Social activities are a great way to build rapport with your residents, encourage them to get to know their neighbors and become involved in your apartment community. If you’re looking for ways to make your property and residents more social, these are some ideas to get you started:

Summer Socials: Take advantage of nice weather and create outdoor activities for your residents. If your property has a pool, invite renters to attend a pool party and grill up hamburgers and hot dogs for the guests. Have an ice cream social one night, or hand out treats to residents as they pass by the leasing office as a nice surprise as they come home from a long day at the office.

Holiday Cheer: Spread cheer to your residents through holiday events. Hold a canned food drive at Thanksgiving or encourage residents to donate gifts through a charity like Toys for Tots. Have a potluck dinner where residents who may not be able to spend the holidays with family have a place to enjoy a meal and spend time with their neighbors.

Book Club: Book clubs are a great way to help renters meet and befriend their neighbors. Organize a book club for your residents that meets once a month. Surprise book club members with fun party favors inspired by the book as a great way to end the night.

Fitness Fun: Help your residents be more fit by providing free workout classes on property. Hire an instructor or put a call out to seek out fitness professionals already living in your community to lead the class. If you don’t have a fitness facility at your community, don’t worry. Host classes such as yoga, kickboxing or Zumba that can be done in a large open space that do not require expensive equipment or props.

Sports Night: Rent a projector and play big games like the Super Bowl, NFL, NBA and MLB playoffs, the NCAA basketball tournament or college football bowl games in a common area, or even outside during nice weather. Encourage residents to bring their favorite tailgate foods and provide chips, sodas and other snacks during the game.

Remember, residents are more likely to be social if they feel comfortable within your community. Make sure leasing agents are friendly and inviting and that you notify your renters of upcoming activities. Hang signs, drop flyers in their mailboxes and promote using word of mouth.

What are some other tips for throwing successful social events? For more information, visit apartments.com/blog.