By Mike McCamish, Director, Greentree Property Management
Innovation in apartment ownership and management is not just software or gadgets. It’s about changing how we think about the amenities and services that fulfill the needs of residents and our investment in the properties. Car sharing is one of those innovations, and the apartment industry is seeing significant advantages in its adoption, driven by resident demand and demographic trends.
Apartment owners and operators across the country, primarily in urban areas, are making car-sharing services such as Zipcar and CityCarShare available on-site for residents and in some cases, also to the public. A variation on basic car sharing, these car-sharing services first became active in “green”-minded communities such as Portland, Oregon; Austin, Texas; Vancouver, Canada; and San Francisco. Car sharing is a sought-after amenity for renters who do not want the added expense of owning a car but still need a car from time to time. It reduces the number of cars on the road and the auto-emission impact on the environment.
Property owners implementing car sharing
In San Francisco, Veritas Investments and its affiliates RentSFNow and Greentree Management, which together control one of the largest apartment portfolios in the City’s urban core, have seen such strong reception to a Zipcar pilot efforts two years ago that they expanded the pool to several communities. Now Zipcar’s largest host in San Francisco, the firm has more than 30 Zipcars in properties that can accommodate the parking, security and access requirements, with more underway. Equity Residential in 2011 launched a program to put Zipcars in 30 U.S. properties, and its website now reports Zipcars in over 100 locations across the country, stating the service offers “outstanding” value to residents.
“Zipcars are a tremendous additional amenity that our residents love because of its convenience, its reduction of carbon emissions into the environment, and its lower cost versus owning a car,” says Yat-Pang Au, CEO of Veritas. “It’s good for property owners, too, because serving more residents with fewer cars reduces the pressure for parking spaces, and adds to the desirability of our apartments. Car sharing fits well with Veritas’ culture of enhancing the cities and neighborhoods in which we operate, too.”
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