QUICK SUMMARY // When renters visit an apartment community’s website, they’re already interested. But if it’s missing key details—like floorplan pricing and availability—or creates a frustrating user experience, they’ll leave to find what they need elsewhere. This guide shows how high-converting apartment websites meet today’s renter expectations and help them confidently schedule a tour or apply online.
Table of Contents
Introduction: The Problem with Today's Apartment Websites
What Modern Renters Expect From Apartment Websites
- Prioritize Content Addressing Their Basic Needs
- Show Live Pricing and Availability
- Make the Leasing Process Easy
- Have a Fast, Mobile-Friendly User Experience
- Be Discoverable in Google and AI-Powered Searches
Conclusion: From Blueprint to Better Occupancy
Introduction:
The Problem with Today's Apartment Websites
Lucy opens her ChatGPT app and types in this prompt:
"I'm moving to Kansas City, Missouri next month for work. I really like the Plaza area.
Are there any studio apartments near there that allow labradoodles?"
The AI responds with a customized list of five apartments matching her query, including a breakdown of their proximity to the Plaza, pet policies, breed restrictions, and more details—citing the communities' websites as sources.
She taps the link to the website of the first community on the list.
The site loads with nothing but a dull gray window and main navigation showing.
After five long seconds, a video finally fills the screen and plays automatically.
Lucy pays close attention, trying to get a feel for the property and its lifestyle.
Then—out of nowhere—a pop-up takes over her iPhone with the words “NOW LEASING!” and a prompt to apply online now.
After struggling to 'X' out of the pop-up window, Lucy—now clearly annoyed—navigates to the floorplan page for the studio.
There are a few photos but they take forever to load. Swiping through them causes the images to freeze. Each time she taps the screen to scroll down, an animation slowly swipes-in content from outside the window to the center.
She goes to check price and availability, but all it says is: Call for details.
By this point, she’s done.
And it has nothing to do with the property itself, the living experience, or the staff.
She left because the apartment website experience failed to provide her with the information she needed to take the next step.
When that happens, everything suffers.
- Fewer conversions
- Lower search rankings
- Higher vacancy
- Lost revenue
- Wasted marketing spend
Lucy was clearly interested in the community, but now she's finding what she was looking for on a competing community's website instead.
What could've prevented this? A high-converting apartment website—one focused on meeting the needs of today's renters like Lucy, providing the details and guidance she's looking for to make the right choice. (While actually working on her phone!)
Follow along to get the blueprint for apartment websites that today's renters expect to convert to leads and leases.
What Modern Renters Expect From Apartment Websites
Today's renters visit apartment websites to learn about the community and get answers to their questions.
When the website is hard to use or lacks critical details, they'll get frustrated and leave—no matter how interested they were initially.
They're not on the website to skim or be wowed by flashy visuals and aesthetics. An attractive website matters, but more importantly, its design should make it easy for renters to find what they need to convert faster.
Renters expect apartment websites that:
- prioritize content addressing renters' basic needs
- show live pricing and availability
- make the leasing process easy
- have a fast, mobile-friendly user experience
- are discoverable in Google and AI-powered searches
Let's break it down.
Prioritize Content Addressing Renters' Basic Needs
From the homepage to floorplan pages, the content of high-converting apartment websites naturally aligns with how renters make leasing decisions.
Renters start with the "must-haves"—the things that must clearly, immediately be addressed on the website, or else the community falls out of contention.
(Even if the community really does match what they're looking for.)
Their evaluation process goes like this:
Is this in the right location?
According to Apartmentology's survey of 20,000 prospective renters in May 2025, 84% reported they knew which city, state, and neighborhood they were wanting to move to before beginning their search.
They're looking for:
- Is this community near work or school?
- Is the area safe?
- Will it be easy to access grocery stores, parks, restaurants, and other attractions?
🛠️ An apartment community's location should be easily confirmed on the homepage and across the rest of the website—from headlines, messaging, embedded Google Maps, and photos.
Does it have the floorplan I need—and is it available?
Renters also know how many bedrooms they'll need before beginning their search. Usually, the next place they click off from the homepage is a floorplans page.
There they'll want answers to three things:
- Does this community have the floorplan I'm looking for?
- Does the layout fit how I'm currently living now?
- What is the square footage?
Once they identify the community has the right floorplan they're looking for, the next questions they'll ask are:
- Is there an available unit?
- Can I move in when I want to?
- Are variable lease terms offered?
🛠️ High-converting apartment websites are built around floorplan-specific pages that contain live pricing, availability, and other critical details.
→ Learn how floorplan pages can become conversion engines for apartment websites.
Can I afford this?
Of course, price and affordability is a major qualifier every renter has. But if it's hard for renters to project their monthly budget, they'll leave the website.
They want to know:
- What is the rent price today?
- What are the utility fees and is it included in the rent price?
- Are there extra fees for parking, pet, rent, or amenities?
- Is there a deposit?
- What's the total monthly cost going to be?
🛠️ Displaying live, accurate unit pricing (with fee transparency) is a requirement for high-converting apartment websites. Any lack of pricing clarity from the website will force renters to seek what other properties are charging.
What does the inside of units look like?
81% renters want virtual touring options, and 41% say they'll rent sight unseen.
They'll judge the photos, videos, and 3D tours on the website and ask:
- Can I imagine myself living there?
- Does the property appear clean and well-kept?
- What does the lighting, finishes, and flooring look like?
Generic photo galleries featuring a random assortment of property images or overly-polished visuals don't help.
🛠️ Renters want to know exactly what the floorplan they're interested in really looks like. Apartment websites that make visual content that's directly tied to floorplans and easy to find helps renters convert.
What amenities are offered?
Amenities are a community's differentiators. They're often treated as lead and lease drivers. But, at least in terms of the psychological and physical needs of renters, they're only tiebreakers—not dealbreakers.
That said, when they're on an apartment's website, they want a comprehensive view of the community's amenities, like:
- In-unit appliances (kitchen suite, washer/dryer combo)
- Parking availability (spaces, garages, EV chargers)
- Pet-friendly features (dog park, waste stations, wash rooms)
- Pool
- Fitness center
- Package lockers
- Security features
- Outdoor spaces
- Wi-Fi (work from home, streaming)
🛠️ Listing all in-unit and community amenities, along with media, is how high-converting apartment websites help renters fall in love with a community that fits their essential needs.
Show Live Pricing and Availability
What was the final straw that led Lucy to move one? It was the three words that kill apartment website performance and leasing:
"Call for Details"
Nothing about 'calling for details' aligns with how today's renters really conduct their apartment search.
Renters visit apartment websites to quickly evaluate pricing and availability to decide whether to tour or apply—so it's essential that both of those details are accurate and displayed in real-time.
Showing live pricing and availability doesn't just improve a website's conversion performance—it makes a community appear more credible and renter-focused.
They shouldn’t have to stop and make a call just to get basic answers about price, fees, or move-in dates. All of that information can be directly on the website on floorplan-specific pages.
Today's renters value transparency, and addressing two significant hurdles gives them more confidence about applying, touring, and leasing.
🛠️ High-converting apartment websites integrate with the community's Property Management Software (PMS) to ensure that floorplan and unit-level prices and availability are accurately displayed in real-time.
Make the Leasing Process Easy
Friction in the leasing process can derail everything the website did to bring renters to this last point.
When they've decided a community is a good fit—and they're ready to convert—they're expecting:
- Easy tour scheduling (with confirmation)
- An application or contact form that takes seconds to complete
One of the things that really annoyed Lucy was when the apartment website had a pop-up calling for her to 'Apply Now'—even before she had a chance to see if there was an available floorplan.
When too much is asked too early, renters may abandon or delay in the final moments of their leasing journey.
Features that drive conversions (without being pushy) include:
- A 'Contact' page in the main navigation—a clear, natural destination for interested renters. There, they can fill out a form that sends their info to the leasing staff or schedule an in-person tour.
- A sticky "Schedule A Tour" button that follows users as they scroll. It should launch a calendar tool with live availability so renters can pick a time that works for them.
- A sticky "Apply Now" button that also follows users sitewide, such as floorplan pages or beside unit pricing and availability.
- Clickable address and phone number links that open Google Maps or initiate a call directly.
Once they convert, the next steps are just as crucial.
Renters want:
- Immediate response after submitting a form confirming details about their tour
- A supportive—not pushy, robotic, or cold—leasing experience
That's why website integration with a community's Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) is essential. Forms and scheduling tools on the website immediately connect to the leasing staff so renters get the proper follow-up they're expecting.
🛠️ High-converting apartment websites make it easy for interested renters to reach out—without leaving the site.
Have a Fast, Mobile-Friendly User Experience
75% of renters use their phones to search for apartments. So a fast, mobile-first design isn't just a suggestion, it's the expectation for today's apartment websites.
Like Lucy in the introduction, frustrated renters will leave websites when their mobile experience is slow or cluttered with pop-ups that take up the screen.
A minimalist, thumb-friendly interface—with white space, legible fonts, and clearly organized content—is easier for renters to scan and navigate. It also makes for a similar experience between desktop and mobile versions of the website.
🛠️ High-converting apartment websites are built with a strong technical SEO foundation that improves renters' browsing experiences (and positively impact search rankings).
Be Discoverable in Google and AI-Powered Searches
That Lucy's journey began with ChatGPT wasn't a coincidence. The AI search wave is here—and today's renters will use it to help them find their next apartment community.
That means now is the time to get ahead of it with apartment websites.
A strong technical and on-page SEO foundation is a strong start. Ensuring that the website is fast, indexable, and has a mobile-friendly user experience sends positive signals to Google and AI, who will better understand what the website and its pages are about and rank it higher in relevant searches.
The next step is prioritizing the content renters' care about—as we've outlined before.
Focus on:
Floorplan and unit-level information.
Think back to Lucy's AI prompt in the intro.
Highly-detailed floorplan and unit-level information on the website helps AI understand that an apartment community:
- is located in Kansas City, Missouri, near the Plaza District
- has available or soon-to-be-available studio units
- accepts dogs, including specific breed guidance on labradoodles
Prioritizing a community's location.
Websites that frequently call out a community's city, neighborhood, and proximity to places like schools, employers, and other nearby attractions, helps AI tie the apartments to specific locations—so renters like Lucy get better results to their AI prompts.
Consistent information across websites and other online channels.
Ask AI tools what sources they prioritize when helping renters find apartments, and the usual suspects appear—ILSs, community websites, Google Business Profile, review sites, social channels and community forums.
The community website is the source of truth—but its content, and the content that appears in those other sources AI prioritizes—must always remain accurate and up-to-date. Any mismatches guarantees AI will display wrong our delayed information to renters, damaging trust, reputation, and leasing.
🛠️ For apartment websites to stand out in AI-powered searches, they need to display content that reflects what renters actually search for in a scannable, comprehensive format.
→ Learn how apartment websites are optimized for Google AI, ChatGPT, and Generative Search.
Conclusion: From Blueprint to Better Occupancy
- Purposefully designed to guide renters early in their journey and help them quickly access the information they need
- Centered around floorplan-specific content—because that’s what prompts action
- Built on a strong SEO and technical foundation to maximize visibility in Google and AI tools—because that's where renters are searching
- Mobile-first, fast-loading, and focused on usability
- Integrates with the PMS so key information stays accurate
- Integrates with CRM so lead capture and post-conversion processes are seamless
When the website follows this blueprint, it impacts every part of an apartment community's operation. Renters can find it wherever they're searching, see floorplan details and more content addressing their essential needs, and find it easy to self-qualify and convert.
That means less wasted tours, strong occupancy, better marketing ROI, and higher revenue outcomes.
The blueprint for high-converting apartment websites? We built it.
Schedule a demo to see how RentVision’s Community Websites check all the boxes—helping you pre-qualify and convert leads faster.