If you own one of the 44 million US rental homes, you are likely aware of the difficulties in managing your properties and juggling tenants. Rent, maintenance, and many other issues can start to build up and might be overwhelming. If only there was a better way...
This is where a tenant portal can come in handy. Read on as we explain how one can improve your role as a landlord and save you both time and money.
What Is a Tenant Portal?
These days, landlords can invest in a dedicated and secure online area that allows both them and their renters to resolve issues easier. It acts as a central area where you can communicate with tenants, see rent payment statuses, and see any problems you might need to deal with.
Rent Payment
Collecting rent from tenants is not always easy, both for landlords as well as the people trying to pay. An online portal can act as a much more convenient method instead. It allows for the use of a card or bank transfer to send you money directly from their account.
This method of rent collection saves everyone time. It removes the need for handling checks and allows the process to resolve in an instant.
A portal can also set reminders, informing people of when they need to pay rent, or if it is late.
Maintenance Requests
Through a simple online form, tenants can contact you, and you respond to them, regarding anything that needs repairing in the property. This can also save a record of the discussion, in case you need details for any purpose later on.
Receiving messages in this way means you do not need to worry about giving out your cell phone number. You can also have the peace of mind that issues can receive a resolution promptly, as you can always see a list of the items you need to look at.
If you find maintenance is still a burden, you might want to investigate the possibility of a rental management service. These systems can often handle such work for you while you continue with the rest of your life.
Document Access
Sometimes people misplace documents, such as their contracts, and want to check things are up-to-date. You are likely to also want a record that both you and the party can see that confirms the agreement you have.
By having copies of all documents and agreements, any online portal can act as an area you can both use as a shared understanding space. You can also re-download them for any purpose again in the future.
If you need your tenant to make note of any notices you send them. You can also upload them here and get a notice when the renter opens the page and reads them.
Plan Your Tenant Portal
One of the main improvements with a tenant portal is how much time it takes off your hands. Still, if this is an issue you are having, why not consider allowing a property manager to perform this role instead?
We are experts in the area of handling both individual rental properties as well as large portfolios. So, if you want to see what we can offer in the North Carolina area, get in contact today.
