Top Skills Apartment Properties Need Today, And How to Hire for Them
- bberrodin
- 20 hours ago
- 4 min read
The apartment and multifamily housing industry is undergoing rapid transformation. According to a recent report by the National Apartment Association (NAA), sponsored by MRI Software, many operators are wrestling with rising operating expenses, labor shortages, and mounting pressure to deliver high-quality resident services, all while modernizing and centralizing operations across portfolios.
As a result, the bar for staffing has risen. It’s no longer enough to fill traditional roles: properties now need people who combine technical fluency, customer service sensibility, and adaptability.
Here are the top skills apartment properties need today, and guidance on how to hire for them.
Key Skills for Modern Apartment Management
Tech Fluency & PropTech Savvy
With growing adoption of automation, self-guided leasing tools, AI-driven resident screening, and integrated property management software, tech skills are becoming essential. Personnel who can navigate platforms such as leasing portals, digital maintenance request systems, rent-collection portals, or AI-powered applicant screening bring immediate value.
Strong Maintenance Skills + Adaptability to “Smart Building” Systems
Maintenance remains one of the top cost and stress centers for operators. But with increasing integration of “smart apartment” technologies (smart locks, automated energy or HVAC systems, IoT devices, etc.), maintenance technicians must now be comfortable with both traditional mechanical/plumbing skills and modern tech-enabled building systems.
Leasing, Marketing & Customer Service
As leasing centralization grows, properties still rely on leasing consultants and resident-facing staff for tours, communications, resident services, retention, and marketing.
Skills in digital marketing, real estate marketing, social-media savvy, online listing optimization, photography for listings, and strong interpersonal communication, especially empathy and conflict resolution, help leasing and resident services teams stand out.
Resident-Experience Mindset
In a competitive rental market, resident retention is critical. Employees who are good at communication, conflict resolution, and delivering a high-touch resident experience (even in a semi-centralized, automated model) are in demand. A “people-first” approach matters far more than ever, especially given how automation can risk depersonalizing resident interactions.
Organizational, Multitasking & Project-Management Skills
Between maintenance, leasing, resident services, and administrative tasks, all increasingly managed via software, property teams must be organized, able to juggle multiple responsibilities, prioritize, and stay responsive.
Flexibility, Adaptability, and Willingness to Learn
Given how fast the industry is evolving, including new regulations, new technologies, and shifting resident expectations, operators are looking for staff who adapt and grow, not just co-exist.
Why These Skills Are Critical Now
The NAA/MRI report highlights labor shortages, especially for maintenance technicians and leasing consultants, the hardest roles to fill.
At the same time, centralization and adoption of PropTech are expanding, from centralized leasing offices to AI-powered leasing, resident screening, maintenance scheduling, and back-office automation.
Meanwhile, operating expenses, especially maintenance and repairs, are rising, making efficient maintenance and preventative upkeep more important than ever.
And resident expectations continue to evolve: renters value convenience, responsiveness, and digital access, but still expect a human touch when issues arise.
In short, the modern apartment property needs staff who can deliver both efficiency (via tech, organization, maintenance) and service excellence (via communication, empathy, resident focus).
How to Hire for These Skills — Best Practices
Write Job Descriptions That Reflect Real Demands
Many companies struggle to attract qualified leasing agents because their job postings are too generic or don’t explicitly call out needed skills. For example, many require communication and customer-service skills, but far fewer candidates list them.
Be specific: highlight the need for PropTech fluency, comfort using leasing/management software, handling smart-home or IoT maintenance, multitasking across resident services, and delivering high-touch customer care.
Prioritize Soft Skills + Tech Comfort Equally
Don’t assume someone comfortable with leases or maintenance automatically has the people skills or digital-savvy needed today. Screen for empathy, communication, problem-solving, and test their comfort with common software or tech tools.
Offer Training, Upskilling, and Career Paths
Given labor shortages and evolving systems, many top companies are investing in training programs, mentorship, and clear promotion paths, a move that helps attract and retain talent.
Offering certifications, internal training for tech and maintenance (especially smart-home systems), or cross-training between leasing and maintenance can make a job offer much more attractive.
Leverage Flexible Staffing and Centralized Support
With centralization becoming more common and some roles shifting to corporate or centralized offices, properties might benefit from remote or hybrid staffing for leasing or resident services. Also consider outsourcing or partnering for specialized maintenance or tech support to cover gaps you can’t fill locally.
Use Trusted Staffing Partners to Access Niche Talent Pools
Given how hard it is to find qualified leasing agents and maintenance technicians, working with a specialized staffing partner can save time, reduce turnover, and ensure quality hires.
BGSF specializes in staffing for industries with technical or niche labor needs, a good match for multifamily maintenance, smart-building tech, or specialized leasing roles.
Our recruiting process often goes beyond simple job-board matching. We screen for soft skills, cultural fit, and technical comfort. That helps ensure candidates aren’t just “warm bodies,” but people who can thrive in modern, hybrid, tech-enabled property environments.
By outsourcing or co-partnering, property operators free up internal HR / property-management teams to focus on strategy, resident experience, and portfolio-level decision-making, rather than day-to-day recruiting and turnover management.
Given the labor shortages documented in the NAA/MRI report, a staffing partner like BGSF can be an asset, especially when hiring for hard-to-fill maintenance or leasing-consultant roles.
Hiring for the Future
The apartment industry, already under pressure from rising costs, regulatory uncertainty, and shifting demand, is evolving rapidly. But for properties that invest in their people, the disruption is also an opportunity.
By focusing on tech fluency, resident-centric service, adaptive maintenance, and strong soft skills, operators can build teams capable of meeting tomorrow’s demands while delivering a superior resident experience. And by partnering with a staffing specialist like BGSF, they can navigate labor shortages more effectively and make quality hiring decisions without draining internal resources.
Now is the time to hire not just for “traditional apartment roles," but for the future of apartment living.
Ready to strengthen your onsite or centralized teams?
BGSF supports multifamily operators with skilled talent across leasing, maintenance, resident services, marketing, and specialized technical roles. From short-term support to long-term staffing strategies, our team helps you build a workforce equipped for today’s demands and tomorrow’s growth. Connect with BGSF to keep your communities running smoothly and your residents supported.