Raleigh, N.C., Tops the List for Highest Renter Customer Satisfaction, Study Says
Raleigh, N.C., was recently ranked No.1 for online renter satisfaction according to a study released by J Turner Research, a Houston-based company that exclusively specializes in market research for the multifamily industry.
By Joshua Ayers, Senior Editor
Houston—Raleigh, N.C., was recently ranked No.1 for online renter satisfaction according to a study released by J Turner Research, a Houston-based company that exclusively specializes in market research for the multifamily industry.
The study, The Digital Mirror: Online Rankings and Reflection, tracked and analyzed 46,000 apartment properties across the country and, based on an aggregate scoring scale of 1 to 100, found that the national average score was 47. A total of 131 cities were ranked.
“Online reputation is fast altering the dynamics of every industry. The apartment industry is no different,” says J Turner Research President Joseph Batdorf. “The digital world offers an instant and influential platform for residents to make their voices heard. Residents across the nation have expressed their opinions to rate properties and J Turner has analyzed those ratings to determine the cities offering the highest customer satisfaction in the apartment industry.”
Raleigh, N.C., topped the list with a score of 54 and based on the scoring, there is a 68 percent chance that a property in Raleigh, N.C., is rated at or higher than the national average. Cincinnati ranked second with a score of 52. Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Modesto, Calif.; and Knoxville, Tenn., each received a score of 51. Aurora, Colo., ranked last on the list where the study found that there is only a 17 percent chance for a property to be rated at or above the national average.
J Turner Research created a statistical model to establish a single score that represents the aggregates of relevant sites in order to overcome challenges associated with multiple rating scales. That single score was used as a benchmark to compare the assortment of properties, management companies and cities. For a city to be eligible for the study, it had to have had at least 50 reviewed properties online.
“The Digital Mirror: Online Ratings and Reflections is the first of its kind study that provides the industry with information to assess the impact an evolution of online reputation,” Batdorf says.
