How are you guys collecting rents?

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Anna Malcolm
Real Estate Agent · Member since 2019 · 8 posts · 16 votes
5y

@Marvin Bobb We currently use Rentler (the free version) I think there is a paid version not sure. But we've been using it for over a year for 4 units.

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  • Patrick McGrath
    Rental Property Investor · Westminster, MD · Member since 2014 · 165 posts · 221 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb

    We have 10 units and use Venmo, works great for us and the tenants.

    0Reply
  • Jeff Stein
    Rental Property Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2018 · 138 posts · 52 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb

    My rent collection is split between cozy.co and physical checks mailed of dropped off at the office.

    I invest only in small commercial real estate at this time with mostly small entrepreneurs. I found a very interesting trend where many older established tenant at the property are used to mailing checks and resistant to change into cozy.co, whereas new tenants I have signed I don’t mention physical checks and are typically very happy to do online payments.

    I have found cozy.co to be very good. The price is right as it is free to you and your tenant as long as they are not using a credit card. The major downside is the delay of receiving funds, but I have not found the five day delay to be any problem that’s far.

    1Reply
  • Clay Rempe
    Ladera Ranch, CA · Member since 2017 · 4 posts · 1 vote
    5y

    @Phillip Black

    Well, you are correct Cozy does not calculate daily accumulating late fees. My leases previously had a $60 late fee and another $15 per additional day late. Cozy just throws its hands up in despair when faced with calculations like this.

    I changed my leases to a flat one time $100 late fee. (Amount varies by property,). Cozy does handle this 100% accurately every time—without me having to message tenants in any way.

    It is simpler for tenants to understand also.

    Keep your late fees less than 10% of monthly rents to stay on the right side of the lawman—check your state for details.

    -Clay

    0Reply
  • Peter TverdovBusiness Member
    Developer · New Brunswick, NJ · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    5y
    Originally posted by @Shea Spinelli:

    @Peter T. I’ve started having the same experience with Cozy. I also noticed they are a part of apartments.com. They may start charging. If that’s the case, another PM software may be more advantageous. I hear good things about Appfolio.

    I like appfolio. Very user friendly. Their customer service can suck at times but it's a great service. I only use Cozy for my biggest client who refuses to let us get the payments first and 2-3 of my own rental properties but after Cozy has given me so much flack the last month, I asked some of my tenants to start dropping off checks again. Rather do it that way than give Cozy more business. 

    [email protected]732-289-3823
    0Reply
  • Isabel LopezPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · 33125 · Member since 2020 · 1 post · 2 votes
    5y

    Cozy.co, Zelle and Bank of America has a Deposit Only Card for business accounts that works great

    2Reply
  • Steven Griffith
    Rental Property Investor · Chapel Hill, NC · Member since 2019 · 120 posts · 119 votes
    5y

    We use the Tellus App. Easy to use, maintenance requests can be sent to me through it, etc.

    1Reply
  • Peter MckernanBusiness Member
    Residential Real Estate Agent · Irvine, CA · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb We use Google Wallet 

    The McKernan Group4.957 Reviews
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    0Reply
  • John Laine
    Investor · Gilbert, AZ · Member since 2015 · 6 posts · 5 votes
    5y

    I use avail.co for 10 rentals and I love it. Used to use Cozy and that was great too, avail just has more features I was looking for.

    2Reply
  • David M Trapani
    Rental Property Investor · Franklin, TN · Member since 2019 · 160 posts · 125 votes
    5y

    Electronic payments from NNN QSR commercial tenants. Airbnb electronic payments for STR's. When I had multi family, sfh or condo LTR's we did Zelle, Venmo, PayPal or tenant would deposit directly into my bank account at the branch. A few times had property managers collect and distribute rents in Sacramento area, but mostly self-manged.

    1Reply
  • Grey Stone
    Investor · Palmdale · Member since 2016 · 112 posts · 80 votes
    5y

    The housing authority direct deposits their portion into my bank account and I have a mailbox at a mail store where tenants drop off their portion via money order or cashier's check.

    1Reply
  • David Cornett
    Rental Property Investor · Chicago, IL · Member since 2018 · 35 posts · 7 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb

    Cozy works great!

    1Reply
  • Matthew T.
    Investor · Springfield, MA · Member since 2010 · 276 posts · 84 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb we use and love Zego. It fully integrates with rent manager too.

    1Reply
  • Kirsten M.
    Realtor · Albuquerque, NM · Member since 2017 · 121 posts · 68 votes
    5y

    10 doors - we use PayPal, Venmo, and Zelle. 

    1Reply
  • Taylor Davis
    Real Estate Agent · Norman, OK · Member since 2017 · 6 posts · 4 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb I use Cozy.co it’s a simple easy to use property management site. I have my tenants set up auto draft on it. It has saved me a ton of time. Best of all it’s free.

    1Reply
  • Aqil Dharamsey
    Rental Property Investor · Rochester, NY · Member since 2016 · 303 posts · 154 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb

    In today’s market - any means possible lol. But like most here, I collect cash, MO, checks, cash app, PayPal, Zelle, Venmo, and google pay. A lot

    Of work keeping track of it all but atleast they are paying!

    1Reply
  • Kurt Kleespies
    Member since 2019 · 17 posts · 9 votes
    5y

    Just started using Innago. System is very easy but checked all the boxes for echeck, cc option, online and e-signature leases, ability to have co-signer mobile e-signature, tenant screening with Transunion, auto email reminders sent to tenants, leases and biking can be split between multiple tenants in the same unit, auto late fee, video upload for maintenance requests, maintenance tracking, etc. Free for landlords. There is a $2 fee for ACH payments but landlord can absorb part or all if desired. Standard cc fees for that type of payment. Seems like a very solid system so far. Unlimited number of units and multiple user capable. Customer service has been amazing by email that I have used. Replied to me within minutes on a weekend at midnight, twice!!

    2Reply
  • Jimmy Chao
    Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 132 posts · 91 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb Run it like a business. You can have your tenants mail you a check, but you might appreciate using an online service like Cozy. Venmo is fine too, you should just run a spreadsheet to keep track. Rent is usually late after the 5th, and your lease should spell out everything.

    2Reply
  • Cynthia McGathey
    Real Estate Broker · Treasure Island, FL · Member since 2019 · 45 posts · 42 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb

    Zelle and Venmo

    1Reply
  • Payton Pearson
    Member since 2019 · 114 posts · 111 votes
    5y

    Automatic bill pay and Venmo.  I also use Airbnb.

    1Reply
  • Carolyn Morales
    Investor · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2015 · 504 posts · 217 votes
    5y

    Direct deposit, Zelle, Cash App and Cash

    1Reply
  • Steve Milford
    Lender · Vancouver, WA · Member since 2015 · 482 posts · 316 votes
    5y

    @Marvin Bobb cozy.co and then pay $3 per month to get money in 3 bus days.

    1Reply
  • Dakota Wilde
    Member since 2018 · 100 posts · 94 votes
    5y

    @Phillip Black I currently use Tenantcloud.

    1Reply
  • Leonard L.Pro Member
    Investor · Papillion, NE · Member since 2017 · 26 posts · 13 votes
    5y
    Originally posted by @Phillip Black:

    @Marvin Bobb

    "It typically takes about 5 days to receive the ACH transfer from your tenant ... Only downfall is late fees are not automatically calculated but Cozy management stated they are looking into adding this feature in the future."

    This is where erentpayment excels. While transaction times are about the same. They have a very dynamic late fee, late payments system. You can do grace periods, fixed fee or %, add additional over time, reject or accept partial payments, force rent pay before utilities, etc. For larger operations you can accept credit cards.

    Another great feature is that you can reverse a late fee while it is processing - before it even hits your bank.

    I use Erentpayment with Stessa and they complement eachother well for a small operation. For a larger one, I'm not sure these would be quite as smooth.

    1Reply
  • Marlen Weber
    Specialist · Plano, TX · Member since 2020 · 2k+ posts · 861 votes
    5y

    I love all the options on here. Great question, @Marvin Bobb

    0Reply
  • Account Closed
    Member since 2020 · 24 posts · 16 votes
    5y

    In a nutshell, the most popular ones if you have up to 20 units are Cozy, Okupied, AppFolio, TenantCloud.  If you need just rent facilitation, then Cozy, as well as Zelle, Venmo or other free tools can work well as they are free.  However, with them, you will still need to manage separate spreadsheets or another app for expenses, lease renewals, etc. 

    If you want to not only collect rent but track expenses, generate IRS reports, and get phone reminders for events, then Okupied is your best bet.  We have been using it for a year now and it is very user friendly.  

    If you want additional features such as tenant screening, maintenance requests, documents upload and e-signatures, and a bunch of other features, then AppFolio and TenantCloud could work, but they are not user friendly at all.  

    So it the end, it all depends what you need accomplished besides rent collection.  I am always on the go, so for me a mobile app works great, but some people like the convenience of desktop applications. My suggestion is create a free account and just test them out to see which one you are most comfortable with and is easier to use. 

    0Reply
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