Maintenance Request Online

[Wendy Lavana]

I manage 40 units. They consist of single family homes, small multis and condos. I have tenants in class A, B, and C areas. Some of my tenants do not speak or read English.  I use a property management program (Appfolio), Can I make it a hard rule that in order to submit a maintenance request, it must be online via the tenant portal?  I don't want receive calls, emails or texts about maintenance request. It's hard to keep tabs on them that way. I just want every maintenance request to come via the tenant's portal. All my tenants have access to the tenant portal and pay via the portal.  

[Sergey A. Petrov]

You can certainly create whatever “hard rule” procedures you want but if a tenant calls, emails, sends a text message, or a pigeon with a note saying there is a leak, do you ignore or tell them you’ll take no action until they go submit a ticket? It is a great tool to have and it’ll help streamline your operations but if someone calls, I respond. In those cases, I’d go online and submit that same request “on their behalf”. Presumably they’ll receive progress updates from your portal, will see the value in it, and use it to submit the next one themselves. Nothing wrong with reminding / letting them know that you prefer online submissions with that initial phone/email/text/whatever report either. It’ll never be 100% though.