I love the apartment syndication game. (I call it a game because I have so much fun day in and day out.) I love building relationships with brokers and investors. I love the chase of looking for good deals. I could go on and on. But one of my favorite things about what we do is getting to buy an asset—and then rebrand it.
Why Rebrand Apartments?
As value-addValue-add is a strategy where an investor or property owner seeks to increase the value of a property by making significant improvements or changes to it. The goal is to enhance the property's appeal, functionality, and income-generating potential, which can lead to higher rental income, increased property valuation, and improved overall performance. View Definition investors, we are buying existing apartments 20- and 30-years old and looking to improve them. For us, that usually starts with a complete rebranding of the community. For me personally, it leverages my experience in the advertising world and allows me to flex my creative muscles. In this article, we’ll highlight the top 4 reasons we like to rebrand our assets.
Create a Fresh Start with Apartment Rebranding
The best value-add opportunities are usually apartments that have issues. It could be poor management, lots of deferred maintenance or “d” all of the above. Issues lead to bad reviews and poor reputations–both online and in the local community. Rather than try and combat those and turn them around, by rebranding apartments we can walk away from any current baggage the existing name carries, and build a new reputation as we fix known issues and update the property. The old adage “out with the old and in with the new” applies here.
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Signal That New Ownership with New Apartment Branding
When we close on and take over a property, we are ready with a new name and brand identity on Day 1 of operations. As soon as our management team is on-site, we are operating under a new name. This comes with temporary signage, “Under new management” banners, an updated website, business cards—the works.
Tell A Story with your Brand
When people select and move into an apartment, they are picking a lifestyle. Based on the location, floor plans and amenities we offer, residents are opting-in to what we are selling. The brand plays a role in that, and the story we are creating with a new name and brand reinforces that story.
Appeal To Your Target Demographic
When you rebrand your property, it creates a blank slate and the chance to tell a story (as we’ve highlighted). With that blank slate you have the chance to appeal to a new target audience and invite them to your property.
We love the creative process that goes into rebranding an apartment. But we also know its an important piece of executing our business plan and creating returns for our investors. That’s the definition of a win-win, and we’re excited to start the branding process on our next project.
Andrew Campbell is a native Austinite and Managing Partner at Wildhorn. He is a real estate entrepreneur who first broke into the business in 2008 as a passive investor. In 2010 he transitioned into active investing and management of a personal portfolio that grew to 76 units across Austin and San Antonio. He earned his stripes building and managing his personal portfolio before founding Wildhorn Capital and focusing on larger multifamily buildings. At Wildhorn, he is focused on Acquisitions and maintaining Investor Relations, utilizing his marketing and communications background to build long-term relationships.
