If you’re looking to modernize your rental business, collecting rent online is your first step. With property management software, rent collection is easier than ever.
The only step is to link your bank accounts to the software. After that, tenants can make debit, credit, or ACH payments directly on the platform. No need to make trips to the bank to deposit checks or withdraw cash.
While the concept itself is simple, there are several ways you can increase efficiency with your online rent collection feature. From automating payments and reminders to keeping tenants accountable, property management software gives you the freedom and flexibility to design a rent collection system that works for your business.
Here are five tips to help you get the most out of online rent collection.
- Set Automatic Rent Reminders
A gentle rent reminder is often greatly appreciated by tenants with busy lives and schedules. This message reminds tenants about their rent payment a few days before it’s due, and it can be the same every month.
With property management software, it’s easy to customize rent reminder messages and configure them to be sent automatically. After creating the message and setting the proper dates, you never have to worry about sending it by hand again.
You can also choose to only send the message to tenants who haven’t already paid their rent. No one likes spam. Your software is smart enough to send reminders only to tenants who haven’t already submitted their payments.
- Configure Late Fees
Online rent collection can also keep your tenants accountable when it comes to late fees. In fact, your software is probably much better at this than you are—a computer will never accept an excuse or accidentally give any renter special treatment.
It can be difficult for many landlords to say no to a desperate tenant, especially if that tenant has been loyal or if you can empathize with their circumstances. However, you should never give in to these requests. You don’t want to teach your tenants that it’s okay to violate payment policy, or else they may think it’s acceptable to disregard other lease terms too.
Property management software can be configured to automatically apply late fees to tenants’ accounts either immediately or after a designated grace period. Tenants will then be prohibited from making future payments of any kind until they’ve covered the late fee they incurred.
- Encourage Tenants to Use AutoPay
This tip is for your tenants, but landlords can benefit too. AutoPay is an excellent feature of online rent collection on all property management software platforms. With AutoPay, tenants can link their bank account or credit card to their account, and the software will automatically pull the owed funds every month.
AutoPay protects tenants against late fees and ensures they’ll never forget to pay rent.
AutoPay is also beneficial for you. When tenants use automatic payments, you never have to worry about tracking down late payments. Unless there’s an issue with their payment, you can rest assured knowing you’ll receive the money you’re owed on time.
- Utilize Payment Records
Property management software is your new accountant. Another attractive feature of software is its ability to quickly and accurately produce records of who has paid, and when.
For instance, say a tenant claims they already paid a fee requested from them. With property management software, it’s easy to pull up the exact date the tenant says they made the payment. The tenant can also see this information. You can use the payment records generated by your software to back up your claim (if you didn’t receive the payment) or identify an issue that needs to be resolved elsewhere.
- Communicate and Troubleshoot
Finally, you can use your property management software to communicate and troubleshoot with tenants. Communication is key to resolving any problems regarding payments, eChecks, or late fees.
Utilize the chat feature on your software to organize and respond to any messages about payments. It’s also a good idea to keep the contact information for your software’s customer support handy. That way, if a tenant asks a question you can’t answer, you always know how to get in contact with someone who can.
Collect Rent Online with Property Management Software
Collecting rent online is the first step toward making the most out of your property management software. With these five tips, you are sure to find success and consistency in your rent collection process.
