The Benefits of Online Rent Payments Through Property Management Software

By Layla Vanderbilt

If you've ever managed a property or have known someone who has, then you know that property managers have their hands full when the first of the month rolls around. This is because they have to sort through tons of paperwork and figure out which tenants have paid their rent and which ones have yet to pay. Then they also have to compare the payments made to the numbers on the paperwork to make sure that the tenants are paying the correct amount. On top of this managers have to put up late notices and eviction notices if tenants haven't paid on time. This task can be very tedious for managers and there are several mistakes that can be made during it because of the amount of time required to do it. Luckily there is online software that managers can use to make the beginning of the month a lot less hectic.

One type of payment method that is used by some managers is an automated withdrawal system. Using this system managers don't have to worry about collecting rent from everyone as the payments are taken out on the same day every month from tenant's bank accounts. Tenants will have to give the manager their bank account number, routing number, and have to sign a consent form for the automated payments. Tenants that use this method don't have to worry about making their rent payments every month. There can be problems every once in a while for the manager as some payments might be rejected due to insufficient funds. If this happens the property may be charged a fee by the bank that they will have to pass on to the tenant. Another problem for managers is that they can't change the value of the rent. Therefore the managers will have to collect separate payments for utilities that change such as water.

In most other cases you can also go on the internet and set up accounts where you can pay via credit or debit card. This is very effective as tenants can pay their sewer, water, and rent all in one since they can specify the amount that they want to pay. The system will also keep a running tab on the payments and when they were made. This makes it easier for the tenant or manager to view the payment history. Unfortunately there are a few downsides to this method. In some cases you may have to worry about insufficient funds or fraudulent credit cards. While these cases are rare the management can get charged a 2% or 3% fee by the card company.

The other type of online payment system that can be used is where tenants use their bank accounts rather than credit or debit cards to make a payment. Once again landlords can view all of the payments online. This system often works best as landlords don't have to worry about possible fees due to credit card issues.

Online property management software can be very handy for all types of managers as they can stay more organized with less effort. This also means that you won't have to spend hours upon hours at the beginning of the month trying to figure out who paid rent because you can simply log onto the software and look. - 23217

About the Author:

Layla Vanderbilt is the webmaster for a leading property management solution review website which connects people with the leading property management tools.