Credit: Getty
Getty
Apparently, renters either hate their properties or love them.
According to new data from Rent.com, 72% of the site’s recent property reviews were either a 1 or 5, indicating renters had either a very positive experience or a very negative one at their most recent apartment.
Idaho and New York claim the most satisfied renters, averaging a 4.6 and 4.3 rating across all properties in the state, respectively. Delaware (4.1), Nebraska (3.9), and Indiana (3.8) boast the next highest ratings. The national average is just 3.2.
In some states though, high ratings were few and far between. In Washington, for example, the average rental property was just 2.1 across all rental properties. Oregon didn’t fare much better, with an average rating of 2.3 out of 5.
This map shows the states with the highest and lowest apartment ratings.
Courtesy of Rent.com
Rent.com researcher Ellen Sirull found that parking, staff and property management play the biggest role in a renter’s experience.
“The people working at the apartment complex are the biggest factor in determining whether an apartment reviewer has a positive or negative experience,” Sirull said. “Staff, manager, management and office are all terms that fall into this category and half of all reviews analyzed mention at least one of these topics.”
But the problems go much deeper than just an issue with management. According to data gathered by ManageGo, a property management software firm, renters are having trouble getting their security deposits back, having bed bug infestations treated and ensuring safety and health hazards are addressed like toxic mold, leaking gas and faulty alarm systems.
Neglected repairs are also one the top-cited complaints among renters, though according to ManageGo’s data, many landlords view these fixes as unnecessary. In fact, nearly 80% of landlords surveyed by ManageGo said their biggest complaint was “requests for work that the tenant can do themselves.”
Chaim Lowenstein, chief strategy and partnership officer at ManageGo, says it all comes down to a breakdown in communication.
“The data really shows a need for better and more clear communication between tenants and landlords,” Lowenstein said. “And the communication needs to go in both directions.”