had a large TV, modern furnishings and free wifi. They also

had a business center on this floor where residents could use desktop computers,

printers and other office supplies. There was a considerable amount of residents in the

business center, which made sense since University of Maryland’s Medical campus is

less than a block away. While standing outside of the business center a resident

stopped to tell me how much he enjoys living at the Zenith, which would have been

reassuring had I truly been a prospect.

At the end of our tour Janelle created a sense of urgency by explaining their pricing

and that it changes daily. The Zenith uses LRO, therefore, the quote she provided me

with ($1645) for an upcoming 1 bedroom apartment would only be good for 48 hours. I

think that LRO would be a great closing technique since you can only guarantee pricing

for a short period of time, urging the prospect to make a faster decision. Before leaving

Janelle took me back down to the lobby where she asked if I would like to schedule a

follow up appointment so I could bring my ‘roommate’ back. I was not provided with any

marketing materials, such as brochures or floor plans but instead was sent a follow up

email with the quoted rent. Based on the overall look of the building and the apartment

homes, but most importantly Janelle’s professionalism, had I been a real prospect, I

would have come back for a retour of The Zenith and would have certainly considered it

as my new home.

The second competitor I shopped was the Marketplace at Fells Point. Christina, who

answered the phone when I called to schedule my appointment, was by far the best at

selling her property over the phone. She described the apartment features and the

amenities and also highlighted the community's proximity to great bars and restaurants.

She was pleasant and knowledgeable and offered me directions to the community after

scheduling my appointment. I asked her where I should park and she said there should

be ample street parking outside. Although there was ample street parking when I

arrived, I had to pay by the hour which I would not like if I was a prospect. If a

community has a parking garage, which the Marketplace does, I believe it should

always have at least 1 space reserved for prospects. Anything to make their visit more

convenient is only going to benefit them!

I also noticed a lack of signage when I pulled up out front of the Marketplace at Fells

Point. It was relatively easy for me to locate the building since I had been there before

and I am familiar with the area. A prospect, however, would have a very difficult time

located the Leasing Office since it really blends in with the other retail around it. A “Now

Leasing” flag hanging from a second floor window and some door signage was all they

had out. I would suggest that they get more signage up on the exterior of the building,

as well as some sidewalk signs with balloons to capture people's attention. I believe

increased signage would not only help prospects find the Leasing Office more easily but

would also increase the number of walk-ins.

Once I entered the building the Leasing Office was easy to locate and Christina

greeted me and offered me coffee, tea and water before she began to review what we

had discussed on the phone. The Leasing Office was well decorated and had a mix of a

modern design with some of the classic industrial aspects that are signature to

Baltimore. It too smelt great with an apple pie-ish scent that made you feel like you were

right at home. The one negative I encountered with my first impression of the

Marketplace at Fells Point was Christina’s attire. Although the office was beautiful and

smelled great and her personality was warm and inviting, the fact that she was wearing

leggings and a sweater made her come off less professional. Had she been wearing

something more business casual, like a blazer, she would have given off a more

polished look. Unfortunately, first impressions have a huge impact on a person's

perception of your community and professionalism of the staff.

We started off our tour with the community’s amenities. First we went to the

business center which was small but served its purpose with a few desktops and a

printer, and then we checked out the rather small and closed off resident lounge.

Christina said the Resident Lounge gets used frequently by, residents but judging by the

size of the room and the lack of furnishings it had, that is doubtful. The lounge had a

small seating area with 2 TVs and a pool table, but was tucked away and closed off to

the rest of the community. We then moved onto the courtyard which I loved! The

courtyard was large and had fireplaces and seating areas. The courtyard is also pet

friendly allowing residents to take their dogs out at all hours without leaving the building.

Safety in the city is always a big factor for prospective residents so a feature like a pet

friendly courtyard is a HUGE plus.

As the tour continued and we began to check out some of the available

apartments, I began to notice Christina’s inability to answer some of my questions.

When I asked her questions that were specific to the apartment homes like “what is an

average utility bill?” she did not seem very knowledgeable. She then explained that she

was new to the industry having just started a few weeks earlier and that anything she

couldn't answer she would inquire with her boss about and get back to me.

Unfortunately, if I were a prospect in need of making a quick decision, asking her boss

and getting back to me could lose me. As stated earlier, the key to being a successful

Leasing Specialist is being an expert!

One thing Christina did very well was building rapport. Throughout the tour she

kept the conversation flowing naturally and really tailored the tour to my wants, needs

and interests. She asked if I would be bringing any pets with me and when I said I had a

cat she asked her name and continued to mention her as we went through the

apartment homes asking “would Jingle Bell like this apartment?”. Building rapport is so

important since many prospects will be seeing multiple apartments in a day that may

look similar, it’s you as the Leasing Specialist that needs to stand out and make a

lasting impression.

When we returned to the office Christina put together a folder for me that had

updated pricing and availability. She explained the specials they were currently offering.

They were priced pretty competitively for the area with 1 bedrooms starting at $1675

plus they were offering $1000 if you applied within 24 hours of touring. In comparison to

the Zenith’s location, the area around the Marketplace at Fells Point was much more

walkable and offered a variety of dining and entertainment. However, based on

Christina’s lack of knowledge as well as the inaccessibility of the Marketplace at Fells

Point, I would not have considered this apartment as my future home.

I wrapped up my comp shops with The Eden which was my most frustrating tour

to schedule. The Eden has an answering service which screens your call before

forwarding you over to the Leasing Office. Therefore, I had to discuss my needs with

one person before having the exact same conversation with an onsite Leasing

Specialist. That was very annoying and time consuming. If an answering service is

completely necessary, I think it would behoove The Eden to then have the agent

forward the information to the onsite team to avoid having the prospect repeat

themselves.

When I finally got to speak with an onsite Leasing Specialist I scheduled my

appointment and they provided me with parking instructions to access their garage.

However when I arrived, it was not easy to locate their garage with absolutely no

signage, so I ended up taking a street spot and had to pay $1.50 per hour, which isn't

terrible but again, could be a deterrent for prospective residents. As I entered the

building the concierge pointed me in the right direction for the Leasing Office where I

waited for at least 5 minutes before Stephanie came to greet me. The worst part about

the wait was that I could see her in her office on the computer leading me to believe

whatever she was doing was more important that helping me find my new home. It is

critical that when a prospect enters the Leasing Office you make them feel like they are

your #1 priority.

When Stephanie finally came out to greet me she introduced herself and then

went in the back to make a copy of my ID before we started our tour. At no point before

the tour did Stephanie confirm anything we discussed on the phone or attempt to dive

deeper into what I was really looking for in my new apartment home. Instead we

immediately began our tour with our first stop, the Business Center. The Business

Center was large and had a few desktops, printers and lots of office supplies. The

Eden’s Business Center was the most impressive out of the 3 communities I toured and

is most likely a huge convenience for their residents.

We then toured the gym, which was large and had ample equipment but seemed

a little dated, and the top floor Resident Lounge which was very nice and had amazing

views of the Inner Harbor. Stephanie explained that the Resident Lounge could be

reserved for private events for $150 but otherwise was open for residents to enjoy 24

hours a day. She then took me to see the courtyard which also offered great views and

was well maintained with lush grass and picnic/grill areas. I was disappointed to hear

that the community had a rooftop pool that was closed for maintenance and I would not

be able to see it. An apartment community in the city that has a pool has a major

advantage over their competitors, so the inability to show that to prospects during tours

could be a deal breaker.

Stephanie then showed me 2 vacant apartment homes. The first was an exterior

1 bedroom with large windows that overlooked a main road. I immediately noticed some

construction outside and voiced some concerns about the amount of noise I could hear.

Stephanie overcame my objection by showing me a second apartment that faced the

courtyard which she said would be a more quiet location. This apartment was clean and

had a centrally located kitchen with a large island and open living space surrounding but

the finishings were dated. I asked her if the courtyard ever got loud when people were

out there partying, which led me to a demographic question about the current residents.

Stephanie refrained from mentioning anything about demographics and explained that it

was against Fair Housing Laws to discuss.

At no point in time during my tour did Stephanie create any sense of urgency.

The only thing she discussed money wise was all of the fees associated with the

building such as trash fees, amenity fees, parking fees, and lounge rental fees but

nothing about my preferred price range or the available apartments. As I was leaving

she handed me a brochure from behind the concierge desk and said thanks for stopping

by, with no attempt to close or schedule a follow up. It was a shame because had I been

a real prospect I actually may have considered The Eden because of its great location

near bars and restaurants and the overall look of the building, but due to Stephanie’s

inability to connect with me I would not have decided to lease at The Eden.

After comparing the 3 communities I shopped to my subject community, 2 East

Wells, I now better understand our position in the Baltimore apartment market. I know

that if someone is comparing us to The Zenith, they will like our location better. We are

outside of the chaos and noisiness of Downtown Baltimore and in a more established

neighborhood that offers a community atmosphere and amazing bars and restaurant

within walking distance. However if they are price conscious, they will struggle with our

higher end rents with 1 bedrooms starting around $1900 in comparison to The Zenith

starting at $1645 (at the time). I know that if someone is comparing us to the

Marketplace at Fells Point they will love our plethora of communal spaces including 2

rooftop decks, 3 residents lounges and a beautifully landscaped courtyard but none of

our amenity spaces are pet friendly. Therefore, the Marketplace at Fells Point may

attract more dog owners for the mere fact that they won't need to leave the security of

the apartment building to walk their dog at 3AM. Finally, if someone is comparing 2 East

Wells to The Eden, the rooftop pool could win them over. Although we have a great

rooftop deck with amazing Downtown views, we don’t have a pool, which some people

consider a must have. With similar monthly rents, the pool may be just the thing to make

someone choose The Eden over 2 East Wells.

This is where I can apply techniques from my NALP coursework to sell the value

2 East Wells offers. Our community is more expensive than the Zenith but that is

because we are a BRAND NEW community in a much more ideal location. Our

amenities are not pet friendly like the Marketplace at Fells Point and we don’t have a

pool like The Eden but we are conveniently located 1 block away from beautiful

Riverside Park which has athletic fields, a large dog park and a community pool!

One immediate change I would like to make at 2 East Wells would be our

greeting process. Since we are a secured access building we normally have to buzz in

prospects. Instead of merely buzzing them in and them finding their way to the Leasing

Office via signage, I will now go to the door and greet them. I also plan to implement a

more thorough building walk process. The NALP course work put an emphasis on

making sure your property is being presented in the best way possible. Every day

presents you with the opportunity to bring in new residents and if your Resident Lounge

looks boring or your ‘Now Leasing’ sign fell down you can miss out on those

opportunities. Lastly, to assist with our leasing efforts I would suggest that we

implement a more frequent shop schedule. Conducting the NALP market survey

required me to pay close attention to all the little details when shopping my comps, not

just aesthetics. In doing so I now have a better understanding of my properties

strengths and weaknesses, which inevitably makes me a stronger and more

knowledgeable Leasing Specialist.