Weekly, Bi-weekly Rent, Property Management Software

[Andrew Clark]

I have searched high and low for property management software that is capable of tracking weekly, bi-weekly and monthly rents. Every company claims there is a way to do it with their software but it's not designed to do it = more headache. They are designed for monthly.

Does anyone have experience with a tracking software that can handle weekly, bi-weekly and monthly rents?

I have a couple rooming houses with a total of about 20 rooms. I'll be adding another 20 soon and need to nail this detail down.

I'm currently using Quicken but, like the rest, it's not designed for anything other than monthly rents.

Thank you for any information!

Andrew

[Andrew Clark]

You definitely have your hands full. I think the secret to my success with this is not having too many people crammed into the same place. These type of people LOVE to loiter, hanging out, drink, not work... basically they are really good at existing. I have found this to be true when too many are in the same close knit area. That being said, I also have hardworking, non-drinking straight laced people... but of course these aren't the tenants we are really talking about.

My suggestions:
-Treat them with respect. They love it. Chances are the last landlord was a slumlord and only came by to pick up rent. Learn their names.
-Ask each tenant what if any problems do they have. You'll have to prompt them a bit because they may have been living without cold water in the kitchen for 6 months... they forget this is not normal. I always ask, do you have hot water? heat? any leaks in plumbing? any roof leaks? I pay most of my utilities so I want to know about plumbing leaks and electric heaters not working but running ASAP.
-Ask tenants if they know about their neighbors. Sometimes they'll say 'I don't know nothing' other times they will tell you about the hookers, crack, selling $5 showers, arms dealing... There is always one 'Mayor' of each building/floor. They make it their business to know everyone elses business. You want this person on your side.
-Clean House. I'll tell bad apples I need to repaint this building and I need them to move as soon as possible. I'll even offer them $50 to leave by whenever. Never give them the money until their room is cleaned out and locked. If you have to help them move by providing a truck, it'll be worth it. Getting the people out who - don't pay, cause problems, call legal counsel and are the social butterflies. Sometimes your biggest problem tenants are the one who pay. Get rid of them too because they will cause other good tenants to leave.

The list goes on... if you have any specific questions let me know. This isn't nearly as tough as I expected it to be. My tenants for the most part pay on time and LOVE ME because when something breaks, I fix it (or supervise the fix anyway :)

Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

Thanks,

Andrew