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With more than 22 million Americans currently out of a job, industry veterans
are having flashbacks of the financial collapse of 2008. Born in the midst of
economic fallout, the single-family rental (SFR) industry founded a new investment
sector, which helped provide housing to those most affected by the mortgage crisis.
e SFR industry is all too familiar with adapting to the changing tides of the
economy—however this black swan event offers unique and unseen challenges.
Owner/Operators must modify their operations and offerings with emerging digital
tools to sustain stable portfolios.
TRAFFIC TO RENTAL LISTING SITES
HAS REBOUNDED
Concerned by the public health crisis,
searches for new rentals understandably
declined as fear of the pandemic spread across
the nation. Traffic for listings on Zillow
plummeted 19% on March 11, the same day
the World Health Organization declared the
novel coronavirus a pandemic. Google search
volumes for real estate were down between
10%-35%. As the dust settled, and leases
continued to near expiration, people began
looking for homes again. Rental web traffic on
Zillow is above the company's pre–COVID-19
expectations, rebounding in April. People are
looking for homes again, and without the
addition of digital tools, owner/operators will
not be able to complete the leasing process.
RECORD USE OF FACEBOOK
"In a time of disaster, people rely more
on social services … We are seeing surges in
traffic, especially in areas most affected," said
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Facebook, during a
recent conference call. While Facebook hasn't
released the exact traffic increase for the U.S.,
the company reported Italy's time spent on
Facebook soared to more than 70% since when
VITAL
DIGITAL
TOOLS FOR
SFR
The industry is familiar to adapting, but how will it change post-COVID-19?
Feature By: Lauren Maloney
