All Forum Posts by: Jason Hartley

Hey James,

I've been using Rentec Direct for this.  It would be perfect for your size.  It handles my accounting and provides my tenants with a payment portal for making ACH payments and the like.  Very happy with my decision to use their software and I'm probably one of their biggest advocates (I hear)..

http://www.rentecdirect.com

I don't like the idea of taking prepaid rent.  If you decide to evict them, you have to wait until their prepaid period runs out.  Take it as a deposit instead and don't say anything about "prepaid" rent.

A $6000 reserve for a $750/mo apartment definitely does seem extreme.  If they can cover the first month and deposit and show a reliable source of income, I would think that's more in line.

@Anna Dube - I'd advise staying far far far away from Quickbooks, it's not designed for our industry.  I'd recommend software from Rentec Direct.  @Wade Sikkink - Agreed, Buildium is expensive, and every year it gets more and more expensive as they constantly raise their prices.

Hey @Nadine Lajoie - steer clear of QB, it's not for landlords.  I used to use it, and Excel, both nightmares.  I use software called Rentec Direct, used it for 4+ years now and love it.  It's designed with us in mind.  http://www.rentecdirect.com is their website.  I get nothing for referring you other than the satisfaction that you are going to save a ton of time over using QB!  

Screening has worked very well, been using it for years and best I can tell it's the most accurate data out there.  I get a great picture of my tenant's credit and criminal profiles.  

The texting is cool, but I don't use it as much as I should.  I know I can send and receive text messages in the software so I don't have to give them my personal phone number ever.

Every issue I had was resolved by their customer support.. which is GREAT by the way.  Can't say I'm having any troubles at all right now.

The cost of your repairs is immaterial.. rent to whatever the market rate is.  If the market is $595/mo, then rent at that.

The gravel wouldn't bother me, but hopefully your deal has an inspection clause.  If your inspection fails you can walk away right?  These are usually pretty open-ended, so if you don't like anything about the inspection you can walk... and there's always something that turns up in the inspection.

Like Jon we also use Rentec Direct to publish all our vacancies.  It goes to all the major outlets automatically whenever we have a vacant property.

Hi @Erin Estes, I've tried most of the apps you've listed and when I tried them all out I settled on Rentec Direct.  It had all the features I needed and the price was right.

I'd kick in my 2c and say Rentec Direct is a fantastic program for landlords of your size @Kathleen R..  I'm a very pleased customer of Rentec for more than 4 years now, there isn't anything better.