Why Online Reviews Matter To Renters

According to research from the United States Bureau of Statistics, 93 percent of consumers read online reviews regularly, 85 percent trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation, and 40 percent form an opinion after reading one to three reviews. 

When I was apartment shopping, I read 5 to 10 reviews on every apartment I was considering. 

Whether it was good or bad. 

Respage wrote an article called Why apartment Google reviews matter more than others and stated, “Google considers apartment reviews when determining the ranking of local organic search results. This implies that communities with positive apartment ratings get a higher ranking than communities with negative reviews. Another element Google considers is the number of apartment reviews, and those with the most reviews are rewarded by having their apartment ranks boosted.” 

Reviews give you insight into the property that might be hidden behind all the photoshop pictures on the website. 

When I was searching for an apartment, I would be more focused on how a property manager would respond rather than the problem itself. 

It allowed me to see how property managers handle problematic situations. 

While I understand Google reviews sway someone’s decision, here’s why I give apartment complexes the benefit of the doubt sometimes when they have a negative review. 

I once ran into a situation where I fell in love with a property online. However, the Google reviews were disappointing to read. There were tons of reviews complaining about the property, but I couldn’t shake my love for how the property looked. 

A few days later, I decided to visit the property to see it firsthand. 

When I met with one of the leasing agents, she explained how they recently acquired the property and have been trying to make up for all the turmoil the last management caused in the three weeks they owned the property. 

The leasing agent walked me through all the changes that were going to be made and the problems they were currently working on. 

The moral of the story is if you are having doubts about a property, it’s best to go to the property yourself and get firsthand experiences. 

Another tip! You can always bring some Google concerns up to the leasing agent and inquire about the issues mentioned.

When it comes to reading online reviews, my suggestion would be to search for the apartment complex on multiple platforms aside from Google.

While Google reviews hold a lot of weight regarding how people make decisions, other platforms such as Facebook and Apartment.com can have more authentic reviews. 

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