“It's a way for you to help promote, make sure you get more traffic and more visibility, eyeballs on your listings on those sites, which will then, based on data that we've seen in our analysis, it will help to generate more traffic.” — Michael Mottola, VP, Technology & Data at Rentsync

Today, Rentsync is excited to announce a new feature that helps users promote their listings, make sure they get more visibility, and ultimately generate more traffic, resulting in up to 2.5x (sometimes up to 6x), the number of leads! In this episode, we are joined by Suhasini Gadam, Senior Product Manager, and Michael Mottola, VP of Technology and Data at Rentsync, to chat about Promoted Listings, the latest and greatest Rentsync platform update that's going to transform the way rental housing providers market their listings. Tuning in you’ll hear how Promoted Listings create a more streamlined, self-service process for users, in comparison to Featured Ads, and the many things that have happened behind the scenes to make this possible. You’ll discover how Promoted Listings can assist with leasing up faster, what some of the most popular use cases for this feature are, and how this affects the overall flow of transactions for Rentsync clients. To find out how you can get started in using promoted listings, some of the different payment tiers and package offerings available, and everything you need to know to make the most of this new feature, tune in today! Key points from this episode: • Insight into what’s happening behind the scenes at Rentsync as they launch a new feature • Rentsync’s new feature: Promoted Listings, and how the feature differs from Featured Ads • Why this process was manual before and not a streamlined self-serve feature until now • The difference between Promoted listings and Standard listings • How Promoted Listings tend to be used more in urban centres and why Michael foresees an uptick in the use of these in secondary markets in near future • What it means for Rentsync clients that Promoted Listings are now self-serve and how this affects the overall flow of transactions • Some of the most popular use cases for Promoted Listings • How Promoted Listings can assist with leasing up faster • How a client can transfer a campaign if they have filled their vacancies • Where Promoted Listings are available and what listing sites currently accommodate them • Reasons why a listing site may not allow you to promote your listings • The different payment tiers and package offerings for Promoted Listings • How users can get started in using Promoted Listings on the Rentsync platform • Other features that Rentsync users can look forward to in the next three to six months • How users can submit feedback on the new feature If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

"As you grow, it's very easy to get distracted by bright shiny lights. There are new opportunities everywhere. But … don't get distracted by them. Just focus on what you're doing, and execute, and then work on executional excellence." — Simon Baker

Today's guest has worked with online marketplaces across multiple countries, and even continents, advising on product development, and successful business models. Joining us for this informative episode on the future of online rental websites is none other than Simon Baker, who has over a 20-year career in online marketplaces, from being CEO of the REA Group to advising market leaders around the world, and investing in 30-plus marketplaces in 15 countries. The list truly goes on and on (and up). In this episode, Simon shares insights into what he has learned to be the most important focal point when it comes to driving and scaling a business, as well as what he looks for in leaders prior to investing. We find out what typically leads to failures in online marketplace and how to ensure the survival and profitability of rental listing websites in the long run! Tune in to discover the nuances and challenges of the online marketplace business, and hear some of Simon's real-life examples of how to overcome hurdles in the space. This is an episode you won't want to miss! 

Key points from this episode:

• How Simon Baker got involved in online marketplaces and why he's so passionate about it
• The scale of REA Group today
• The lessons Simon brought forward to drive and scale realestate.com.au back in 2000
• The importance of focus, persistence, communication, and trust
• The disadvantages of perfectionism
• An example of a challenging venture and what Simon did to succeed
• The characteristics Simon looks for in leaders prior to investing
• What a 'beer test' is and why Simon considers it to be a deciding factor
• What typically leads to failures in the online marketplace
• The importance and challenge of foresight
• How to future-proof rental listing sites and ensure profitability
• The role of the intermediary in the online rental space
• When to look at partnering and why to avoid building
• Some of the interesting, innovating players in the rental listing space across the globe
• The traits the successful players have in common
• Whether the opportunity exists for long-term listing sites to compete with short-term listing sites
• The nuances and the challenges of the rental listing site model
• How listing sites can become more efficient in terms of remote leases
• Building trust through building a brand
• Simon's podcast guest recommendations: Morada Uno, and Gabriel Braga of QuintoAndar
• What we can expect at the 2022 Global Online Marketplaces Summit!

If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

“That’s the reality of the renter search, they’re considering a wide variety of asset classes and locations. If you’re going to serve that renter then you need to have all the stuff. That’s what we’re aiming to be — is that completely comprehensive marketplace. That’s what we’re building. We want to have every available listing in America.” — Jonas Bordo, Co-founder & CEO of Dwellsy 

With the death of Craigslist over the past few years, the main and valuable lead sources have become elusive for the landlord in the rental industry. The driving goal of today’s guest is to work in partnership with the property managers and landlords to truly serve the renter. His company aims to have a completely comprehensive marketplace and provide pure organic search options to renters so that they can find exactly what they are looking for. On the show today, we welcome Jonas Bordo, the CEO and Co-founder of Dwellsy and former Group Vice President of Operational Services at Essex Property Trust, and Senior Vice President of Corporate Resources at Bentall Kennedy, now BentallGreenOak. Tuning in, listeners will hear more about the death of Craigslist, serving the renter, what sets Dwellsy apart in the online marketplace, and so much more! So don’t miss out on today’s episode! 

Key points from this episode:

• We hear how Jonas got into multifamily, what led him to this industry, and what makes him so passionate about it
• Jonas shares advice he would give his past self and to listeners in similar circumstances
• What motivated Jonas to create his own rental listing site; finding a new lead source
• Jonas explains why Craigslists lost its momentum in relation to multifamily: rental fraud
• Will Facebook follow the same fraud-filled reality as Craigslist?
• Serving the renter: why you need to have a completely comprehensive marketplace
• Jonas talks about what sets Dwellsy apart in the competitive online marketplace
• How they monetize Dwellsy
• He talks about what they are doing to improve landlord relationships with listing sites
• Some of the biggest hurdles and challenges Jonas has faced and overcome with Dwellsy
• We talk through some future projections for Dwellsy
• He shares what he would like to see more of in the multifamily marketing and leasing technology sphere
• How technology has impacted the renter

If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

“You can pick any asset class, and there’s so much change happening at PropTech. It’s the best time ever to be in the sector.” - Zain Jaffer, PropTech VC & Partner at Blue Field Capital

The world of technology is constantly evolving and has only been accelerated since the advent of the pandemic. Today, we are joined by Zain Jaffer to discuss the evolution of PropTech, the metaverse and modernizing multifamily. Not only has Zain founded a venture capital fund that invests in early-stage PropTech startups, but his last startup sold to Blackstone for $780 million. He is now a partner at Blue Field Capital, which has a $1 billion real estate portfolio, including multiple asset classes. In this episode, we find out what led Zain to real estate and what advice he has to impart to those stepping into the industry. He fills us in on what drew him to his personal investment niche, PropTech, and shares insight into a few of the compelling startups he has invested in thus far. Tune in to hear Zain’s predictions and speculations when it comes to property management, marketing technology and so much more!

Key points from this episode:

• Zain Jaffer’s extraordinary origin story and path to success
• Why he got involved in real estate and chose to join Blue Field Capital as a partner
• What led him to start a venture capital fund and focus on his niche, PropTech
• Zain shares an early mistake he learned from in the real estate space
• Why it’s important to pick a niche
• The types of projects Blue Field is currently involved in
• Why single-family rentals have taken off post-Covid
• How the PropTech industry has evolved in the past two years, in light of the pandemic
• Two compelling startups that Blue Field Capital has invested in
• What Zain considers to be the biggest gaps in the multifamily space and in technology
• What he predicts will be the most exciting and disruptive trend in the PropTech industry
• How marketing technology has evolved in property management and how it can improve

If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

“For us at Fitzrovia, the marketing piece is not a bolt-on component. It carries the same weight as the building’s architecture and interior design.” — Ryan Funt

It’s not often that one can boast having an apartment block that is 100% leased and 100% occupied, but through an incredible marketing campaign (which won them a large number of awards!), Ryan Funt and his team at Fitzrovia have achieved that at The Waverley. In today’s episode, Ryan joins Nicolina for a discussion around marketing strategy for purpose-built rentals, and how, when done right, can turn rental prospects into brand loyalists (another uncommon achievement in the real estate industry). Ryan explains why your marketing roadmap should be created before any physical work on the building has started, and he shares examples of what it means to build a coherent brand image throughout a development. Ryan also shares his thoughts on how developers should be thinking about amenities, shifts that he has seen in the Toronto market in terms of desired unit size, why speed of response from rental agents is so important, and more! Tune in today to hear it all. 

Key points from this episode:

• The Waverley lease up that Ryan and his team at Fitzrovia recently completed, and the awards they won as a result
• Why every lease up should have its own unique plan
• When marketing plans for a lease up should be developed, and the questions you should be asking to guide the direction of your plan
• Fitzrovia’s approach to integrating brand identity into buildings and their surrounding environment
• The wide range of amenities that can be provided to enhance your offer and increase resident retention
• A major shift that has taken place in the Toronto rental marketplace
• Expectations that renters have of rental agents
• Ryan shares his thoughts on the use of chatbots in the multifamily space
• Different types of marketing channels, and examples of how different circumstances should impact which ones are prioritized
• Seemingly small marketing tactics that can make a big difference to your brand

If you liked this episode, be sure to rate, review, and subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

I wish I could be a leasing consultant again, because I can think of four different channels I would have going at the same time, and I would be making four times the commission for every appointment slot available within a given day​​​​​​​. – Rebecca Shaffrey, SVP Corporate Services at Bell Partners

On this week’s episode of Sync or Swim, we share a highly valuable conversation from the most recent Retcon, a best-in-class real estate technology conference, hosted in Miami, Florida. In the recording you’ll hear from Max Steinman, Interim CEO for Rentsync, as he moderates the event’s marketing and leasing panel. He is joined by four trailblazing multifamily industry professionals:

• David Perez, COO of Carroll
• Rebecca Shaffrey, SVP Corporate Services at Bell Partners
• Michele Tate, National Director of Leasing at Toll Brothers
• Clint Lee, Co-founder and CEO of Convey by OneDay

The focus of the panel centers around how technology has become ingrained in the marketing and leasing process, and how it is fostering greater innovation, streamlined operations, and more competition within the industry.

• Getting to know the panel and their role in supporting multifamily organizations
• How digital marketing is improving the leasing process
• How chatbots are helping increase the speed to lease
• How video technology is personalizing the touring process
• How self-guided tours are streamlining multifamily operations
• What’s next for multifamily marketing and leasing technology

If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

"The way that we've structured the actual listing score is that a user is given a strong approximation of how complete their overall listings are, and hopefully receive a kick in the butt once they see that a particular property might be lacking." — David Aizikov

You could have the most amazing property in the world, but if your listing doesn't provide users with the information they need, you could have absolutely no success finding renters. The product team at Rentsync, including Michael Mottola and David Aizikov have developed Listing Score©, to help multifamily marketers and property managers optimize their listings and attract the right tenants. During today's conversation, David and Michael tell us how you can use Listing Score to measure the content quality and completeness of your rental listings. You'll learn about the key areas  properties should be talking about to improve their score, how to use this score as a performance metric in your own reporting, and how Listing Score aims to drive progress and innovation for multifamily marketing. Michael and David also share some advice with listeners that they offer their clients, talk us through Listing Score's role in the Rentsync Platform, and share some of the feedback they have received from those currently using the new feature. Join us today to hear all this and more! 

• Listing Score, a tool to help people measure the content quality and completeness of their rental listings
• Why they can't just mandate the inclusion of additional fields
• Key areas properties should be talking about to improve their listing score
• Why they recommend that you have at least 10 unit and property level amenities
• Why you should make sure that all your listings have the same number of completed fields
• Why you should always include the size of the property in your listing.
• How they came to realize that a really good number of images for your listing is eight
• Michael explains how Listing Score works in the Rentsync platform
• Assurance that Listing Score is not public, nor is it a reflection of the quality of your property
• How properties can use Listing Score as a KPI for their own reporting
• Their goal that Listing Score will help people to make better decisions
• Feedback from clients who have used the feature before
• David and Michael's plans for the future

If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

“We have our in-house construction company, our in house property management company, snow removal, grass cutting, you name it, it’s all under one roof, essentially giving that potential joint venture partner or client the ‘Costo effect.’” — Adrian Pannozzo

When Adrian Pannozzo had spent 15 years working on the police force, he decided to start investing in real estate. At first, this venture was intended to be his retirement plan, but it has turned into so much more than that! He bought his first property 11 years ago (a fully renovated triplex in Hamilton), and now his company, Executive Properties Capital, owns 70 homes and 350 units! The vision that Adrian for Executive Properties Capital was to create the real estate version of “The Costco Effect” and in today’s episode you’ll hear how he has brought that goal to life. We also discuss what Adrian’s journey in the real estate investment space has looked like to date, including the challenges that he has faced, and the exciting future that lies ahead. Adrian and his team have BRRRR down to a science, and anyone interested in the real estate industry will learn a huge amount from this conversation!

Key points from this episode:

• Adrian explains what drew him into the real estate investing space
• The number of homes and units that Adrian now owns through his company, Executive Properties Capital
• Two factors that were responsible for the drastic scaling-up of Executive Properties Capital in the past 5 years
• The first property Adrian bought, how much he bought it for, and how much it is now worth
• Why Adrian thinks there’s no better time than now to sell if that’s what you’re interested in doing
• How Executive Properties Capital provides value to its tenants
• Adrian explains the vision that forms the foundation of Executive Properties Capital
• The low level of tenant delinquency that Executive Properties Capital experienced during the height of the pandemic, and their approach to dealing with those tenants
• A rundown of the steps that make up the BRRRR process, and what the goal of the process is
• How Adrian eliminated the problem of bad contractors
• Adrian shares his thoughts on what he thinks is going to happen to the real estate market in the near future
• Some of the challenges that Executive Properties Capital has faced during the pandemic
• An exciting deal that Executive Properties Capital is going to be closing imminently
• The main place where Adrian and his time find good quality leads
• Executive Properties Capital’s target market
• How the role of leasing agents has changed over time
• The length of time it usually takes for Executive Properties Capital’s units to be bought

If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

“You've got to actually go in and see it, there's no deal that we would ever do without actually taking a look and seeing the property.” — Ben Zlotnick

Today on Sync or Swim, we interrupt Ben Zlotnick’s family vacation to talk to him about his prolific career as a serial entrepreneur. Ben is the co-founder of Alexandra Capital, founder of Eden App, and founder of BTB Investments. In our conversation, he fills us in on how he merged his service and technology knowledge, and experience to launch Eden App, and shares its use case opportunity in terms of real estate. The topic of real estate investment swings to the fore and we go on to discuss Ben’s modus operandi when it comes to choosing where to invest, and what property types to invest in! We find out which US cities and states Ben has identified as exponential growth markets and how to recognize an investment opportunity. Ben generously shares some of the exciting projects he’s working on and emphasizes the importance of finding a suitable broker to work with. Tune in to discover why you should never make a deal without viewing a property, and why you should always work with a local third-party manager! Key points from this episode:

• How Ben merged his service experience and his technology experience to launch Eden App
• Ben shares the use case opportunity for Eden App in terms of real estate.
• He summarizes what’s happening in PropTech and the current market.
• What property management software Ben finds useful.
• Ben explains his opportunistic approach to real estate, commercial and otherwise.
• How he is converting a hotel in Vegas into a multifamily property!
• The US states and cities Ben has identified as growth markets
• Why Ben will never make deals without seeing a property
• The growth opportunities in Canada versus the US.
• How to identify an investment opportunity
• Ben fills us in on some of the exciting projects he’s working on!
• Why it’s important to find a suitable broker to work with.
• How Ben approaches marketing and management to fill his properties with tenants
• Why he only works with local third-party managers

“If I were to build two identical buildings side by side within downtown Toronto, I would lose 17 percent of my gross floor space...or 17 additional percent, if I want to build a condo compared to if I want to build a fancy high-rise luxury apartment building.” – David Aizikov, Product Manager Data Services at Rentsync

As new legislation passed in favor of Inclusionary Zoning in Toronto, we called on David Aizikov, Product Manager Data Services at Rentsync and Max Steinman, Interim CEO at Rentsync to discuss the new policy that is taking effect in 2022. The policy indicates that all new purpose-built rental and condo developments within the city of Toronto, above 100 units, will have to include a percentage of their gross floor space for inclusionary zoned units, depending on where they are located in the city. The impact of this policy is tremendous. Everyone from developers to renters, to vendors and suppliers within the rental housing industry across the GTA have been left with a lot of unanswered questions and concerns. In this episode, we look at the policy from all angles, the good, the bad, and the unknown, and make recommendations for those looking towards the future of building in Toronto.

Key points from this episode:

• What this means for purpose-built rentals and condo developments moving forward
• How could the policy impact the type of product we see available on the market at those lower rates?
• How will properties ensure that renters are not taking advantage of the policy?
• What three distinct inclusionary zoning areas were identified and how they were determined
• How could this impact the cost of land in and outside of these areas 
• Why the policy makes purpose-built rentals more attractive versus condo developments 
• Recommendations to developers who have plans to build in the GTA in the foreseeable future
• The impact on marketing new developments located in inclusionary zoning areas

If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe or follow Sync or Swim wherever you get your podcasts, Apple, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Max Steinman on LinkedIn David Aizikov on LinkedIn Toronto Inclusionary Zoning Policy Rentsync