Leasing Training Academy Curriculum

DAY 1

Understanding your role (1/2 day)
  • Breakdown of what happens on a community.
  • How the roles connect.
  • Balance of sales and service.
  • Importance of Leasing—Only income driver.
Fair Housing Training (1/2 day)
  • Fair Housing Act of 1968, History and Amendments.
  • Terminology and Federal Fair Housing Law.
  • Employee Responsibility.
  • Penalties for Non-Compliance.
  • Video and Test.

DAY 2

Be My Guest (1/2 day)
  • Importance of a guest card
  • Painting picture of first interactions/first impressions.
  • Explaining the “why” behind each section of the guest card.
Phenomenal Phone Skills (1/2 day)
  • Phenomenal phone skills
  • Review basic criteria which leasing calls are graded upon.
  • Explain why all of the items are important.
  • Role play.
  • Setting the appointment.

Trust the “process” - Exploring the Leasing Process 


DAY 3

Successful Sales Strategies (1 day)
  • Real Sales Training
  • 4 steps to actual sales process.
  • Communication cues—using cues to identify personality types.
  • Adapting the sale.

DAY 4

Take the Tour (1 day)
  • Tour Training.
  • Preparing to tour.
  • Curb Appeal—mapping your path.
  • Product Knowledge (features and benefits).
  • Best Practices.
  • Closing in the home-asking for the application.

DAY 5

Bringing it all together (1 day)
  • Overcoming Objections (1/2).
  • Review most common objections.
  • Role play objections.
  • Revisiting the Leasing Process
  • Life cycle of a future resident.
  • Tying the guest card to the tour/personality.
  • Homework—schedule 4 appointments for Tuesday apartment shopping

Out to Market - Knowing your market and comps

DAY 6

Market Survey Monday
  • 5 P's Training (1/2 day).
  • Market Survey (1/2 day).
  • What is a market survey?
  • Importance of market survey.
  • Analyzing market data.

DAY 7

Tour Tuesday (1 day)
  • Attendees to shop competitors.

DAY 8

Shopping Bag (1 day)
  • Review of shopping experiences from Product to People.
  • Recapping experiences.
  • Evaluating Communities visited.
  • Evaluating Market—knowing your neighborhood.
  • How to determine comps.

Back to Basics - Basic skill refresher to prepare for role

DAY 9

Technology Basics (1/2 day)
  • Review of basic systems needed to perform role.
Basic Writing (1/2 day)
  • Importance of written communication as sales tool.
  • Review sentence structure, basic punctuation.
  • Email etiquette/best practices.
  • Using tools available to present well i.e., spellcheck, thesaurus.
  • Emails does/don’ts.

Trust the “process” Part 2 - After the tour

DAY 10

Managing a pipeline (1/2 day)
  • Review of Pipeline and Best Practices to effectively manage.
  • What is a pipeline?
  • Life cycle of a lead, conversion steps i.e., call to appt, appt to tour, tour to app.
  • How to use the tools available to “manage” your pipeline.
  • Importance of pipeline, how to strategically map it out.
The Art of Follow Up (1/2 day)
  • How to follow up for results
  • Types of follow up i.e., text, email, phone, e-blast, card, fax.
  • How to follow up effectively i.e., open ended questions, succinct, email etiquette.
  • How to schedule follow up to make it work for you/when to follow up.
  • Using tools to manage follow up.
  • Thinking out of the box.

DAY 11

Leasing Workflow (1/2 day)
  • Evaluation/Review of Leasing Workflow Process (will vary per system/company, but will touch on basics).
  • Taking an application.
  • Qualifying applicants.
  • Understanding income/income qualifications.
  • Understanding your role in process.
  • Screening processes.
  • Application status approval.
From Applicant to Resident (1/2 day)
  • Transitioning applicants to residents.
  • Getting to know community what is required prior to move in.
  • Keeping communication to ensure that move in happens.
  • Keeping approved applicant engaged prior to move in.
  • Importance of documentation/organization.
  • Understanding status of apartment home/make ready process.
  • Preparing for move in.
  • Knowing community’s practices to ensure move in experience is flawless.

Let’s get physical - Knowing the basics of the physical asset

DAY 12

Basic Apartment Components (1/2 day)
  • Review of basic components in most/all apartment homes.
  • Go through apartment and explain items in home that people are not always familiar with i.e., air gap function, GFI.
  • Review items that leasing professionals should be looking for prior to move in.
  • Common Apartment Myths—truths about apartment living.
Basic Community Components (1/2 day)
  • Review of basic components on most/all apartment communities.
  • Explain differences between styles of physical assets i.e., High Rise, Garden Style.
  • Review challenges and common tickets for both.
  • Explain different ways trash is handled on different types of communities i.e., chute vs. dumpster.
  • Difference of curb appeal on both style assets.
  • Understanding basic construction of each type i.e., stick, concrete/steel challenges/benefits of both.

Back to Market - Understanding your role in marketing your community

DAY 13

Marketing and Outreach (1 day)
  • Explain and explore marketing/outreach practices as it pertains to the Leasing Professional Role.
  • Difference between outreach and marketing.
  • Basics of outreach.
  • Basics of relationship marketing—how to use relationships to add value to your community.
  • Brand ambassador---how to expand your brand.

DAY 14

Online Reputation Management (1/2 day)
  • Explain Online Reputation Management and how it pertains to Leasing Professional Role.
  • Explain ORA scores and what factors into these scores.
  • How reviews affect future resident’s decisions.
  • Leasing Professionals impact on online reputation.
  • Review examples of reviews, etc. from places shopped previously.
Social Media Basics (1/2 day)
  • Explore the power of social media for your community as it pertains to Leasing Professional Role.
  • Basics of Facebook operation.
  • Basics of Instagram operation.
  • Using social media to drive traffic.
  • Using social media to build relationships.
  • Social Media best practices.

Data Driven - How Data Drives a community

DAY 15

Basic Reporting (1/2 day)—can be virtual
  • Review of basic reporting that is relevant to Leasing Professional Role. Report names may vary from system/company but essentially data is the same.
  • Unit Availability Details.
  • Property Performance.
  • Property Status.
  • Explain the importance of how data is used to evaluate LP performance.

Soft Skills for Success

DAY 16

Polish and Professionalism (1/2) day
  • Explain the importance of professionalism in the workplace.
  • Perception is reality.
  • What is professionalism? Explore definition.
  • Habits of Professionals.
  • Review unprofessional scenarios and determine what should have taken place.
  • Dress for success (on a budget when needed).
Speech Communication (1/2 day)
  • Basics of Public Speaking and communicating so that messages are understood.
  • Explain importance of presentation/public speaking.
  • Review elements of public speaking.
  • Review basic public speaking tips.
  • Body Language during presentations.
  • Elevator speeches to get comfortable.

DAY 17

How to land the job (1/2 day)
  • Review importance of first impressions and best practices when interviewing for a position.
  • Make yourself familiar with company and job description.
  • Explain behavioral based interview techniques and how to respond.
  • Importance of body language presentation during an interview.
  • How to ask the right questions.
  • Interview follow up.
Mock Interviews (1/2 day)
  • Hiring Managers to come in and offer additional tips as well as perform mock interviews with class.

DAY 18

Workstyle Personalities (1/2 day)
  • Identify and explain different workstyle personalities in order to prepare attendees for role.
  • Review 4 workstyle personalities and traits.
  • Figure out which workstyle personality attendee is (quiz).
  • How to adapt do different workstyle personalities.
How to work “team” (1/2 day)
  • Review tools and tips to assist attendees acclimate and/or succeed in a team environment.
  • No “I” in team, review/explore definition.
  • Generational differences.
  • Start with self.
  • Emotional intelligence.
  • Commission vs. Career.

DAY 19

Conflict Resolution (1/2 day)
  • Explore conflict in the workplace and offer tools on how to professionally handle conflict.
  • Definition of Conflict.
  • Different types of Conflict.
  • Diffusing resident concerns from your role.
  • Best practices when handling conflict in workplace.
  • Benefits of conflict.
Dealing with difficulty at work (1/2 day)
  • Work through of situations at work that may be hard to handle for various reasons.
  • Concerns with peers.
  • Concerns with manager.
  • Commissioned based roles.
  • Intrapersonal difficulties i.e., childcare affecting ability to work, etc.

DAY 20

Bringing it all together (1 day)
  • Reinforce the importance of soft skills to be a successful team member. Revisit any areas that need to be reinforced with class, offer real-life tips for success.
  • Habits of highly effective Leasing Professionals.
  • Language to learn.
  • Common mistakes of new leasing professionals.
  • Friends vs. Friendly.