What you will accomplish in 30 days: target renters, lower acquisition cost, and capture local search demand
In the next 30 days you'll build a repeatable keyword program that turns local search into a predictable lead source. Specifically:
- Identify the 100 highest-value keywords for each market you serve, prioritized by intent, not just volume. Estimate realistic cost-per-lead (CPL) and model how many doors you can add when you convert at current rates. Create tightly themed ad groups and negative keyword lists that cut wasted spend by an estimated 30% in month one. Deploy a forecast-informed budget plan so paid search supports leasing velocity without blowing the marketing budget.
If competitors are growing faster because they “do Google ads,” they’re likely running national casts with weak targeting. You’ll do local, data-driven campaigns that serve intent at the micro-market level.
Before You Start: Required accounts, data, and tools to run focused local campaigns
Don't begin until you have these items in place. Missing any of them means your keyword work will be guesswork.
- Google Ads account with billing enabled. Keyword Planner is inside Google Ads; forecasts and CPC numbers require an active account. Spreadsheet software. Excel or Google Sheets for organizing keywords, metrics, and ROI models. Access to your property CRM or leasing dashboard. You need conversion rates (lead to lease), average lease value, and churn metrics for ROI calculations. List of target geographies. Neighborhoods, zip codes, and a radius for each property cluster. Landing pages for each property or property type. Google favors high relevance. One page per ad group is ideal. Competitor URLs. Top 3 local competitors per market. These seed keyword discovery. Baseline PPC data if available. Past campaigns, search terms report, negative keywords, and current CPLs.
Your complete keyword research roadmap: 9 steps from account setup to launch
Follow these steps in order. Skip none.
Step 1 - Configure Keyword Planner with local precision
- Open Tools & Settings > Keyword Planner > Discover new keywords. Set location to the exact city/zip or draw a radius - avoid country-level data. Select language and search networks (Google only for focused intent). Set date range to 12 months to capture seasonality.
Step 2 - Seed keywords from intent, not features
Use three seed types: transactional, informational, and brand. Examples for a 100-unit mid-market apartment in Austin:
- Transactional: "apartments for rent Austin 2 bed", "studio apartments downtown Austin availability". Informational: "best neighborhoods near UT Austin 1 bedroom", "cost of living central Austin vs Round Rock". Brand/competitive: competitor property names, management company names + "availability".
Step 3 - Expand with competitor URLs and related queries
Paste competitor site URLs into Keyword Planner. Pull the suggested keywords and related queries. Sort by intent and add modifiers like "move-in special", "no deposit", and "short term". These modifiers often have lower CPC and higher conversion intent.
Step 4 - Filter and prioritize by intent, volume, and CPC
Use the columns: average monthly searches, top of page bid (low range), and top of page bid (high range). Prioritize keywords with:
- Clear transactional intent (includes "for rent", "apply", "availability"). Search volume that makes sense for the market (50-1,000/mo for most local phrases). Top of page bid where projected CPL fits your economics.
Step 5 - Build tightly themed ad groups and negative lists
Create ad groups focused on a single intent + modifier cluster. Example ad groups:
- "2 bed downtown Austin - for rent" (keywords: "2 bedroom apartment downtown Austin", "downtown Austin 2 bed apartments"). "Austin student housing near UT" (keywords: "apartments near UT Austin", "student housing near University of Texas").
Simultaneously, create a negative keyword list that removes irrelevant traffic like "apartments for sale", "house for rent" if you only manage apartments, or "cheap" if you’re not competing on lowest price.
Step 6 - Forecast performance and set budget
Use Keyword Planner's Forecasts tab. Enter keyword lists and set a target daily budget. Key outputs to record:
- Estimated clicks and impressions per month. Estimated average CPC. Estimated conversions if you provide a conversion rate; otherwise, use your CRM’s baseline lead-to-lease conversion.
Example quick math: if forecast shows 200 clicks/mo at $1.50 CPC = $300/mo. If your site's lead rate is 8% (16 leads) and lead-to-lease is 12.5% (2 leases), and average monthly rent is $1,200, your marketing cost per lease = $150. That is often profitable depending on turnover parameters.
Step 7 - Export and analyze seasonality
Export search volume by month. Overlay with your leasing season: are searches spiking in July and August? Increase bids and budget ahead of those months and use lower bids in slow months for branding or remarketing lists.
Step 8 - Map keywords to landing pages and set tracking
- One landing page per ad group is best. Match headline and CTA to the search intent. Set URL parameters to capture keyword, ad group, and match type in your CRM. Ensure conversion tracking is firing: leads, tour requests, phone calls.
Step 9 - Launch small, test fast, iterate weekly
Start with a $20-50/day per market pilot for 2 weeks. Pull Search Terms reports every 3 days to add negatives and refine match types. After 14 days evaluate CPL, conversion rate, and adjust bids or pause low performers.
Avoid these 7 keyword mistakes that waste budget and stall portfolio growth
- Using country-level data for micro-markets. One global month volume can hide that a keyword has 0 searches in your zip code. Targeting broad commercial intents. Terms like "apartments" alone are expensive and low-intent. Focus on modifiers that show readiness to lease. Ignoring negative keywords. If you don’t regularly prune, you’ll pay for irrelevant clicks (e.g., "apartments for sale"). Not matching landing page content to the keyword promise. Clicks convert when the page delivers exactly what the ad headline promised. Chasing volume over ROI. High-volume keywords often have higher CPC and lower conversion rates. Measure CPL, not clicks. Using single-market bids for all properties. Market microeconomics matter - bid differentially by neighborhood competitiveness. Failing to track downstream impact. If you only track form fills, you miss quality differences; measure lead-to-lease.
Pro strategies: advanced keyword tactics that scale occupancy and cut CPL
After you nail the basics, apply these intermediate-to-advanced methods to turn paid search into a growth engine.
Local intent layering
Combine neighborhood names + lifestyle modifiers. Example: "South Congress pet friendly apartments with parking". These long-tail, high-intent phrases often show lower CPC and higher conversion. Create separate ad groups per neighborhood to control messaging and landing pages.
Value-based bidding using LTV and CAC
Calculate customer lifetime value (LTV) per unit: average rent x average tenancy months x upsell revenue. Then determine acceptable https://rentalrealestate.com/blog/2026-property-management-marketing-audit-strategies-top-agencies/ CAC. Feed that into Keyword Planner forecasts and establish maximum CPC bids that align with profitable growth.
Use competitor URL mining strategically
Pull competitor keywords, then run an experiment where you bid on competitor brand + "availability". These capture high-intent switchers. Keep bids moderate and use compelling ad copy like "Immediate Move-In - No Broker Fee" if true.
Seasonal bid multipliers and lead warming
Shift budget toward search in peak months; in slow months, use lower-cost keywords to build remarketing lists. Then retarget search visitors with dynamic ads when season starts.
Data stitching and attribution
Don't rely solely on last-click. Stitch Google Analytics, CRM, and call tracking data to see true attribution. You may find that branded searches or organic traffic finish leases started by paid search. Adjust budgets accordingly.
Automated scripts for negative keyword expansion
If you manage multiple markets, write a script or use automated rules that parses search terms weekly and suggests negatives where CTR is low and bounce rate is high. Automation reduces manual noise.
When Keyword Planner gives zero volume or wonky forecasts: fixes and workarounds
Keyword Planner can be frustrating. Here are precise fixes for the most common failure modes.
Problem: "No data" or zero volume for local terms
- Check location settings. If you used a broad country filter, switch to zip or city only. Try a broader seed keyword and then filter results by your location. Use Google Trends as a sanity check. If Trends shows interest, Planner may be withholding data due to low volume; treat it as low but not zero.
Problem: Forecasted CPCs seem unrealistically low
- Planner shows ranges. Use the top-of-page high range for budget planning if you need traffic quickly. Check competitor bidding - use Auction Insights and your own historical CPCs to calibrate.
Problem: Keyword lists are too broad and noisy
- Use phrase and exact match in your tests to isolate intent. Phrase match reduces irrelevant combinations. Export and pivot the search terms report; then manually tag keywords with intent labels in your spreadsheet.
Problem: Forecasts don’t match actual clicks
- Short test runs are variable. Run a 14-30 day test to stabilize metrics. Consider ad rank changes and landing page experience. Improve quality score to lower CPC below forecasted top-of-page bids.
Problem: You manage multiple markets and the planner is slow
- Work in batches: export raw keywords for one market, then use sheet formulas to scale across multiple zips. Build templates: a standard ad group structure and negative list you can copy to new campaigns.
Thought experiment: What happens if you double conversion rate?
Imagine your paid search brings 300 clicks/month at $1.75 CPC = $525. Current lead rate = 6% (18 leads) and lead-to-lease = 11% (2 leases). If you optimize landing pages and increase lead rate to 12%, you get 36 leads and 4 leases. Cost per lease drops from $262 to $131. Doubling conversion drives the same number of doors with half the spend or doubles doors with the same spend. This is where competitors trip up - they chase more clicks instead of improving conversion.
Quick reference table: sample per-market metrics
Metric Sample How to use Avg monthly searches (local) 400 Prioritize keywords 50-1,000 for local tests Avg CPC (forecast) $1.50 - $2.75 Use high end for aggressive growth planning Click to lead rate 6% baseline Work to raise to 10-15% with targeted pages Lead to lease 10-15% Track to calculate true CACFinal checklist and next moves
Done well, Keyword Planner is more than a keyword list generator - it's a planning tool that ties search demand to your leasing economics. Before you close this page, run this checklist:
Set location to zip or city for each market and export 12-month volume. Create 5-10 focused ad groups per market and match each to a single landing page. Forecast spend and set a 14-day pilot budget per market. Implement conversion tracking and CRM linking to truthfully measure lead-to-lease. Review search terms every 3 days for the first 2 weeks, then weekly.If you follow this procedure and actually act on conversion improvements rather than just pouring money into broad keywords, you'll stop watching competitors scale. You'll control local search demand and turn it into steady occupancy growth across 50, 200, or 500 doors.