All Forum Posts by: Glenn Hoffman

@Vicki X., thanks for the insight.  I've been doing the same by posting directly on Zillow.  I agree that there are some bugs, and pre-screening is not great.  

Hi all, I know that this has been rehashed before, but I feel the need to get this post out there for comment.  First, some background.  I've used several "light" management platforms and landed on Avail (Avail.co) for the last five years or so.  Avail is absolutely excellent for lease building and e-sign as it incorporates state-specific legal clauses and allows you to modify the lease to your liking.  This is paired with automated prorating of rent and electronic payment setup.  They also have an awesome self-service tour schedule signup page that is included through your listing. They are the king of these areas IMHO.  Last year, they ceased syndication with Zillow for marketing and it's killing me.  I'm receiving about 70% of my marketing traffic through Zillow and thus I still need to list through Zillow.  It has just become a major PITA to port information, tour schedules, etc. from Zillow to Avail.  This has set me once again down the path of exploring platforms, one of which is RentRedi.  I've looked at others, but RentRedi is a perk of a Pro BP membership and I don't think it's a bad platform, and thus worth looking at.  I would like to know from those of you out there that are RentRedi savants, how you manage/create your leases, and how RentRedi has been from a syndication perspective.  If the syndication is great and it's truly a singular portal for communication, I may be able to give up some of the advantages of lease creation/management on Avail.  I only have 8 doors, but these features do affect my time spent managing.  Thanks in advance for any insight, and I am happy to share more about Avail if interested. BTW, Avail's customer support is US-based and fantastic.  Real people and developers, and not chats/bots.

Quote from @Vicki X.:

Zillow cease working with Turbotenant as well, and my experience was the same as yours @Glenn Hoffman.
Now I list on zillow separately by myself. But to be honest, I'm not happy with zillow pre-screening (almost non-existent), and background check (lower quality). So I had to do these through emails, calls or in other platforms that use SmartMover for background check.

I also discover another tool called TenantTurner. It's paid but their listing, pre-screening and showing is robust. I plan to try it out.

I'll check out TenantTurner as that sounds interesting, although Avail performs well as my one-stop shop.  I appreciate the tips.  Per the subject started, I'm now just doing the same as most.....Using my primary platform for ad syndication and Zillow as a separate advertising platform due to their market reach.  It's not ideal, but once I generate a lead in Zillow, I just manually add them to my lead feed in Avail and then at least I can manage them from one place after the initial contact.

Quote from @Nicole Easley:

I also just got a price increase notice from Avail yesterday. It's making RentRedi look more attractive every day.  I've never used RentRedi and would be curious how it compares to Avail. 

That's interesting as they have not raised pricing on me yet.  Maybe I'm grandfathered in?

I am currently in search of a reliable general contractor to bid on an interior reconstruction project in the Milwaukee area. The contractor must be able to work with my insurance company as part of a claim payout. More details can be provided for seriously interested parties. Here is some basic information:

• The building is a duplex, with each floor being 900sf.


• One kitchen and bath per unit (needs full restoration)


• Interior drywall, sub-floors, finished floors (LVT), interior doors


• Some electrical and plumbing


• ALL DEMOLITION AND CLEANUP WORK HAS BEEN COMPLETED

Please private message me if you are seriously interested and have availability.

 I  currently manage my properties

through Avail. Avail has been great for me as their listing syndication

and legal lease generation features make management easier at a reasonable price per unit. If you

don't already know, Zillow Rental Manager just dropped Avail as a

syndication partner for listings.  According to inside sources at Avail, this was not their decision. I agree that Zillow may not be the

best for management/screening, but they are good at marketing. About 60-70% of my leads came through

Zillow before they dropped Avail. I'm currently listing a unit via Avail, and

despite them adding some new syndication partners, I am seeing considerably

less interest/traffic on my property listings. This is a direct blow to Avail. I

really don't want to manage two platforms for listings. It would also be

painful to move all my units to another platform that syndicates with

Zillow, without removing the risk that Zillow may decide at any time to

drop any given platform . I will not be moving my units to ZRM as it falls short in many aspects with the exception of marketing. I'm going to ride it out here for a bit on

Avail because of the features I mentioned and their excellent customer

service, but not driving tenants to my listings could result in

thousands of dollars being left on the table.  Please let me know if you have any thoughts or opinions on this matter.

Hello all, I am just chiming in here as I manage my properties through Avail.  Avail has been great for me as their listing syndication and legal lease generation features make management easier.  If you don't already know, Zillow Rental Manager just dropped Avail as a syndication partner for listings.  I agree that Zillow may not be the best for management/screening, but about 60-70% of my leads came through Zillow before this event.  I'm currently listing a unit via Avail, and despite them adding some syndication partners, I am seeing considerably less interest in my properties.  This is a direct blow to Avail.  I really don't want to manage two sites for listings. It will also be painful to move all my units to another platform that syndicates with Zillow, and then there's the risk that Zillow may decide at any time to drop any given platform .  I'm going to ride it out here for a bit on Avail because of the features I mentioned and excellent customer service, but not driving tenants to my listings could result in thousands of dollars being left on the table.

Hi @Cliff H., please see my response to Richard above.  Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.  

@Anthony Spallone

Hey @Richard B. , I have abandoned Stessa and went with Rentastic (https://rentastic.io).  I have found Rentastic to be user friendly and reliable.  You can customize categories, which is really nice.  The reporting is not as extensive as Stessa, but I have found that it suits my needs with an 8-unit portfolio.  The customer service has been good, and what I have found to be most important, they do not sell your information.  I question Stessa's data policies, and that was another reason for me to jump.  I believe that they have a free trial that is worth checking out.  At around $100/year, for me it is worth it.  The mobile app also has a simple and clean interface.  Thanks for getting back and let me know if you end up checking it out.  

Hi all,

I know that there are a number of you out there that have experienced this transition as a result of the acquisition of Cozy.  I have to state up front that I was quite pleased with Cozy for it's simplicity and ease of use.  It just worked for my purpose of managing 9 doors.

I would like to share with you my general experience following the transition.  Bear in mind that I'm still going to give this platform a chance as they are likely working some bugs out, but it has failed to meet my expectations.

1.  The interface seems slow.  Changing pages takes forever and it's not my internet connection.  
2.  I was ready for a full-blown functional app - this has not been the case.  The mobile app is primarily for renters and not managers.  When you proceed to the management side, it shoots you out to a mobile browser....where you have to log in again!  The app is useless to me.  I will save a browser shortcut to the management site on my mobile home screen and save logging in twice.  Annoying as the web-optimized Cozy site was simple and slick.
3.  Rent applications:  The application view just seems clunky.  I have to use the drop-down to select "invited" to see what's going on.  There has to be a better dashboard that shows more information.  
4.  Advertising:  I've used the non-premium service and the traction is low.  It's almost as if my ad is being suppressed and I'm saying this because for $9.99 a week I'm getting 12x....yes, 1200% more traffic for the same units on Zillow.  I would try the premium, but it's very expensive when I have other options drawing the magnitudes in.

I was really excited about this transition due to the fact that they would have more capital via the backing of CoStar to do some really great things to empower the investor community.  I will keep trying here and give it some time, but my sails have been deflated.

Thanks for listening and let me know if you have had your own unique experience.  Meanwhile, I will be sitting here watching the green CoStar pendant wheel spin........time to get some iced tea.  LOL