The Harbor at The Barracks: A 2024 Management Turnaround

The Harbor under The Arena Group

The Arena Group has managed The Harbor at The Barracks since April 2024. Today, The Harbor is a fully furnished student apartment community 2.8 miles from Texas A&M University. Residents get an in-house maintenance team that responds to most requests in under 2 business days, a controlled-access building, and a neighborhood courtesy officer who patrols The Harbor’s parking lot and garage.

Under The Arena Group, The Harbor reached 97.3% pre-leased in its first leasing season and was 100% pre-leased by May 30, 2025, with 18% of residents renewing.

This case study describes how The Arena Group took over management in April 2024 and turned the property around. The challenges below happened under the previous management company, before April 2024. They do not describe The Harbor today.

The Situation in April 2024

When The Arena Group took over in mid-April 2024, the previous management company had left the property in a difficult position:

Low occupancy and renewals: Under the previous management company, The Harbor was 52% pre-leased, and only 7% of residents had renewed. That was one of the lowest renewal rates in the College Station market at the time.
Reputation under previous management: Unresolved maintenance problems under the previous management company had led to poor online reviews before April 2024.
A recurring fire alarm problem: Before The Arena Group arrived, faulty elevator sensors repeatedly set off the building’s fire alarm system, often at night. The Arena Group fixed the problem within weeks of taking over in 2024.
A limited budget: The previous management company had already spent about 90% of the year’s marketing and promotional budget.
Late timing: The Arena Group took over after peak leasing season, with only weeks left in the spring 2024 semester.

Our Approach

Marketing

Positioning & Messaging

We built the 2024 campaign around two messages:

The Harbor had new management, and the problems residents experienced under the previous company had been fixed.
The building itself had strong selling points.

Messaging emphasized:

New management
Reliable on-site maintenance team
Brand-new construction (less than two years old in 2024)
Fully furnished floor plans
Strong amenities package
Convenient location on the Texas A&M bus route

We also focused on incoming freshmen and transfer students who were still searching for housing late in the season.

Marketing Channels

With little of the 2024 budget remaining, we focused on high-impact, low-cost strategies:

Hyper-targeted Google Ads aimed at freshmen and transfers
Daily Instagram and TikTok content to generate organic website traffic
On-campus activations at New Student and Transfer Student Conferences
Perceived-value rental pricing incentives such as “$50 off per month” were built into our rate strategy without additional cost to our promotions budget

Branding & Visual Identity Updates

Fully redesigned the property website for clarity, ease of use, stronger calls to action, and a visual cue that management had changed
Refreshed visual direction and messaging across all channels

Leasing & Operations

Community Engagement

We reignited current resident engagement and word-of-mouth by:

Hosting a New Management BBQ and sending a community-wide New Management Survey
Launching a resident referral program offering cash incentives for residents who filled vacant rooms

Staff Alignment & Operational Reset

A strong on-site team was a major driver of the turnaround.

Replaced the previous property manager with a high-performer from one of our other properties whose leadership and communication skills immediately elevated daily operations
Retained the on-site staff who were strong culture fits and valuable sources of insight from the previous season
Trained the team on improved tour scripts, follow-up processes, and resident communication
Improved maintenance response times, daily communication standards, and service request visibility

Rapid Maintenance Response

One of the biggest early wins was fixing the fire alarm problem the property had under previous management.

Identified the root cause: malfunctioning elevator sensors triggering system-wide alarms
Coordinated urgent repairs with the College Station Fire Marshal and third-party elevator specialists
Kept residents updated throughout the repair
Fully resolved the issue within weeks of taking over management in April 2024

This fix rebuilt residents’ trust quickly and helped double renewals from 7% to 14.5%.

The Results

Despite the late start and limited budget, The Arena Group delivered a full turnaround, and The Harbor has stayed strong since.

Leasing Success (2024)

97.3% pre-leased by the start of the fall 2024 semester, up from 52% under previous management
Renewal rate doubled, from 7% to 14.5%

Continued Growth (2025)

100% pre-leased by May 30, 2025
18% of residents renewed

Reputation & Digital Turnaround

Google rating improved from 3.0 stars under previous management to 4.5 stars
Dozens of new positive reviews from current and prospective residents
Fully redesigned website that led to higher conversion rates and more high-intent leads
95.8% move-in satisfaction among new residents who moved in on August 10, 2024

Operational & Financial Wins

Stayed within the remaining promotions and marketing budget
Strengthened relationships with existing residents, setting up healthier renewal cycles for future seasons
Restored credibility with ownership

Key Takeaways

1. Fix the real problems, then say so clearly

By fixing maintenance first and then telling the market about The Harbor’s new management, affordability, and convenience, we changed how students saw the property within a single leasing season.

2. On-site staff alignment is critical

Training, scripting, and staff buy-in directly improved tour quality—and tour quality directly increased our conversion rate for signed leases.

3. Community rebuilding leads to long-term stability

The survey, BBQ event, and communication overhaul restored trust with current residents, supporting better renewal performance in 2024 and in future cycles (i.e. 100% Pre-Leased by May 30, 2025 at 18% renewed).