Property management software

[Erick Schmitt]

what property management software do you use?  The reviews I have read are bad for just about all of them.   I have 519 units apartments/self storage/small business,  so I am looking for one to handle all of those types of units.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Erick Schmitt:

what property management software do you use?  The reviews I have read are bad for just about all of them.   I have 519 units apartments/self storage/small business,  so I am looking for one to handle all of those types of units.

The software for residential rentals is very different for self-storage. I prefer Easy Storage Solutions for self storage. I've tried several and it's the easiest to use for a good price.

If you have more than 50 residential rentals, I would seriously consider Buildium. If you have 150 or more, then I would consider upgrading to RentVine, Appfolio, Propertyware, or Rentec.

You'll have to narrow down the field and then take them for a test run yourself. I could tell you Propertyware is the best, but you may have a different perspective based on how you operate. here's my generic guide.

Software is a common question on BiggerPockets. Here are some things to consider:

1. Most investors don't need software until they have 5-10 rentals. All you need is a single place to track tenant information, payment history, maintenance, and a few other things. You can easily do this on a spreadsheet and it will take less time to track than it would to find and learn a new software. If the software is not simplifying your life or making you more accurate, you shouldn't use it.
2. Software does have extremely helpful features like online payments, marketing syndication (click a button and your property is advertised on multiple sites), electronic document review/signing, maintenance tracking, and owner reports. But do you really need that for your one rental?
3. There's no perfect software out there. Every system you try will have flaws or you'll salivate over a feature that shows up in other software.

Some common names you'll see thrown around a lot: Stessa, Apartments.com, RentRedi, TenantCloud, Innago, RentManager, Avail, Rentec Direct, Doorloop, etc.

I recommend you search for each of those apps online and see what they offer, how much they charge, etc. Make a simple spreadsheet or written list with the features of each and see which ones appeal to you most. Try to narrow it down to your top 3-4. Once you have a short list, get an account with each one and run them through the wringer to see how they really function. Do one task at a time in each app so you can compare apples to apples.

• Load a property with pictures and details.
• Market that property.
• See what your marketing looks like from the public's perspective.
• Submit a fake application to see how easy the process is.
• Run a credit/screening report on yourself.
• Enter a maintenance request, assign a vendor, attach a fake invoice.
• Enter charges to the tenant's ledger.
• Enter recurring charges and automatic late fees.
• Sign documents electronically.
• Run owner reports.

After testing a few apps, one of them should stand out for you. Choose that one and use it. No system is perfect, so don't waste your time chasing after the next shiny object. You should only have to change when your current software has a flaw or lacking feature that is causing you to spend too much work on a work-around. Then you can consider researching and finding something that meets your needs better.