If you're a property manager or a landlord, you know that managing rental properties can be time-consuming and complex. Luckily, property management software can streamline your operations and make your life easier. But with so many options available in the market, how do you know which one to choose? To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a list of the top 10 features to look for in property management software.
Document storage: One of the most important features of a property management system is to ensure you are able to store all of your property and tenant documents. You never know when you might need to download or send a document, so having a system in place that keeps all of these on file for you is imperative. What's even better, is if you are able to set expiry dates and email reminders for your documents to ensure you never miss staying up to date and compliant with your certification.
Tenant and Contract Management: Efficiently managing tenants and contracts is crucial for successful property management. Look for software that allows you to easily create and manage contract agreements, track terms and renewal dates, and store tenant information. The software should also have the ability to reissue new contracts for existing tenants.
Accounting and Financial Management: Keeping track of your property's financials is essential for effective property management. Look for software that provides robust accounting and financial management features, such as expense tracking, income tracking, financial reporting, and budgeting. It should also allow you to generate financial statements, track expenses by property or unit, and integrate with a popular accounting software such as Xero.
Maintenance Management: Property maintenance is a significant part of property management. Look for software that helps you efficiently manage maintenance requests. It should allow tenants to submit maintenance requests online directly to you where you can then issue out the work to your contractors. It should also provide a record of maintenance history for each property or unit.
Communication and Messaging: Effective communication with tenants is crucial for successful property management. Look for software that offers built-in communication and messaging tools, such as email, SMS, or chat. It should allow you to send announcements, notifications, or reminders to tenants and facilitate communication within the software for easy collaboration and coordination.
Reporting and Analytics: Data-driven decision-making is vital in property management. Look for software that provides robust reporting and analytics features, income / expense reports, dashboards, and visualisations. It should allow you to track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as rent collection, vacancy rates, or maintenance expenses, and provide insights to optimise your operations and make informed decisions.
Application process: You want a management system that allows you to go through the entire application process. Ideally you want the system to be able to allow tenant prospects to book viewings based off of your availability. After the viewing you want to be able to send them ways to pay holding deposits, complete the application form, provide references which are sent off automatically, send contracts and other documents, complete the check in / inventory forms, and allow for the check out process also.
Mobile Access: Property management often requires you to be on the go. Look for software that offers mobile access, such as mobile apps or mobile-friendly web interfaces. It should allow you to manage your properties, tenants, contracts, maintenance requests, and communicate on the go, providing flexibility and convenience in managing your properties from anywhere, anytime.
Scalability and Customisation: Your property business may grow over time, and your software should be able to accommodate that growth. Look for software that offers scalability and customisation options, such as the ability to add or remove properties or units, customise workflows, or integrate with other software or tools. It should be flexible enough to adapt to your changing needs and support your business growth.
User-Friendly Interface and Customer Support: Having good customer support ensures if you run into any issues you can always find a helping hand.
Using a property management system can be beneficial for property owners and managers because it streamlines operations, enhances the tenant experience from booking the viewing, all the way through the application process, and allows them to report issues and retrieve their documents through the system.
Systems also improve financial management by allowing you to track rental income as well as additional income / expenses for a property.
You can facilitate communication with your tenants and members of your staff, allowing you to send updates, attachments, and more to your tenants.
Systems can also enhances data security, particularly with GoTenant we use Amazon Web Services which are one of the most secure web services on the planet, meaning that you can rest assured your data is safe at all time.
Overall, a property management system can save time, increase efficiency, and help property managers effectively manage their properties while providing a seamless experience for tenants.
If you are looking for a property management system for you and your business then take a look at the button below to get a free 28 day trial with GoTenant.