Opportunities

           Belief:  I believe that there is an unmet need for elevators within the Gainesville apartment complexes. There are many apartments that don't have elevators in the buildings and it is a huge hassle when in comes to the people living upstairs say past the second floor. It may not be obvious, but it becomes more apparent when you live the in an apartment on the third floor. One may notice it's harder to carry groceries on the third week on getting groceries, that it was a mistake to live on the third floor because you have to move all the furniture/ belongings of your up the stairs, and especially when you need a new appliance in the apartment because the old stopped working. The need becomes more increasingly demanded because of the problems that come with living on the third floor of a building. I believe that anyone living on the third floor would agree that there is a need for elevators.
          Interviews: I interviewed three individuals, two students of UF and the other, a middle-aged couple working nearby. The interviewees agreed that there is a need for elevators to make it convenient for those living past the second floor. However, the third interviewee did give an insight I had not thought about beforehand. If there was an elevator installed in the apartments, that would increase the electricity bill of the building which could raise the prices of rent and that would deter potential tenants away due to excessive billing for a product that only the people living on the third floor needs. This is very interesting because in my mind, the owner would not want to put all the burden solely on the third floor and beyond because that would increase the risk of empty apartments, so ideally the owner would charge everyone in the apartment, however this would cause outrage for people living below because of the fact that they don't use the elevator as much, but they have to spend money regardless of how frequent they use it. For a student that may not have enough money in the first place, this is very discouraging.
          Summary: Although there are some unmet needs for people living on the third floor, I do think that with everything considered that elevators possess risks that could ruin the business of owners. Discouraging potential tenants would not only ruin the quality of life for the owner, but also the tenants because the financial state would reflect on the product at hand. Unless elevators are made to be energy efficient, it is best to just walk up the stairs and tough it out. Entrepreneurs must consider the cons and pros before making a decision that could have a bigger impact than initially thought.