The Art of Curb AppealBY BETSY ELAINE TYURIN

Business Development CoordinatorWorld Builders Inc.

Creativity and personality are two important marketing features of any apartment community that can make or break the sale or retention of your tenant clientele. I know that my mother always told me that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but the truth is, when it comes to where we want to call home, we all do. As human beings, when we sign a contract to designate an apartment community to be our home, we want that home to reflect something about us - our personality, our sense of aesthetics, our perception of comfort and safety. As the world conforms to changes in technology and the way that information is delivered to us, our attention span is increasingly diminished. A first impression may be the only chance you have to make a prospective tenant interested in what you have to offer, so if your complex does not look good on the outside, it no longer matters if you have brand new energy efficient appliances because if there’s dog poo in the grass out in front of your property, your prospective tenant will never take the time look that far. So how do you get the attention of your future audience? The art is in the details. Based on your property’s location and current resident demographic, different aesthetic tastes will be apparent, but there are some basic design principles that you can use as a guide no matter what audience you are trying to reach. The properties shown here each cater to a very different target market.

Santorini Apartments in Ft. Myers, Florida. CityScape Apartments in Dallas, Texas.

Point at Deerfield Apartments in Plano, Texas.

Keep it Clean. The visual appearance of straight lines sends the message to the eye that a structure is stable and well kept. Making repairs to rooflines and foundation to ensure that your buildings and structures are predominantly showing a 90 degree angle where they intersect with the ground can tap into the subconscious perception of stability and ca-pability of withstanding the impact of future damage that may be caused by weather, earthquakes, erosion and other variables beyond your control.

Make Sense. People derive comfort from routines and patterns in their lives that they may not even be aware of. If your color scheme does not flow to an easily recognizeable pattern such as: all doors are this color; all trim is that col-or; all windows are this size, etc.; then it can come across as chaotic, even if the individual paint colors are flawlessly applied and look great on each individual surface. When repainting, staining, and landscaping your property, every color and detail should be chosen with a reason that compliments the big picture of the property as a whole. Because determining a reason certain aesthetic details go together is not always easy, many properties stick with basic safe color palates that are neutral. I’ve even witnessed some instances that tenants have com-plained when seeing new colors painted on their

properties that were unexpected. A good color choice is one that evokes emotion, but is not jarring to the culture you’ve already created. Maintaining landscaping is also critical. Choose plants that thrive through all seasons, or be prepared to have a landscaper swap them out seasonally. Overgrown or apparently dead hedges, trees and flowers can make your property look run down, so maintaining these nice-ties is a must!

Amen to Amenities! In an economic slump, maintaining amenities can be a property manager’s worst nightmare. The cozy hammocks that gave your complex the feel of an urban retreat can look inviting to homeless drifters. The TVs attached to your expensive fitness center machines can become attractive play toys for your residents’ children who’ve lost their cable TV luxury. Your residents might experience other residents sneaking laundry into the top loading machines they just paid for - yes, it has happend to me. This kind of abuse can cause these once nice ammenities to become unsafe, frustrating, and even scary. Keeping these areas well lit, maintained, secured and regu-larly monitored can help keep them an asset rather than a liability.☐Disclaimer: Not all properties shown here were renovated by World Builders Inc. They are only aesthetic examples.