How to Compare Apartment Communities Using ORA®

Most apartment communities look great online, and a tour can only show you a small slice of daily life. ORA helps you compare resident experience based on real renter feedback, so you can make a more confident apartment rental decision.

Step 1: Pick 2 to 5 Apartment Communities

Start with the apartment communities that fit your basics:

Location and commute

Budget range

Must-haves such as parking, pet policies, layout, or amenities

Keeping your list small reduces decision fatigue and makes comparisons clearer.

Step 2: Pull the ORA Score for Each Community

Look for the ORA Score and the month and year. Compare ORA Scores from the same month and year.

The ORA app shows the most current ORA Score in comparison to the national average and whether it is trending up or down. It does not display the month and year.

Step 3: Compare Strengths and Opportunities Side by Side

Two apartment communities can have similar ORA Scores but very different resident experience patterns. Strengths show what is going well right now. Opportunities show what is showing up as a pattern and is worth verifying.

Reviews are the raw input. ORA® is the standardized monthly interpretation.

Step 4: Verify What Matters Most to You

Use opportunity areas to guide your questions before signing. Example question: "I noticed residents often mention maintenance response times. What has the team done recently to improve that experience?"

Reviews can be useful as an optional verification step when you want more detail behind an opportunity area, especially in close comparisons.

Making a Final Decision With Confidence

Look for alignment, not perfection. A strong ORA Score indicates avoidance of sustained negative reviews in critical resident experience categories within the last 6–12 months, suggesting a more predictable resident experience relative to the National Average ORA Score benchmark. Even strong scores can have opportunity areas worth verifying.