Effective waste management and removal can be a challenge for any property. But with hesitant residents refusing to recycle and property managers fed up with additional messes around trash bins, a small number of luxury properties around the country are starting to hire private companies to remove waste from individual units each day. Timothy Upshur is the CEO of New Jersey-based WhiteGloves Waste, LLC., a company that supplies ‘butler bins’ to individual units at luxury properties around that state. Today, he talks to Multifamily Executive about why it’s a trend he sees catching on:
MFE: Can you tell me more about the WhiteGloves program and how it got started?
Upshur:We know recycling is an issue for multifamily units. In Georgia, where I’m from, there’s no actual requirement to recycle, but we all do it anyway because we think it’s the thing to do. So we thought about how we could bring this recycling program to multifamily complexes. We know at the point when residents have to take recycling to a dumpster, most don’t. [Whitegloves] is a concierge service offering door-to-door waste management. We provide “butler bins” to each unit. For example, in a 600-unit complex, there are 600 bins. And five days a week, someone is coming to pick them up and takes them directly to a dumpster. This prevents contamination and gives residents an efficient way to recycle right at their doorstep.
MFE: What is the cost to multifamily owners and residents to provide door-to-dumpster management services?
Upshur: It typically costs anywhere from $20-$35 per month for 5-day-a-week pickup. But we negotiate with each complex and they charge tenants what they want. We basically have a standard cost for each complex and as it increases the ancillary cost, they pass that cost on to residents.
MFE: How can multifamily owners benefit from offering this type of waste management service?Upshur:They increase their NOI because offering this service increases occupancy. Not a lot of complexes offer this service and through market advantage leasing, you can increase tenant retention given other complexes are not offering it.
MFE: Why is green, effective waste management important for property owners and managers
Upshur:It shows attractiveness of the community and promotes cleanliness. When you’re displaying a green trash removal service in your community, you are answering the need of the consumer.
