I've been using Stessa for many years now. I started back when they were in Beta mode and free so I've seen them grow quite a bit. One thing I will say is they've come a long way and they are very good at taking direction. Every time I've put in a request for a change in their software they've done it that week. No joke. I've been in property management since 2013 and have used Yardi, Appfolio, and Stessa. I've used tons of other software as well but I loved when Stessa came out with multiple bank accounts. As an out of state investor, having Tenants have their own portal to make payments is a must. Stessa can also do leases w/docusign, tenant screening, and rental listings but I don't use that feature. I have had great success with Zillow Rental Manager which is free and posts to Trulia and Hotpads in one go PLUS their application fee is super cheap. I think $35 at the time of this writing and they can withdraw it and use it at other locations if they get denied. I think the application is active for a month as well. This means I get a ton of applications but Zillow also makes it easy to deny and sends them the denial letter which is fantastic in my opinion. I used to use mysmartmove.com for credit/background checks before that. It's great but a little more expensive for the potential tenant.
Stessa/Thread Bank APY is currently 5.09% so I actually make money every month even though I'm on the pro plan. I have not used Baselane but since I've been with Stessa for so long I don't see myself changing especially since the APY is higher. Don't fix what ain't broke ya know? lol
Stessa also does tax packages and has tons of resources on tax planning. I love their reports which make it easy to send to lenders when I'm looking for portfolio and DSCR financing. I'm an active investor and always swapping out financing so I love that I can track all of that easily with Stessa. Those are newer updates and were much needed. You used to be able to sell turnkey properties for very nominal fees (1% listing fee if sold) via Roofstock with Stessa a couple of years ago. I don't know if they still do that service but that was also nice. I did not sell one with them but I did have a listing with them. I don't think their platform was selling many turnkey properties in Arkansas at the time so I think that was why it maybe didn't sell?
Stessa has an app that I use all the freaking time. Esp when I'm on the go and doing a flip. I capture the receipts as soon as I leave a home improvement store and it has saved my butt because those receipts pile up fast when you're in active renovation on multiple properties.
I do not work for Stessa in any capacity and I don't receive anything from referring them. They have had many drawbacks in the past but they are quick to put out new features and do actually make changes based on comments in the forums. Please let me know if you have any other questions and cheers to your REI, @Tyler Koller! Best of luck!
