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With rent prices shifting and competition heating up, attracting and retaining tenants is more challenging than ever. Traditional tactics—like discounts or giveaways—can be expensive, hard to manage, and often fall flat.
That’s where smart incentives come in.
Incentives are a proven way to drive engagement, influence behavior, and build long-term loyalty—whether you're filling vacancies, encouraging renewals, or promoting on-time payments.
When done right, they don’t just improve your bottom line—they elevate the tenant’s experience.
In this post, we’ll cover:
Property management incentives are strategic rewards offered to tenants or prospects to drive key behaviors—like signing a lease, renewing early, or referring a friend. These incentives can take many forms, from gift cards and rent credits to exclusive perks and upgrades.
Smart incentives help property teams:
Unlike generic discounts or giveaways, incentives are flexible, trackable, and cost-controlled—designed to deliver real ROI.
Offering the right incentives taps into powerful behavioral drivers. According to recent data by Tango and Blackhawk Network, companies that incorporate incentives into their promotional strategies experience a 16% higher return on marketing investment (ROI) compared to those relying on traditional discounts or swag.
This increase in ROI spans across multiple critical stages of the customer journey, including:
Research indicates that companies employing customer rewards and incentives experience a 15% greater annual improvement in average profit per customer. Ultimately, prioritizing customer satisfaction and engagement through strategic reward programs directly correlates with enhanced profitability and sustained business growth.
Whether you’re managing multifamily properties, student housing, or single-family rentals, here are some incentive ideas that work well:
A gift card is a high-impact, low-hassle reward for new tenants who sign or existing tenants who renew early. With options like Reward Link®, recipients can choose from 100+ brands so there’s something for everyone.
Encourage tenants to refer friends or family by offering a referral incentive—such as a $100 gift card if their referral signs a lease. It’s a cost-effective way to boost occupancy and reward loyalty.
Reward tenants who pay rent on time for several months in a row. Even a small incentive, like a $10 digital reward, can promote consistent payment behavior and reduce late payments.
After completing a service request, send residents a short survey and offer an incentive for their feedback. This improves satisfaction and strengthens your maintenance process.
Provide new tenants with a digital or physical gift card for cleaning supplies, takeout, or home essentials. It adds a thoughtful touch to the move-in experience and sets the tone for a great relationship.
Host occasional virtual raffles or social contests where tenants can win gift cards for participating— these are great for community engagement and brand awareness.
Not all incentives are created equal. The best programs align with your goals, budget, and tenant preferences. Here’s how to build a smarter approach:
Are you trying to reduce vacancies? Boost on-time payments? Increase survey responses?
Each goal may call for a different reward type or delivery method.
Tailor rewards to your audience.
Effective doesn’t mean expensive. Even a $10 gift card can drive valuable engagement. Pairing incentives with high-value actions, like lease renewals, can help offset the cost
Use a platform that simplifies reward delivery. Tango’s integrations and API let you automate rewards at key moments—like renewals, survey completions, or CRM updates.
Track redemptions, engagement, and ROI with an easy-to-use portal. This allows you to see what's working and optimize as you go.
American Campus Communities (ACC), the nation’s largest developer, owner, and manager of high-quality student housing, partnered with Tango to modernize and streamline their incentive programs. Prior to the partnership, ACC faced significant operational inefficiencies—managing physical gift cards consumed 25–30 hours per week and cost over $65,000 annually in purchasing and shipping.
By integrating Tango’s Rewards as a Service (RaaS®) API, ACC transitioned to digital gift cards, dramatically reducing administrative overhead and expenses. This digital transformation not only improved internal efficiency but also enhanced the recipient experience by delivering instant, flexible rewards.
The Sr. Director of System Solutions at ACC praised the seamless implementation and the robust tracking and management capabilities enabled by Tango’s platform.
“Our operational time spent managing and fulfilling incentives has greatly improved. The former process took 25–30 hours per week. After partnering with Tango, we’ve reduced it to 2–3 hours,” he explains. “We’ve also saved the $65K we were spending annually on gift card purchasing and shipping fees.”
Tango makes it easy for property managers to send digital or physical rewards at scale, personalize the experience for every tenant, and measure results with confidence. With our platform, you can:
Whether you're managing five buildings or fifty, Tango gives you the flexibility you need to build tenant-focused programs that perform.
Don’t let your next leasing cycle or renewal season go by without a strategy that works. Start delivering better experiences and better ROI with digital incentives from Tango. Book a demo today.
Source: BHN EQ 2024 Next-Generation Promotions Research, Nov 2024, n=711, B2B Incentive Program Decision-Makers, 18+, US, Canada, UK, Australia
