The Top 50 Properties of 2016 for Online Reputation

We spotlight the top 50 properties of the top 1% of properties by ORA score.

5 MIN READ

Kicking off our third year of ORA Power Rankings, in this edition, we feature the Elite 1% of properties from 2016. Through our exhaustive research of 63,000 properties across all review sites, a total of 699 properties made it onto this elite list.

Below, we feature the best of the best—the top 50 properties of the Elite 1%.

The ace property for 2016 was The Kensington (Boston), managed by Bozzuto, with a score of 96. Elated to receive this honor for the second consecutive year, Daniel Pereira, general manager of the property, says, “The Kensington team is extremely proud to be recognized again by J Turner Research as the top-ranking property for online reputation in the nation. This recognition affirms our unwavering commitment to providing the highest level of customer service to our residents.” Bozzuto has the highest number of properties (five) among the top 50.

At No. 2 is Everton at Bellmar (Dallas), managed by Knightvest Property Management (score: 96). Camden Plaza (Houston), managed by Camden Property Trust, also registered 96, to take third place. To be eligible for this ranking, a property had to have a minimum of 20 reviews. For properties with the same ORA scores, the property with the higher number of reviews ranked higher.

In 2016, the national average ORA was 57.5, which jumped more than three points from 2015. The highest ORA score for a property also scaled two points—from 94 in 2015 to 96 in 2016. There are 26 new entrants among the top 50 properties and 366 new entrants in the top 1% ranking of 2016.

This surge in the number of newcomers and ORA scores reflects the sharpened focus properties have on online review management. J Turner’s recent study Prospects’ Internet Adventure shows that 70% of prospects chose to visit a property with a better online reputation. It’s evident that management is focusing more on improving their online reputation; they realize they may be missing traffic due to a comparatively low online presence. This makes the top 1% ranking much more competitive.

The top three management companies to manage the most properties among the top 50 are Bozzuto, with five; Hawthorne Residential Partners, with four; and Greystar, with three. Six of the top 50 properties are privately managed. In the overall top 1% ranking, 114 properties are privately managed, and the top three companies are Greystar, with 54 properties; Bozzuto, with 47 properties; and AvalonBay Communities, with 32 properties. More than 210 management companies are listed for the 699 properties in the top 1% ranking.

With regard to states, the top three—with the lion’s share of properties in the top 1%—are Texas, with 81; Virginia (56); and Maryland (50). Among the top 50 properties, the leading states are Washington, with six; Massachusetts (five); and Ohio and North Carolina (four each).

To view the complete list of the Elite 1%, visit https://www.jturnerresearch.com/ora-elite-2016

  • Rank Property Management ORA Score
    1 The Kensington
    (Boston)
    Bozzuto 96
    2 Everton at Bellmar
    (Dallas)
    Knightvest Property Management 96
    3 Camden Plaza
    (Houston)
    Camden Property Trust 96
    4 TipTop Apartments
    (Omaha, Neb.)
    Privately Managed 95
    5 Legacy at Jones Farm
    (Huntsville, Ala.)
    Privately Managed 95
    6 CityScape
    (Phoenix)
    Alliance Residential 95
    7 The Courts of Devon
    (Gaithersburg, Md.)
    Bozzuto 94
    8 Park Place One Apartments
    (Philadelphia)
    Fidelity Management 94
    9 Pohlig Box Factory
    (Richmond, Va.)
    Privately Managed 94
    10 2 Wells
    (Baltimore)
    WPM Real Estate 94
    11 Hawthorne at the Grove
    (Kernersville, N.C.)
    Hawthorne Residential Partners 94
    12 One Canal Apartment Homes
    (Boston)
    Aimco 94
    13 Modera 44
    (Morristown, N.J.)
    Mill Creek Residential Trust 94
    14 Brunswick House
    (Washington, Pa.)
    WC Smith 94
    15 The Laurel Apartments
    (St. Louis)
    Laramar 94
    16 Kensington Place
    (Woodbridge, Va.)
    Van Metre Management Co. 94
    17 The Mills at Riverbend Commons
    (Moline, Ill.)
    Privately Managed 94
    18 The Wilson Building
    (San Francisco)
    Greystar 94
    19 Marq West Seattle
    (Seattle)
    CWS Apartment Homes 94
    20 The Brix at 26
    (Pittsburgh)
    Village Green 94
    21 Pecan Springs Luxury Apartment Homes
    (San Antonio)
    Carbon Cos. 93
    22 Flats on D
    (Boston)
    Bozzuto 93
    23 Hampshire Apartments
    (Schenectady, N.Y.)
    Tri-City Rental 93
    24 The Hamilton Luxury Apartment Homes
    (Fishers, Ind.)
    JC Hart 93
    25 Mesa Pines
    (Costa Mesa, Calif.)
    Pan American Properties 93
    26 AVA Capitol Hill
    (Seattle)
    AvalonBay Communities 93
    27 Odin Apartments
    (Seattle)
    Equity Residential 93
    28 Twenty | 20
    (East Cambridge, Mass.)
    Bozzuto 93
    29 Aperture on Fifth Apartments
    (Seattle)
    Pillar Communities 93
    30 Sorrento
    (Overland Park, Kan.)
    Price Brothers Management 93
    31 Parkway Plaza
    (Culver City, Calif.)
    Jones and Jones 93
    32 Link Apartments Glenwood South
    (Raleigh, N.C.)
    Grubb Properties 93
    33 Parkside
    (Apple Valley, Minn.)
    Bigos Management 93
    34 1600 Glenarm Place
    (Denver)
    Red Peak Properties 92
    35 Legends at Oak Grove
    (Knoxville, Tenn.)
    United Residential Properties 92
    36 Avalon Marlborough
    (Marlborough, Mass.)
    AvalonBay Communities 92
    37 Waterside Greene Apartments
    (Greenville, S.C.)
    Hawthorn Residential Partners 92
    38 Estuary
    (Weehawken, N.J.)
    Greystar 92
    39 Water’s Bend
    (South Lebanon, Ohio)
    North American Properties 92
    40 Silverdale Ridge Apartments
    (Silverdale, Wash.)
    Greystar 92
    41 The Enclave
    (Beavercreek, Ohio)
    Towne Properties 92
    42 Hawthorne at Murrayville
    (Wilmington, N.C.)
    Hawthorne Residential Partners 92
    43 AXIS Wellington Green
    (Wellington, Fla.)
    Bainbridge Cos. 92
    44 Villas at Houston Levee East
    (Cordova, Tenn.)
    Panther Properties 92
    45 Summerview Apartments
    (Columbus, Ohio)
    Privately Managed 92
    46 Broadmoor at Aksarben Village
    (Omaha, Neb.)
    Privately Managed 92
    47 Grove at Park Place
    (Fayetteville, N.C.)
    Hawthorne Residential Partners 92
    48 Mt. Adams Apartments
    (Cincinnati)
    Towne Properties 92
    49 The Century
    (Seattle)
    Pillar Properties 92
    50 Millstone at Kingsview
    (Germantown, Md.)
    Bozzuto 92

    About ORA Power Rankings
    ORA Power Rankings is powered by J Turner Research in association with media partner Multifamily Executive. Each month, MFE publishes a new ranking of apartment properties and management companies based on different parameters.

    To learn more, or to find your ORA™ score, visit www.jturnerresearch.com/about/what-is-ora-score.

    ORA Methodology
    The ORA score is an aggregate compilation of a property’s ratings across all review sites. Each month, J Turner Research monitors the online ratings of more than 63,000 properties, nationwide, across all review sites. Using a statistical model, a single score based on a scale of 0 to 100 is assigned to each property. This score serves as a benchmark to compare and contrast individual properties and portfolios nationally, regionally, and with the competition.

    Questions? Please contact the J Turner Research team at [email protected].

  • About the Author

    Joseph Batdorf

    Joseph Batdorf is the president of Houston-based J Turner Research, and can be reached at [email protected].