Streamlining Property Management Using Automation Tools

As a landlord or property manager, it can feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day—especially if you’re managing a large portfolio of properties.

Property management requires a high level of organisation to keep things running smoothly. From tenant screening to property maintenance, bookkeeping, and tenant communications, the to-do list can feel endless.

But what if we told you there was a way to streamline your operations, saving you time, resources, money, and stress? Today, numerous tools are available to help landlords and property managers automate time-consuming and repetitive tasks.

In this article, we explore the benefits of using automation tools to help manage your rental property business. We’ll also highlight some of the most popular property management automation tools available today.

What do we mean by automation?

If you’re not familiar with what automation is and how it works, let us explain. Automation refers to the process of using technology, software, or machines to perform tasks with minimal human intervention.

Over recent years, automation technology has surged in popularity, with most businesses now benefiting from automating at least some of their operations. Automation tools can be used to perform many of the administrative tasks that landlords routinely perform.

Automating these time-consuming tasks has many benefits, which we’ll explore in more detail next.

How can automation tools benefit landlords and property managers?

Automation tools can significantly streamline property management operations for landlords, saving time across various tasks. But beyond the obvious time-saving benefits, these tools can also provide more far-reaching and perhaps unexpected benefits. Ready to learn more about how automation tools could benefit your operations?

• Save time – This is a big one for time-starved landlords. Automation tools can carry out those tedious recurring tasks so that you don’t have to, increasing your efficiency and freeing up more time to either relax or concentrate on growing your rental business.
• Save money – As the saying goes, time is money. So, all that time saved by automating translates into financial savings, especially if you manage a portfolio of properties or employ staff to help run your rental property business.
• Reduce human error – Automation tools do not get tired, bored, or distracted from their work. They can analyse huge amounts of data quickly and efficiently, much more so than their human counterparts. Therefore, using automation technology to carry out mundane recurring tasks inplace of humans can minimise errors and improve efficiency.
• Enhance tenant satisfaction – When property management tasks are completed quickly, efficiently, and without error, the rental business runs smoothly. If tenants have had a good experience, they are more likely to feel satisfied with your service and recommend it to their friends, helping to boost your reputation as a reliable landlord.
• Ensure compliance – As a landlord, you must comply with numerous laws and industry regulations. Automation tools can help you standardise your processes in accordance with legal and industry requirements while also reducing the risk of penalties or legal issues arising from mismanagement or human errors.
• Facilitate scalability – Using automation tools to carry out repetitive tasks and streamline your operations frees up more of your time, enabling you to grow your portfolio without additional strain.
• Enhance data analysis – Advanced data analysis is crucial if you want to optimise the performance of your existing rental business and identify potential new opportunities. However, many landlords find they do not have the time to sift through and analyse huge amounts of data. This is where automation tools excel. This technology can very quickly analyse large amounts of raw data and turn it into actionable insights, enabling landlords to make data-driven business decisions to boost their efficiency and profitability.

What aspects of property management can be automated?

Now that we’ve explored the benefits, it’s time to learn more about how landlords can apply automation throughout their operations. Repetitive administrative tasks make up a huge proportion of the work involved with running a rental property. With the right tools, landlords can manage their rental business more efficiently and significantly reduce their workload. Let’s learn more about which areas of property management can be streamlined using automation tools.

Rent collection

Monitoring and chasing up rent payments can be frustrating and time-consuming. If you spend a lot of time each month checking if payments have come in, chasing up tenants and sending late payment reminders, you can save time and hassle by automating these tasks. Property management software like Landlord Vision can automatically notify you when a rent payment becomes overdue. Using automation tools to send rent invoices and payment reminders automatically can increase efficiency and significantly reduce the administrative burden.

Accounting

I’ve never met a landlord who enjoys looking after their business accounts. Accounting is another tedious but necessary evil that comes part and package with being a landlord or property manager. However, there are now numerous automation tools available that can remove much of the manual work involved with keeping track of your accounts – and do a much more accurate job of it too! From recording rent payments to bookkeeping and account reconciliation. Specialist all-in-one landlord software like Landlord Vision or automated accounting tools like Xero make keeping accurate and up-to-date accounts a breeze.

Tenant communications

Regular communication is key to forging a good landlord/tenant relationship and improving tenant satisfaction and retention rates. However, regularly composing and sending emails or making phone calls can take up a lot of time, particularly if you’re managing multiple properties. Automating many of the routine communications you make with tenants will not only save you time but also improve the service your tenants receive by providing consistent and timely interactions, making tenants feel valued and well-informed.

Document management

Efficient document management simplifies your job, enhances the security of your business, and ensures compliance with critical data protection and privacy regulations. Automated document management tools can help you to automatically save important documents to one central cloud-based location and organise and categorise files. These tools also allow you to search for and retrieve important documents quickly and easily from any location.

Tenant screening

Thorough tenant screening can help you minimise risk and safeguard against problem tenants and non-payment of rent. Effective tenant screening involves carrying out multiple different checks, including credit checks and obtaining references from employers and previous landlords. Fortunately, several tenant screening tools, such as Vouch, are available to automate and streamline this process. These tools can automatically scan multiple databases and conduct comprehensive checks quickly, delivering results that will help you make informed decisions about the reliability of a potential tenant.

Maintenance requests

If you only manage one or two rental properties, maintenance requests may be few and far between. However, if you’re running a portfolio of properties, maintenance requests could be one of your biggest pain points! Property maintenance software allows tenants to submit their property maintenance issues through an app. You can then view the requests and assign the work to one of your trusted vendors with the click of a button. An automatic notification will then be sent to the tenant to let them know the status of their request.

Lease renewals

When using an automation tool to manage lease renewals, you and your tenant will receive an automatic notification when the end of the lease is approaching. The system will then send a renewal offer to tenants and follow-up reminders if they do not respond. Tenants can then review and sign the digital lease online and submit it to you electronically.

Tenant onboarding

Onboarding new tenants is an admin-heavy process that requires efficient management of documentation and communication of important information. Automating this process requires the creation of an onboarding workflow and the associated digital documentation, such as electronic application forms, digital lease agreements, and move-in checklists. These documents can then be scheduled to be sent automatically, with responses and data automatically saved in a secure, cloud-based location. This approach not only eliminates the need for paperwork and reduces your carbon footprint but also establishes a digital audit trail that is useful for enhanced record-keeping and compliance.

Data analysis

Effective data analysis is important for property rental businesses of all sizes as it helps with informed decision-making and strategic planning. Few landlords have the time to sift through large volumes of data manually. This is where automation proves invaluable. Automation tools can be used to collect data and then apply advanced analytics to identify trends, patterns, and anomalies. These tools can be leveraged to track important metrics like occupancy rates, rental yield, and tenant demographics, helping the landlord to forecast market trends and tenant behaviour effectively and enabling proactive management.

What challenges do landlords face when adopting automation technology?

So, if automation can be used to complete many of the repetitive and administrative tasks that landlords face daily – why are so few taking full advantage of it?

One of the biggest hurdles is the perceived cost of implementation, closely followed by anxieties about learning new technology. Some landlords also worry about data privacy and security or how these tools would integrate with their existing systems. However, with such a wide range of tools on the market, there really is something available for everyone. Even partial automation can significantly improve your overall operational efficiency and save valuable time.

If you only manage one or two properties, then you may not feel that the benefits will outweigh the costs. In this instance, it is worth doing your research to find out if there are any free or low-cost tools that you can implement and potentially scale up as your property portfolio grows.

Automation and Landlord Vision

Landlord Vision is an industry-leading property management software that includes numerous helpful features and tools to help you automate and streamline your rental business operations. The software offers automation tools that can simplify many aspects of property management, including:

• Automated invoicing
• Automatic rolling tenancies
• Payment notifications
• Advanced data analysis
• Automatic matching of bank statement entries and invoices
• Bank reconciliation
• Tax management

The Landlord Vision software is available in several different plans, each tailored to suit different needs and budgets. Every plan includes a two-week free trial, allowing you to explore its features and benefits without any upfront commitment. Request a free demo today.