There is a stigma surrounding mental health; open communication can change that.

The National Apartment Association (NAA) and Swift Bunny partnered to review mental health and well-being in the rental housing industry. The results of a national survey are now available as is the webinar that analyzes the findings. John Sons, CALP, Director of Training & Marketing Strategies with Burlington Capital Properties; Jen Piccotti, MS, Chief Leasing Officer with Swift Bunny; Jeanne Supin, MA, President, CEO with Watauga Consulting; and Jeremy Attermann, LGSW, CAPM, Director, Business & Strategy with the National Council for Mental Wellbeing presented the results as well as discussed the importance of mental health during the webinar. Below are 10 key takeaways from the survey and webinar.

1. Where to start. The first item to acknowledge is that there is a stigma surrounding mental health in the workplace. NAA, the National Council and their partners are providing resources and self-education on how to listen and how to respond to mental health challenges in the apartment industry.
2. 200 million. The number of workdays lost each year due to mental health challenges, according to Harvard Business Review.
3. Main topics of discussion. Making the conversation comfortable: Employees must be able to discuss mental health and well-being with co-workers and supervisors. Us and them: This pertains to onsite staff and how they interact with residents and their mental health. And third, dealing with trauma.
4. Personal life interference. In any given month, 40% of respondents are indicating their mental and emotional health have interfered with their personal life.
5. “The demands of my job rarely interfere with my personal life.” During the past two years, the workforce has been successful and must be recognized for what it was able to accomplish given the hurdles. Many employees are no longer willing to let work override personal responsibilities, so flexible work and part-time hybrid options must be available.
6. Stress spreads. The message that has been seen during the past six to nine months is that community managers are maxed out, burned out and now that stress is spreading to regional managers, who are also showing signs of burnout.
7. “I rarely feel stressed about my workload.” This statement ranked as the third lowest in agreement. While this topic might not be a primary driver as to why someone would leave their job, it is a contributing factor.
8. The Great Resignation is real. Trying to fill open positions is challenging, and expectations must change because it is simply not sustainable as the workforce faces the effect of the pressures from employees quitting.
9. Affecting the industry. We can positively impact an entire industry by taking the next steps in our journey, and every journey begins with one step. We took a huge one as a group, collectively, by even conducting this study.
10. What the future holds. The survey will be re-run in March 2022, and the goal will be to re-run the survey on an annual basis. Additional webinars will be held during Mental Health Awareness Week in May 2022. NAA’s Apartmentalize in San Diego this June will feature two sessions on mental health and well-being: “NAA’s Mental and Emotional Health Survey: Challenges Facing Today’s Workforce” and “Workforce Mental Wellbeing: Why and How to Support Your Team.”

Watch the webinar

Download the survey findings

NAA’s 2022 Mental and Emotional Health Survey—Sign Up Today!

Last year, NAA conducted a groundbreaking Mental and Emotional Health Survey for the rental-housing industry, with more than 2,300 employees providing feedback.  This issue remains very important due to the pandemic, industry staffing challenges and how this has affected people’s work and personal lives. Therefore, NAA will be conducting another national employee survey, which will remain anonymous, complimentary and quick and easy to complete. This year's survey opens on March 14,2022 and closes on April 15, 2022.

Sign-up your organization today. Let your employees' experiences be counted. Learn how you may best address this critical and timely issue within your organization.