Village Green's Matt Guenther and MHN's Denile Doyle discuss why renewals are won—or lost—long before the lease expires.
Village Green is a national operator with more than 50,000 units under management. Executive Vice President of Operations Matt Guenther began his career on-site as a property manager and has spent more than 20 years in the industry.
On this episode of Management Diaries, Guenther shares how renewals have evolved since he first started out in the industry and why retention is a year-round effort. He explains what sets the tone for whether someone stays or leaves and why the timing of your renewal outreach can make a big difference.
His guiding philosophy comes back to the fundamentals and focusing on the controllables. As he puts it, “You can’t always control what’s going on in the market, but you can make sure you’re giving the best customer service.”
Here are a few highlights from this episode:
- (2:15) How renewals evolved from simple flat increases to a much more nuanced process
- (4:03) What residents are really weighing when the renewal notice arrives
- (5:54) The move-in experience and the first service request are the two make-or-break moments
- (8:24) Why framing renewals as a “happy anniversary” changes the conversation
- (13:02) The danger of a resident who never tells you they’re unhappy
- (14:42) How conservative increases can boost the bottom line
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