Making Better Real Estate Decisions

If you own residential rental property, two of your major headaches are rent collection and maintenance requests. Sometimes, the two areas are entwined since renters unhappy with their unit's maintenance may withhold rent until their repair demands are meant. One way to effectively address these issues is to use residential property management software. Your job will be streamlined, and everyone involved will benefit. 

Rent

Collecting rent is one of the biggest issues a landlord has to face. Even excellent renters may pay their rent late occasionally due to an emergency situation or a misunderstanding about a payment. For instance, renters may claim to have mailed or dropped off a check, but you have no record of receiving it. These situations can cause hard feelings between management and tenants that are difficult to overcome. If you use residential property management software, your tenants can pay their rent online. In 2014, 87% of U.S. citizens had internet access, so most of your tenants can easily pay you via this method. Others can authorize monthly payments through their bank accounts. Only a few renters will be forced to pay via check or cash, which means you seldom have to wait past the due date for the money your business relies upon. 

Maintenance Issues

Tenants expect prompt attention to their maintenance issues. If miscommunication occurs, tenants are inconvenienced and usually angry. You can keep everyone happy with property management software. Tenants can go online and make a maintenance request at any time of the day or night without waking you up from a sound night's sleep. The next morning you can log onto the system and get all the pertinent information about the repair request. You can then arrange for a timely response. This process aids the tenants because they have proof of when their request was made and when it was attended to. You can also see how well your building managers are doing by tracking their response times and making personnel adjustments if necessary.

Property management software benefits both you and your tenants by making rent payments and maintenance requests simple and "proveable." Communication between management and residents becomes transparent and a level of trust is restored. The software simply does not take sides, so no one feels at a disadvantage. The programs are easy to use and can be up and running in a matter of hours. To make your property management tasks easier, consider investing in this type of software from companies like Rentec Direct.