As the economy starts to open back up and people begin to resume parts of their daily lives, apartment operators will look for ways to quickly recover from the impact of the global pandemic. They are vetting and implementing technology to create even more efficiencies in the leasing process, and working to eliminate as many touchpoints as possible to make remote leasing an efficient process.

Another impactful way for apartment operators to spur a quick economic recovery is to increase demand at their apartment communities. A simple supply-and-demand analysis will reveal that while apartment supply is still strong, the pandemic has created a hesitant attitude among prospects to move. Especially as most operators did not hand out renewal increases during the past few months, as residents were sheltering in place. Most residents looking for a new home during the traditionally busy leasing season of summer might actually be staying put for the next 12 months.

So how do apartment operators increase demand?

One of the more innovative answers might be unexpected but obvious: Pets. 

The pandemic also brought to light that many residents will want and need pets as part of an emotional support system. As such, shelters sat empty while people rushed to foster or adopt pets while sheltering in place. That could increase the rising number of 67% of U.S. Households that own pets, which has steadily increased from 56% in 1988 according to a 2019-2020 pet owners study by the American Pet Products Association. 

One of the ways an apartment operator can capture this new demand and position their apartment communities to be more appealing to a wider audience is by reducing pet-related restrictions, such as breed, weight and number of pets allowed per home. A community’s pet policy is already a deterministic factor for many renters, as research from the Pet-Inclusive Housing Initiative, a research and resource development initiative that promotes access to the joy of pets in every home, found that among pet owners, pet-friendliness of rental housing is the No. 2 consideration, trailing only budget. The data shows that reducing pet-related restrictions can further enable owner-operators to lease apartments more rapidly. Eighty-three percent of apartment operators say that pet-friendly vacancies can be filled faster and 21% of residents in pet-friendly homes stay longer versus non-pet-friendly units.

To make this happen, multifamily operators could work with insurance providers to responsibly reduce the amount of pet-related restrictions at each apartment community. Restrictions such as breed, size or weight and number of pets per home unintentionally limit the number of potential residents who can seek housing at certain apartment communities due to their pet situation. 

By lessening or eliminating restrictions around breed for a pet, operators open themselves up to a wider pool of renters who often have trouble finding housing because of the type of pet they own. Research from the Human Animal Bond Research Institute indicates that 72% of pet-owning residents say finding pet-friendly housing is difficult and that 24% of pet owners have listed their pet as being a reason to find a new home. 

Apartment owners and operators will work diligently to recover from the setback of the global pandemic. Those that reexamine their pet policies are bound to experience an uptick in traffic and leasing across the board.