Meeting Tech Demands for Single Family Renters

The single-family rental market is growing as constrained housing inventory and high interest rates push more consumers to rent.  Residents, landlords, and property management companies have unique safety, security, access control, and connectivity needs.

Key questions addressed in our new research study, Single-Family Renters: Connectivity & Smart Home

1. What housing market and lifestyle factors influence the decision to rent a single-family home instead of renting a multifamily unit or purchasing a single-family home or apartment/condo?
2. What is the future outlook for renting or purchasing a single-family home or apartment/condo?
3. What is the connectivity foundation in single-family rental homes, including broadband services to the home and use of Wi-Fi/networking equipment?
4. What smart living use cases are of highest appeal to single-family renters?
5. What is the adoption rate of security systems and smart home devices?
6. Who is the buyer of internet, security, and smart home solutions: the resident, landlord, or a property management company? Who pays ongoing service fees?
7. How do connectivity, security, and smart home offerings impact the rental decision and rents
8. What is the willingness to pay for smart living solutions?

With continued high home prices, the single-family renter market –and technology serving it – is poised for growth.

The US single-family renter market consists of 13.5M internet households, according to Parks Associates research.

With high home prices, limited housing stock, and evolving lifestyle preferences, many consumers are renting single-family homes rather than purchasing. This trend creates a unique and expanding market for internet service providers, residential security companies, and smart home solution providers. Single-family renters often seek similar conveniences and connected amenities found in multifamily apartment complexes, while property owners and managers need solutions to easily turn-over properties, keep energy costs low when vacant, and enable self-serve viewing for prospective tenants.

These needs drive demand for seamless internet, security, and smart solutions tailored to this unique housing segment.

• Leading SFR companies are deploying smart devices, including Progress Residential and Tricon Residential, to properties in their portfolios both as resident amenities and for operational improvements. Companies have introduced smart thermostats, smart door locks, and sensors to monitor appliances and systems for preventative maintenance.
• Self-guided tours are also making their way across the single-family rental market. Tricon Residential recently introduced a self-guided tour solution, developed in partnership with Effectual and Verifast, to allow prospective tenants easy access to their properties. The company has also introduced Alexa Smart Properties to manage the solution and answer prospective tenant questions during the tour.  Tricon expects this to cut the average vacancy period from 30-40 days to 10 days.

The market for proptech in single-family rentals market is at an early stage of its development. Leveraging the lessons learned from the retail market and from multifamily, device makers and service providers have an opportunity to capture share and growth.

This is an excerpt from Parks Associates new research. This study delves into the preferences and usage patterns of single-family renters regarding internet services, home networking, security systems, and smart home devices.  The study offers a nuanced understanding of the evolving demands within the rental market, providing property owners, management companies, service providers, and device makers with crucial data to tailor services and products that align with the desires of single-family renters in the rapidly advancing landscape of connected living.