Property management (PM) software is arguably the most important subscription you should use in your business.
The right software will automate everything from late fees and rent payments to end-of-lease reminders and lease signings. It will simplify the process of finding new tenants, communication and maintenance. It will also act as a buffer between you and your tenants and help you establish boundaries and adhere to your policies.
In turn, when you are able to run your business efficiently, you can provide better service and experience to your tenants, keeping them happy and satisfied. Use property management software to show your tenants that you are a professional business. It sets the precedent that you take your business and property seriously.
Here are five benefits of using property management software.
1. Faster maintenance response
Having a system that handles all maintenance requests in one place is not only beneficial to landlords, but also to tenants. Deferred maintenance is a common complaint from tenants. You simply handle any maintenance requests and keep your tenants happy and paid.
Make sure to train your tenants that all requests need to be made through your portal. If they call you with a request, I suggest you say:
“Hello [Tenant], please enter this request into the portal so our maintenance team can see it and get back to you as soon as possible so we can resolve any issues. If you call or text me your request, the maintenance team won’t know about it and I may forget about it. Once in the portal, you can view status and communicate directly with our repair staff. Thank you!
Always make sure to build your workflow with your tenants’ interests in mind. If people understand the valid reasons behind the purpose of doing something, they are more likely to do it.
2. The ability to send tenant communication explosions
Most software offers a feature that allows you to announce communications to all tenants. We all know communication is key and tenants just want to know and communicate with what is going on.
For example, if you plan to replace the roof on a multifamily property, good communication can keep all tenants informed. There may be tenants who work from home and need to coordinate where they will work that day. If roof construction and noise surprise them, they probably won’t be happy.
Severe weather is another key topic that should be communicated to tenants. As landlords, we want to make sure our tenants are doing certain things in their homes during freezing temperatures to prevent pipes from bursting. On the other hand, if you provide snow removal services to your tenants, they may want to know when it will be completed because they may be working and living.
Using Communication Blast to communicate these things to your tenants up front will make everyone’s life easier.
3. Communicate regularly with tenants
As with anything else, having an organized, central system is the best way to ensure something gets done. As a landlord, it is your responsibility to communicate with your tenants any questions or concerns they may have.
If you have one tenant who texts you a lot, another who emails you a lot, and another who calls you a lot, it can be very confusing and stressful trying to remember how to communicate using all of these different methods. Using property management software will eliminate this stress because all of your communications will be done in one place. This way, you can easily respond to your tenants in a timely manner to ensure they are happy with their living situation and resolve any issues that may arise.
On the other hand, it’s much easier to send someone a text message with a complaint or issue than it is to go into a tenant portal. This creates a necessary barrier between you and your business. Like any business owner, you should not expect to respond every day of the week and at all times of the day (except in emergencies, of course). Property management software gives you some breathing room and creates a sense of professionalism.
4. No more rental losses
In the world of property management, there is nothing scarier than losing a lease. If you don’t have a contract to rely on, it can quickly become a game of he said, she said.
Too many landlords are unorganized and misplace their leases. With the right property management software, your lease can be stored online for easy reference by tenants and landlords. After all, the lease is your source of truth, and it’s very important.
Electronic signatures are another great feature that comes with most property management software. This saves you time and stress because you don’t have to travel across town to meet tenants and sign agreements. Instead, they can log into the property management software and sign.
5. Eliminate late fees
If you collect rent manually, it’s difficult to actually enforce late fees. It can feel a little personal to have to text your tenant that they actually owe $30 for a late payment.
Additionally, there are no automatic reminders for your tenants, nor any way for them to set up automatic payments to ensure they don’t have to pay late fees. Many times, it feels easier to let go.
But when you do this, you as a business owner are leaving money on the table. Your tenants are contractually obligated to pay you late fees, and you have no reason not to make sure they do so.
When you have a property management system in place, you don’t have to make the emotional decision of whether to charge late fees. Instead, the system does it for you. The best part is that the tenant doesn’t have to be angry with you because it’s as simple as whether they paid their bills on time or not.
If a tenant does complain about late fees, you can also offer them a good solution. Any suitable property management software will have a simple automated payment solution. You can let your tenants know that by setting up automatic transfers, you can ensure they won’t have to pay late fees. This is also very useful for you as a landlord as it means you know exactly when you will receive your rent each month.
As a tenant, this is a great solution to guarantee no late fees. Remember, a happy tenant is a good tenant!
What software should you consider?
Here are some property management software options.
Tenant Cloud
When I choose PM software, I want something that is user-friendly and powerful. I also don’t want to pay per property like many PM platforms require.
We both use TenantCloud for our rental business. I’ve been using it for three years and I highly recommend it. You can use TenantCloud for just $13 per month. I paid for the Growth plan, which is the highest non-customizable plan and only costs $50 per month. If I think of time as $100 an hour, then I only need TenantCloud to save me 30 minutes per month to get a return on investment.
bloom
Buildium is a very powerful software commonly used by large management companies. Prices range from $52 to $166 per month.
Buildium has just about every management feature you can think of. It has more advanced reporting and financial features than many other platforms. However, while Buildium has excellent accounting integration features, it is less user-friendly than other software.
reddy rentals
RentRedi is another user-friendly platform with a mobile app for tenants. Other features include unlimited file storage, the ability to connect with local handymen or maintenance contractors, and no cap on the number of units you can manage through the plan.
Plans start at $9 per month and go up to $20 per month. Readers with a BiggerPockets Pro account can access their RentRedi account for free.
other options
You may want to spend a few days comparing different management software. As mentioned before, it’s best to start with what you want from the software, add what you want to pay for, and then try a platform. Most platforms offer free trials or even free software demos.
Other popular platforms include:
Save time and money with this refreshing guide to managing your own property.
exist self-managed landlordAmelia McGee and Grace Gudenkauf share tips for efficient property management, tenant screening and onboarding, and scaling your business, all to help you escape the 9-to-5 drudgery and create lasting wealth through real estate.
Notes on BiggerPockets: These are the opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the views of BiggerPockets.
