Winning Tenant’s Loyalty in the Private Rented Sector
2019
Purpose:
The purpose of this research is to help landlords and property managers to understand what they can
do to increase tenants’ satisfaction and propensity to renew their lease, and their willingness to
recommend their landlord to other people.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper analyses almost 5000 interviews with Private Rented Sector (PRS) tenants in the UK,
conducted over a four-year period, to investigate determinants of resident satisfaction, loyalty (lease
renewal) and willingness to recommend their landlord. Statistical analysis is performed using
respondents’ ratings of satisfaction with many aspects of their occupancy as explanatory variables.
Comparisons are made between interviewees who renew their lease and those who do not renew.
Research Limitations
Limitations to this research include the fact that the residents have a single landlord and live on a single
estate, one with particular cultural significance, therefore potentially restricting the general applicability of
the findings. Although the sample size is large, the number of residents who have reached the end of their
lease is relatively small, because the estate has only been occupied by PRS tenants since 2014.
Findings:
The research finds that “ease of doing business” with their landlord is a strong predictor of residents’
satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy. Other key indicators for lease renewal include relationship
management, rent collection and residents’ perception of receiving value for money. Tenants’
willingness to recommend their landlord depends mainly on their relationship with their landlord, how
the landlord compares with tenants’ previous landlords, and the property management service they
receive.
Practical implications:
Over the past five years, the Private Rented Sector has become a significant asset class for institutional
investors in the UK. This research should help to improve the landlord – tenant relationship in the
Private Rented Sector, and to increase occupancy rates without compromising rents.
Originality/value:
The large sample size in this research, and the use of repeat interviews at various stages of a
resident’s occupancy, highlight early signs of discontent that a landlord can act upon to reduce the
risk of a tenant moving elsewhere.
Keywords:
- Correction
- Cite
- Save
- Machine Reading By IdeaReader
0
References
0
Citations
NaN
KQI