In the ever-evolving landscape of multifamily housing, resident retention remains a persistent challenge. Operators invest significant time and resources into attracting new residents, but keeping them long-term is another story. Enter Renew—a cutting-edge platform designed to change the game by rethinking the way properties approach renewals. We sat down with Kevin Murphy, COO and Co-Founder of Renew, to discuss his journey, the inspiration behind the platform, and how it’s set to transform the industry.
What inspired you to create Renew?
Renting in America is broken—not because it has to be, but because it’s been overlooked. Nearly half of all Americans will be renters by 2050, yet renting is still treated as a temporary, second-choice lifestyle. The relationship between renters and landlords is purely transactional, with little effort to build trust, improve experiences, or create long-term value.
Meanwhile, the rental industry itself is leaking value. Operators experience 50% annual churn, losing renters who don’t want to leave the rental market—just their current unit. Instead of capturing these residents within their portfolio, operators let them walk away, fueling a $10 billion annual marketing spend on Google, Zillow, and ILS platforms just to refill vacancies.
We started Renew because we believe renting can be more. More stable, more seamless, and more rewarding for both renters and operators. We see an opportunity to transform the renewal and move-out process from a dead-end to a strategic moment—one where renters can see the full network of opportunities available to them and operators can build lasting relationships, rather than constantly replacing residents.
With the right technology and approach, renting doesn’t have to be a cycle of churn and inefficiency. It can be part of the American Dream—just redefined.
How does Renew differentiate itself from traditional renewal processes?
Most renewal strategies are reactive—leasing teams send out generic notices, cross their fingers, and hope for the best. Despite advancements in digital leasing, rent payments, and maintenance requests, renewals often remain manual, outdated, and frustrating for both staff and residents. Renew flips this approach by introducing proactive engagement, automation, and data-driven strategy to make renewals smarter and more effective.
We use predictive analytics, sentiment tracking, and automated workflows to engage residents before they even consider moving out. Our platform personalizes outreach based on renter behavior, automates follow-ups to ensure no opportunity is missed, and gives operators the tools to strategically drive retention rather than react to churn. Instead of treating renewal as a passive, administrative process, Renew turns it into a key business opportunity—helping operators reduce turnover, optimize pricing, and retain valuable residents.
Beyond automation, Renew delivers a better resident experience. Many existing renewal processes force renters to call or email their property manager, sign PDFs, or navigate outdated portals. Even so-called “AI” chatbots are often just shallow communication tools that fail to streamline the process. Renew provides a modern, intuitive interface where residents can review renewal offers, compare options (like different lease lengths), be rewarded for certain actions, and complete their renewal in just a few clicks—all within a mobile-friendly experience designed for today’s renters.
We like to say that Renew is built to automate the routine and humanize the exception. By streamlining the repetitive, time-consuming tasks of renewals—like resident outreach, offer generation, and lease tracking—we free up leasing teams to focus on high-value human interactions. This means staff spend less time chasing paperwork and more time having meaningful conversations—whether that’s addressing resident concerns, offering flexible options, or guiding a smooth transition within the operator’s portfolio.
It’s a smarter, more strategic approach that combines automation, advanced workflows, deep PMS integration, and a seamless resident experience—ensuring renewals aren’t just an afterthought, but a competitive advantage.
How did you and your co-founder Rob Hayden come together to launch Renew?
Rob and I worked together for over four years at Jetty and developed a deep understanding of the multifamily space. I come from a decade-long background in the industry, including my time at RentPath, while Rob has extensive experience in the startup and venture capital world. Our combined expertise allowed us to take a holistic approach to resident retention.
We also understood that any new solution in this space had to work for all stakeholders—residents, owners, managers, executives, regional teams, and site staff. Many startups focus exclusively on making an impact for renters, but if you ignore the operational side, the solution won’t be sustainable. We built Renew to bring value across the board.
Why was it important to take two years to refine the Renew platform before launching?
Renewals are one of the most critical aspects of apartment operations. For residents, it’s the biggest financial decision they make each year. For operators, it’s the number one driver of customer lifetime value.
We took the time to ensure our solution worked seamlessly across different property types and markets. Instead of rushing to market, we focused on consistent proof points—pilot programs, full-portfolio rollouts, and measurable ROI. Our approach allowed us to refine our technology and confirm its effectiveness before bringing it to the broader industry.
What are the business benefits of optimizing the renewal process?
Renewals have historically been a missed opportunity for apartment owners and operators. Without a clear strategy, the result is a cumbersome, slow, inefficient process that leads to 50% resident churn and lost revenue.
By modernizing and automating the retention process, we make it easier for residents to make a decision at renewal – whether it’s to renew or to leave – in fewer days than they would without Renew. In fact, Renew speeds up resident decisions by an average of 20 days. And a quicker path to that decision reduces vacancy loss, improves occupancy forecasting, and enhances real-time pricing control. Additionally, our approach enables operators to think more broadly about resident retention because they have deeper insights into that particular resident. Instead of seeing renewal as a one-off event, they can use Renew to help residents move within the community – or within their portfolio – rather than lose them to another operator. In other words, we help them refine their strategy from simply renewing a lease to renewing a resident.
At the end of the day, a more strategic renewal process leads to higher retention rates, increased revenue, and greater asset value.
