Younger Residents Want Better Access Control

It’s no secret that the prevailing forms of access control are obsolete by today's standards. Look no further than all the YouTube videos demonstrating how easy it is to break through locks, open deadbolts with rubber bands, or saw away at padlocks. With a little research, anyone could bypass older forms of access control with relative ease, and people are noticing. In 2020, an Allegion survey found that 26% of millennials living in Multifamily apartments feel secure where they live, with less than 10% of them possessing electric access control. This desire for safety is one of the reasons why many looking for apartments are taking access control into consideration, even willing to pay premium prices to ensure their homes are safe.

Before looking at the data, it’s important to stress how much the multifamily landscape is evolving. Gen Z is growing up and flooding the apartment market, combined with millennials, and many of them are looking to stay. According to a study by Allegion, 72% of millennials live in an apartment building, with 75% planning to remain for the next six months or longer. On top of being cheaper to live in, they view multifamily residency as more accommodating than homeowning as millennials and younger see the benefits of being mobile rather than staying in one place.

In a study performed by NMHC/Grace Hill on amenity preferences last year, over 60% of the 221,000 renters claimed they wanted smart locks as an amenity, with 62% wanting smart security in general. The study highlighted that this demand was popular with the younger generations, particularly Gen Z and Millennials. The report would even state that smart apartment systems were high enough a priority to be a deciding factor when looking for a new place to live. A large number of Baby Boomers are also joining in wanting smart access control, willing to pay an upward premium to have smart locks between $20-50 a month!

Why Mobile Access Control?

There are a few reasons why the younger generations would accept mobile access control as a suitable replacement for legacy systems. For one, mobile access control is safer than previous generations, removing the need for keys, changing locks, updating firmware readers, or replacing fobs. No need to worry about intruders forging copies, picking locks, or bypassing systems with secure cloud-based access control. According to Zippia, 98% of Gen Z (born between 1997-2012) and 93% of Millennials (1981-1996) in the United States own a smartphone, making mobile access control very attainable for them as they push into the multifamily market. They would also be more likely to remember their phone over a ring of keys.

On top of being more secure, mobile access control brings ease of access that legacy access control doesn’t. Through the cloud, mobile access control allows residents to swipe to open not just the doors to their apartments but to their building and other resident-exclusive amenities on a property. Depending on how secure a multifamily makes their property, a resident can feel comfort in knowing only other residents will be able to access buildings and amenities. Managers can also utilize the cloud to grant and take access away instantly and restrict access to specific access points at certain times. amenities. Managers can also utilize the cloud to grant and take access away instantly, as well as restrict access to certain access points at certain times.

When looking at the data, the evidence is overwhelming in showing why multifamily properties, both old and new, should consider upgrading their old systems or installing new access control solutions. Geokey is here to help with this process, helping properties bring their access control into the present with secure systems, reliable hardware, and affordable pricing and leasing options. Check out our website to find out how you can help your residents feel more secure while also making their lives easier.