5 Signs You Need a Property Management Software

Property management software plays an important role in helping manage property management businesses. If you’ve grown tired and frustrated from doing basic property management tasks, then chances are you need property management software. 

The professionals at Schedule My Rent have compiled data from everyday interactions with existing customers to bring to you everything you need to know to start investing in online rent collection software. 

It’s a hassle to manage people and places. The life of a property manager can be stressful if you let it. To make your time effective you need Schedule My Rent to provide real-time payments, notifications and communication with your tenants. 

You’re not aware of vacancies before they happen and you’re not filling vacancies fast enough. Our software helps you manage when tenants are moving out and in-return helps you plan for your business. The software can track marketing data to help you improve vacancy down-time.

Cash Flow anomalies are hurting your business. You may have income when tenants are paying rent on-time. Property management software ensures payments are made and disperses late payment fees if needed. 

You can’t keep track of work-orders. You’re focused on collecting rent that you’re spending less time getting repairs completed. Overall, this may be hurting your business because now you have upset tenants. Schedule My Rent automates work-orders, so you can keep track of what is coming in and set schedules for maintenance appointments.  

Your business lacks all analytics. Schedule My Rent Landlord software provides you with the data you need to track your business growth. With instant glimpses into your business and accurate tracking, you can work less and save more money.

Schedule My Rent

If you are a landlord or property manager and have questions about property management software call Schedule My Rent today. We can’t wait to work with you!

Why Renters should use an Online Rent Payment System?

Having a landlord that accepts online rent payments creates flexibility for renters to make payments on-time. This is the best way to keep an optimistic renter-landlord relationship, and reduces risk and worry for both renters and landlords. If your landlord is not offering an online rent payment system today, let them know that they do have this option available. 

Renters can learn more about why they should be using an online rent payment system through Schedule My Rent. Schedule My Rent offers online rent payment software. Continue reading below to learn more about the convenience and security benefits for renters.

Convenient Payments

Renters can make rent payments from anywhere and anytime. This prevents late payments and recurring fees due to late payments. You can conveniently pay rent on-time even though you have a busy lifestyle.

Safe and Secure Payments

Online rent payments by Schedule My Rent are a safe transaction. Your personal information and bank information is protected. This is also a safer alternative to writing checks and paying in cash. As checks and cash can get lost in the mail. 

Easy to Manage

Online rent payments are real-time transactions. This makes rent easy to track. You can look at past payments and also set up automatic withdrawals from your bank account. Online rent payment software from Schedule My Rent makes everyone’s life easier.

Schedule My Rent

Schedule My Rent offers landlord and property management software to help renters pay rent online. We love simplifying online rent payments for renters. If you’re a landlord or renter needing an online payment system that is safe and reliable, learn more about Schedule My Rent. We want to tell you more about who we are and what we do. Call 844-465-3339 or email support@ScheduleMyRent.com for any additional questions.

4 Steps to Becoming a Great Landlord

Being a landlord has ups and downs, but experienced property management landlords find a few simple steps make it easier to do it well. When first starting out, Joe managed his single apartment unit casually without landlord software. He wasn’t sure that a lease was needed for one apartment and figured he could manage things as they came up. Well, after a few issues and many unexpected expenses, Joe made the choice to always have a lease agreement in place. He discovered how useful it was for both the tenant and himself to understand expectations. 

The more experiences you have as a landlord, the more prepared you are for things to come and to improve your tenant’s experience as well. You may be thinking there’s too much work involved in being a landlord. As experienced landlords share, a few steps can remove some of the hassles.

Whether you are a seasoned property owner, or a just starting out, below are a few steps to take to get on the path to becoming a good landlord.

1)  A lease? Always.

Whether you are like Joe with one property, or own several units, having a lease agreement in place is a must for property management. Lease terms help ensure both parties have an understanding of rental expectations. 

Lease terms matter too. A lease should include the basics like the duration of the lease, rent amount, deposit requirements and late fees. Other basics include identifying who is responsible for paying utilities, pet and smoking rules, and specifics about how many people can reside in the apartment, to state a few.

Less obvious lease terms cover expectations surrounding communication of issues with the apartment, how long guests are allowed, new tenant requirements, and more.

When developing your lease agreement, there are several online options. Review the basic terms, and add those that make sense for your unique property – just ensure they fit within the laws of your particular state.

When working with your prospective tenants, review the lease terms in person, and allow time to answer any questions or concerns. Ensuring your tenants understand the lease terms and your specific expectations will help avoid issues down the road – making it easier for both the landlord and the tenant.

2)  Great service providers.

To truly be a great landlord, you will need great service providers to quickly resolve issues raised by your tenants. Many new property owners do not have a network of providers to call upon for various issues. Ask contacts with properties to recommend service providers, or work with a few to determine over time which providers work best with you. 

Another option is to repair and fix minor issues yourself.  This may sound daunting, but if you are handy, and can attend to minor repairs yourself. This will save you a considerable amount of money in the long run. Minor repairs, such as replacing a toilet stopper or a garbage disposal can be done without much effort and many sites offer teaching videos to help the novice.

Seasoned property management landlords establish relationships with plumbers, painters and a handyman, who may consider providing discounts if you agree to use them exclusively across a set of apartments.  

By providing excellent service to your tenants, the hope is that they will be happy, and will stay longer, reducing your turnover.

3)  Electronic payments.

Wow is this one a time saver for everyone. When our new landlord, Joe, first started renting his first property to tenants, he thought rent payments would be easy. But he quickly learned that he did not want to spend his time checking the mailbox and driving to the bank to deposit the check. And after a payment was lost in the mail, Joe began researching landlord software options. As he managed more rental properties, property management software saved Joe even more time and effort. His tenants also love the convenience of paying rent online. 

With landlord software, such as Schedule My Rent, landlords and tenants save time and effort by using electronic payments. Landlords love that rent payments are automatically deposited into their bank account with no need to worry about lost payments. Tenants love the automatic payment reminders, and the ease of having their rent payment sent each month.

Schedule My Rent enables roommates to split rent payments easily, and enables tenants to approve all payments before the amount is moved from their account. 

When you collect rent online with Schedule My Rent’s landlord software, you are well on your way to becoming a great landlord.

4)  Personalization.

Success as a landlord does mean making money on your investment. A big factor in the amount of return on your investment as a landlord is avoiding unwanted turnover. When tenants move out, there is expense in repairs, cleaning, painting and upgrading, not to mention lost income with the vacancy. 

Most experienced landlords want to avoid turnover when the tenants are good tenants. One way to reduce turnover is to personalize the tenant experience. What does this look like? Spend time at the property and check-in with your tenants. Get to know them and create a connection. By getting to know your tenants and their needs, landlords can be familiar with how to make improvements to the property. It is also important to have someone at the apartment complex who can let you know if something unusual is happening while you are not there.

The few steps shared above can give even new landlords options to becoming a great landlord. When you provide a good experience for your tenants, with property management landlord software payments, effective leases, and personalization, you can avoid unwanted tenant turnover.

Property Management Software Review

Why Use Property Management Software?

Property managers have many responsibilities. Organizing lease applications, when rent payments are due, late payments, maintenance requests, vacancy listings, and many more. Managing this list and on can be difficult at times and requires establishing some method of balanced organization. 

An online property management tool provided by Schedule My Rent is an easier way to balance all these tasks and accountabilities. Property management software provided by Schedule My Rent helps organize many of these jobs, freeing up property managers time to focus on more important decisions.  

Schedule My Rent helps to automate your to-do list. Our goal at Schedule My Rent is to help our clients concentrate on building profitable real estate management companies. Our tools are efficient. Some benefits and features of property management software provided by Schedule My Rent include:

•   Effective and easy to use system

•  Better communication between renters and property managers

•  One–stop-shop for rent and vendor payments

•  Task Management option

Some of our current clients in property management manage thousands of units, this includes a team of cleaning crews, maintenance workers, office staff, and leasing agents. By adding a task management tool like the one provided by Schedule My Rent, they are able to control day-to-day activities and control projects in and around the properties. 

Schedule My Rent also offers powerful tools to help you with:

•   Customizing a lease

• Increasing or Decreasing Rent

• Adding or Removing room-mates

Property management software provided by Schedule My Rent is geared to help property managers everywhere to manage hundreds of tenants, a large staff, and several properties. We are here to make your job and life easier!

To learn more about property management software provided by Schedule My Rent visit us & learn more about its features, pricing and demos.

 

5 Ways to Reduce Late Fees

Who likes late fees? No one!Tenants don’t want to pay late fees.  Even landlords don’t like late fees, as this means they didn’t receive their rent payment on time.

Late fees can be substantial. Depending on the state of residence and your lease, tenants may be on the hook for up to 10% of the rent amount. Late fees can be reduced or avoided with simple property management software featuring automated payments, tenant communications, and reminders.

5 Ways to Reduce Late Fees 

1.     Pay rent electronically.  If you are still paying rent by sending your landlord a paper check, the likelihood that your payment will arrive late increases significantly. The postal service may deliver it late, lose it, or deliver it to the wrong address. Theft is also possible as more individuals are involved in the delivery process.  Landlords don’t care why it is late…they just know it is late. By paying your rent electronically, you will always know when your landlord receives the rent, and you will have a confirmation that your rent was paid on time.

2.     Setup AutoPay.  When you setup AutoPay, your rent is paid on the due date every month so payments are never late.  If you use rent collection software like ScheduleMyRent, you receive a courtesy reminder every month that a rent payment will come out of your bank account automatically.  If you need to, you can still change the date or amount of your payment anywhere or anytime.  You also receive an electronic receipt when your rent is paid.  

3.     Receive reminders.If you don’t want to use AutoPay, wouldn’t it be nice to receive a reminder that your rent is due so you don’t forget? If your landlord is using landlord software like ScheduleMyRent, tenants receive reminders before rent is due. Tenants will receive several reminders until a payment is authorized.Once a payment is made, you will receive an electronic receipt of payment.

4.     Talk with your landlord.  This can be as simple as a quick text or email.  Let your landlord know if your rent will be late, indicate why, and when you will be making a payment.  Communication is important. If a landlord understands the tenant’s situation, they may be less likely to charge a late fee or start a court action.  The worst thing a tenant can do is to be silent.  Also, if you can pay part of the rent immediately and the landlord knows when the remainder is coming, your landlord may be more willing to waive the late fee.

5.     Don’t make it a habit.Avoid forming a pattern of paying late every month.  If you pay late every month, it becomes less likely that your landlord will work with you and waive your late fee.

A Landlord’s View of Late Fees

Almost every landlord has a late fee in their lease, but different landlords have different views on how late fees should work.  On one side, some landlords expect rent to always be paid on the date it is due, and a late fee will apply for all late rent payments. These landlords believe that the best policy is to strictly enforce lease terms, to ensure tenants pay on time and do not get in the habit of always paying late.  On the other side, some landlords are flexible, and don’t charge late fees, if the tenant is having problems but is communicating.  Their main goal is to receive rent payments, and to keep good relationship with tenants.

Which method is right?  As in most situations, that typical answer may be somewhere in the middle.  Most landlords have a late fee, but they also have a grace period for the late fee.  For example, a landlord with a three-day grace period may have rent due on the first day of the month, but won’t charge a late fee if rent is received within three days of the due date.  This gives the tenant some flexibility, and ensures the rent is collected timely.  When rent is received beyond the grace period, many landlords charge a late fee.

Landlords like using rental property software so they don’t have to track when rent is late and remember to add a late fee- this is managed by the software.  Landlords also use automated software so they don’t hurt the relationship with the tenant by asking for a late fee directly.  Some automated software programs, like ScheduleMyRent, automatically add late fees, but also allow the landlord to easily waive or refund the late fee. 

Avoid late fees and experience the joy of paying rent online, try Schedule My Rent.