Best software(s) and/or Apps to manage single family rentals (12) and 11 RV spots
Joe SchultzPro Member
Marble Falls, TX · Member since 2015 · 41 posts · 12 votesBest software(s) and/or Apps to manage single family rentals (12) and 11 RV spots
10 Replies
- Investor · Charleston, SC · Member since 2018 · 198 posts · 84 votes2mo
Joe, I would not try to force the 11 RV spots and 12 houses into one perfect app. That is really two jobs: tenant operations, meaning rent collection, listings, showings, messages, and lease storage, and owner records, meaning clean books, documents, loans, deposits, and tax handoff. I use DoorVault for the owner records side, which I founded, but I would still pair it with a tenant operations tool if I were running the RV park day to day. The first question is whether your bookkeeper needs live access, or whether you only need a clean monthly export into QuickBooks Desktop.
- 2moRachid AbadliBusiness MemberInvestor · Sacramento, CA · Member since 2024 · 129 posts · 36 votes
Joe — I self-manage a similar-sized portfolio and went through the same hunt. Eduardo's right that trying to force everything into one tool usually means compromises everywhere.
Here's how I'd break it down for your setup:
The RV park is a different animal. Most PM software treats "units" as apartments or houses. RV spots have different turnover cycles, seasonal pricing, and utility metering. You may need a dedicated RV park tool (like Firefly or RMS) for that side, or at minimum a tool that lets you customize unit types heavily.
For the 12 SFRs, the real question is what your bookkeeper actually needs. If she's on QuickBooks Desktop (not Online), most PM tools won't do a live sync — they'll export a CSV or IIF file. That's fine, but it means you're not getting real-time integration no matter what anyone tells you. The honest workflow is: PM tool handles tenant-facing ops (rent collection, lease storage, maintenance requests, communication logs), then you export monthly to QBD.
On the showing/communication tracking — this is where most landlords cobble together Zillow + texting + email + a spreadsheet, and it falls apart. What you actually want is a single place where every tenant interaction is logged with timestamps. When a deposit dispute happens three years from now, that log is what saves you.
I built LeaseBase specifically for self-managing landlords in this range (10–30 units) where you've outgrown spreadsheets but don't need enterprise PM software. Handles rent collection, maintenance tracking, tenant comms, lease management, and compliance checks. Free to use — happy to set you up if you want to take a look. But honestly, even if you go with something else, solve the communication logging problem first. That's the one that bites you later.
LeaseBase.ai - 2moEd BaronePro MemberSaratoga Springs, NY · Member since 2018 · 109 posts · 56 votes
Joe,
With 11 RV sites and 12 single-family homes, I'd probably think about this a little differently than someone managing a handful of long-term rentals. At your size, it's worth investing in software that can grow with you and reduce manual work.
Based on what you described, I'd make a checklist of your "must haves" and compare a few platforms against it:
- Online rent collection and payment tracking
- Marketing to multiple listing sites (be sure Zillow is in the mix)
- Tenant inquiry management (email/text) and showing coordination
- Maintenance tracking
- Tenant screening and lease signing
- Accounting/reporting
I recently came across this comparison from Baselane that looks at several of the more popular options (RentRedi, Innago, TurboTenant, Avail, Baselane, and others). I thought it was a good starting point for understanding the differences:
https://www.baselane.com/resources/rent-management-software-platformFull disclosure: I'm a co-founder of RentRedi. If you're a BiggerPockets Pro member, RentRedi is already included with your membership.
That said, with your mix of RV sites and single-family homes, I'd compare several platforms to make sure they fit your workflow. The best choice will depend less on the number of units and more on how you operate the business.Hope that helps, and I'd be interested to hear what you end up choosing.
Hope to see you at BPCON in Orlando.
Ed - Real Estate Agent · Memphis · Member since 2026 · 558 posts · 323 votes2mo
There are quite a few good platforms out there, and the "best" one usually depends on your workflow more than the feature list.
I'd focus on finding something that keeps leasing, maintenance, resident communication, and rent collection in one place. Having those functions spread across multiple apps often creates more work than it saves.
Since you're already using QuickBooks Desktop, I'd also verify how well any platform integrates with your existing accounting process before committing. Some integrations are much smoother than others.
One question I'd ask is whether you want software that can comfortably handle both the single-family rentals and the RV park under the same system. That may narrow your options quite a bit and save you from managing two separate workflows.
- Member since 2023 · 5 posts · 4 votes2mo
Joe, I self-manage a duplex in Rochester and manage large construction projects for my day job. The QuickBooks Desktop constraint is going to drive this more than anything else on your list, and it is worth being blunt about. Almost nothing syncs live to QBD anymore, the vendors have all moved to QBO. What you will actually get is a monthly CSV or IIF export. That is fine, but plan your bookkeeper's workflow around a monthly close rather than live access, and stop evaluating tools on the word integration.
On the RV spots, I would stop trying to solve them in the same system. Eleven spots with seasonal pricing and metered utilities behaves like hospitality. Twelve houses on annual leases behaves like housing. Running both through one tool usually means you configure it for the twelve and hand-manage the eleven anyway, which is roughly what you are doing now, minus a subscription.
The piece I would solve first is the one that is cheapest to fix and most expensive to skip. One written channel for tenant requests, where the request and a photo land in the same place every time. Whatever platform you land on, that log is what you will be quoting from in a deposit dispute two years out. Most people get rent collection right and leave that part on text messages.
- online · Member since 2026 · 99 posts · 44 votes2mo
For that combo of SFH rentals plus an RV park, most all-in-one platforms like Buildium or AppFolio can handle rent collection, QuickBooks sync, and marketing/listing syndication, though AppFolio tends to be priced for larger portfolios. RentRedi is worth a look too if cost-effectiveness matters, it's more budget friendly and still covers rent collection, applications, and maintenance requests.
One thing that's easy to miss even with a good all-in-one platform: none of them really handle planning ahead for major system replacements, roof, HVAC, water heaters, especially across a mixed portfolio like SFHs and an RV park where replacement costs and timelines vary a lot. Your bookkeeper handling the financials is great for day to day, but that longer term capex planning is usually a separate conversation. Worth asking her directly if that's something she's tracking for you, since it's often the piece that gets missed until something breaks.
- Specialist · Goa, India · Member since 2026 · 175 posts · 36 votes2mo
The communication log point from @Rachid Abadli and @Cameron Best is the one I'd weight heaviest too. Before picking a platform, it's worth knowing that getting everyone to actually use a new portal is its own battle, especially across 23 units split between two very different setups. Often the bigger win is just capturing what's already happening, texts and calls, into one log, rather than betting the whole system on tenants changing behavior.
Are your tenants already used to texting you directly, or would this be a fresh setup for them?
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