Today’s episode is part of the Canadian Apartment Investment Conference series, run by the Canadian Real Estate Forums. Austin Joynes, Vice President of Marketing and Training at Rhapsody, joins Aaron and Adam.

You may think that with such demand for apartments, marketing them would not be necessary. Austin informs us why this train of thought is so wrong and the importance of have a marketing plan before breaking ground. We also hear about the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on landlords and tenants of apartments.

Topics covered include:
• Falling into the apartment industry by accident.
• Why it is important to have a marketing strategy despite low vacancy rates.
• Deciding who you want to rent to before building.
• Getting involved with marketing early.
• Making sure that amenities packages are flexible over time.
• The concept of loyalty towards apartments.
• Looking at the USA for trends.
• Odd amenities enjoyed by various age groups.
• Preferred amenities in Vancouver versus Calgary.
• How the Alberta apartment market has been since the oil boom ended.
• How landlords are dealing with COVID-19 and shifting values of tenants.
• The type of apartment Austin would build if he was limited to one type.