Defined

Frey says Gen Y won’t be as conscious of race as previous generations. Even colleges are recognizing the trend. The quarterly newsletter Diversity Digest, which is published by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, reports what Generation Y already knows: Diversity is here to stay.

Minority college and university student enrollment will increase by about 2 million, according to an organizational report outlined in the newsletter. In 1995, about 29.4 percent of overall undergraduate enrollment was minorities, which were defined as African American, Hispanic, and Asian/Pacific Islander ethnicities.

That number is changing. By 2015, that figure is expected to increase to 37.2 percent nationally. State by state, such trends vary, with minority undergraduates projected to outnumber white students in Washington, D.C., Hawaii, California, and New Mexico.

Geography does count. Generation Y tends to live in the West as well as a handful of other centrally located states, according to the U.S. Census. States such as California and Arizona have a younger average age (roughly 28 years old) than the rest of the country, and Texas, Louisiana, and Illinois have average ages below 30.

Much of that younger population can be credited to the increasing number of Latinos, who are immigrating to these states and tend to have more children than their white counterparts, according to the reports.

GREEN GENERATION: Natalie Asaro (second from left) with friends Brian Hughes, Amanda Venegas, and Melissa Sharp WEB PRESENCE Regardless of where a Gen Yer lives, though, he or she spends a lot of time online. According to Neely, Generation Y uses the Internet far more than previous generations and demands a good Web experience, complete with virtual tours, surf-friendly information, and even online leasing.

“The first thing that comes to mind is how we market to Generation Y,” says Neely. “It’s all about the Web.” He estimates that 42 percent of Archstone-Smith’s leasing applications are generated on the Web and 25 percent of residents complete the leasing process entirely online.

The same patterns hold true for Tony Rossi Sr., president of Chicago-based RMK Management Corp., an apartment management firm.

“All your advertising is Web-oriented instead of in the newspaper,” Rossi says, adding that RMK is redesigning its Web site to make sure residents can do everything from paying fees to filling out work orders online.

“Not only are you preparing for Generation Y, you are running your business a little more efficiently,” he says. The Web site allows for better feedback because people are more willing to reply back to an e-mail survey than a hard copy, he says.