Residential real estate

Delivering expert insights on resident engagement strategies, resident perks, and the how-tos on how to help residents save.
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Guides for residential real estate leaders

Residential real estate refers to properties that are used for living purposes, as opposed to commercial or industrial real estate which is used for business and industrial activities. Our content includes how-tos, guides, industry trends, and news about resident perks, rewards, and engagement.

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Cutting operational costs with autopay incentives

Cutting operational costs with autopay incentives

Discover how residential real estate operators can reduce operational costs with autopay incentives. Learn how automated payments lower admin workload, cut processing expenses, and improve resident satisfaction—plus how Paylode helps property teams accelerate adoption effortlessly.
Financial Wellness Perks for Renters: A New Retention Strategy

Financial Wellness Perks for Renters: A New Retention Strategy

Financial stress shapes housing decisions more than most property managers realize. This post explores how financial wellness renter perks, from credit-building tools to savings-linked rewards, give property managers a genuine new lever for resident retention. It covers what these perks look like in practice, how they pair with automatic payments and paperless billing, how to measure their impact on renewals, and practical steps for launching a program across a residential real estate portfolio.
Utility Bill Perks: A New Lever for Resident Cost Savings

Utility Bill Perks: A New Lever for Resident Cost Savings

Utility bills are one of the biggest hidden costs of renting, and property managers who address them directly are finding a new way to stand out. This post explores how utility perks residents can redeem for electricity, water, and internet savings support retention and satisfaction without discounting rent. It covers how utility perks fit into a broader resident rewards strategy, how to measure their impact, and practical steps for getting a program off the ground.

Types of residential real estate categories include: 

  1. Single-family homes: Stand-alone houses meant for one family or group of people.
  2. Apartments: Housing units in a larger building, typically owned by a single entity and rented out to individuals or families.
  3. Condominiums: Similar to apartments, but the units are owned individually rather than rented from a single landlord.
  4. Townhouses: Multi-floor homes that share one or two walls with adjacent properties but have their own entrances.
  5. Duplexes, Triplexes, and Quadruplexes: Buildings divided into two, three, or four units, respectively, with each unit typically having its own entrance.
  6. Multifamily homes: Larger buildings that house multiple families, often more than four.
  7. Vacation homes: Properties used for leisure and vacation purposes.

The main focus in residential real estate is providing living spaces, whether through ownership or rental. It's a significant sector in the real estate market and has a direct impact on the economy and consumers due to its essential role in providing housing.

According to the National Association of Homebuilders using US Bureau of Economic Analysis data, RRE's combined contribution to the economy usually makes up 15-18% of US GDP annually, and occurs in two basic ways:

  • Residential investment (around 3-5% of GDP), means construction of new single-family and multifamily buildings, residential remodeling, manufactured home fabrication, and real estate brokers’ fees.
  • Consumption spending on housing services (around 12-13% of GDP), includes gross rents and utilities paid by renters, as well as owners’ imputed rents and utility payments.

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