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To hit it big in the student housing industry, you must get two things spot-on: a deep understanding of what your tenants need and a commitment to offering unrivaled customer service.
But wait, there's more. You'll also need to get your hands on state-of-the-art management software. The kind that makes your day-to-day run smoothly and, at the same time, significantly improves the living conditions for your residents.
That's where this guide comes in. We're about to dive into student housing programs for 2024!
We'll also explore all the essential features these platforms offer, so by the end, you'll be in the perfect position to pick the right solution that matches your property ambitions. Let's jump right in!
What Is Student Housing?
Student housing properties are an important component of the rental market and provide accommodations for students attending colleges and universities. This includes the following:
- On-campus dormitories
- Off-campus apartments
- Student co-ops
- ... and purpose-built residential association spaces designed specifically to meet students' needs.
These programs allow students to save money due to their proximity to schools. Most of these student housing programs offer features such as gyms or libraries.
Succeeding As a Student Housing Property Manager
To succeed in student housing property management, you must comprehend your tenants' requirements, provide first-class customer service and keep yourself informed of market trends.
Utilizing the best student housing software for managing all elements associated with properties - from tenant data to lease papers and maintenance needs - will help streamline operations, better communication between students, and make daily tasks more efficient.
Companies like Campus Advantage & Greystar have proved themselves successful by offering premium managerial services related to their students’ apartments while utilizing the power of best-suited application tools that bring about unity among inhabitants.
You, too, can succeed in this sector if these techniques are adopted.
Importance of Student Housing Management Software
The management of student housing properties can be greatly improved using specialized software. This software is designed to help property managers perform the following tasks:
- Rent collection
- Tenant screening
- Maintenance requests
- ... and more
When searching for the best solution in student housing software, key features should include:
- Customizable tenant portals
- Integration capabilities
- Reporting & analytics functionality.
When all these factors are combined, they can greatly enhance operations by simplifying processes for students residing in accommodations and their supervisors who oversee them, ultimately creating a more pleasant environment for everyone involved.
Top Features to Look for in Student Housing Software
When searching for the top student housing software, one should consider how its features can positively influence your property management and resident experience.
Key characteristics to look for include tailored tenant portals, connectivity options, analytics, and reporting capacity.
By having these fundamental elements in place with the chosen software platform, you'll be able to better oversee your student housing properties whilst giving tenants a higher quality of service – not just from yourself but also from other members of staff or team.
Customizable Tenant Portal
Any student housing management software requires a customizable tenant portal for an effortless and efficient experience. This web-based platform permits students to inspect their lodgings, make rent payments, and lodge maintenance requests with the luxury of utilizing any device, PC, or mobile device.
Introducing this online system into operations makes it possible to simplify processes dramatically whilst simultaneously boosting communication between tenants and property managers.
Integration Capabilities
Investing in student housing software with robust integration capabilities is essential for property managers to successfully manage their operations.
Such features will allow the program to connect with campus systems such as financial, information, and third-party platforms, enhancing communication between stakeholders on different levels while simplifying data consolidation so that student renters can enjoy a more comfortable experience.
Reporting and Analytics
The ability to report and analyze is a key component of any student housing management software.
It gives property managers the means to create reports about occupancy rates, rent collection status, and maintenance needs which can be used in making decisions regarding their business plans for that particular resident accommodation area.
Using an advanced student housing program will provide even greater insight into a property's performance.
Top Student Housing Software Solutions
Innago
Innago offers a (mostly) free option for getting started, which makes it a good starter option. Users report them having good reporting features and verification tools, so if that’s important to you, this might be a good option.
With that said, users also report having trouble using their lease templates and some parts of the software are either unintuitive or don’t work properly, leading to frequent complaints.
Features include:
- Robust reporting
- Tenant screening
- Lease management
- Tenant portal
Pricing
Innago’s starter plan is mostly free, with a $2 charge on all ACH payments and 2.75% charge for debit and credit card payments.
You’ll also need to pay $30-35 for criminal, credit, and eviction history checks per transaction.
Room Choice
Room Choice is a comprehensive platform that offers student housing management features such as online bed selection, leasing and room assignments, and roommate matching to provide an improved resident experience.
It also provides added benefits like customizable tenant portals, integration capabilities, and reporting tools providing property owners the insight needed to optimize operations.
Pricing
Room Choice does not publicly release their pricing, so you'll have to contact them to get a quote.
Yardi
Yardi Breeze is a decent option for property managers who are just starting out, though their pricing model is on the higher end with a monthly minimum of $100.
One major benefit is the intuitive interface, which makes it easy to get around. However, they don’t offer an app version. So, if you’re looking for a tool you can take with you on the go, this likely isn’t the right option.
Yardi Breeze offers a professional, compliant website service as part of their feature set, though they don’t offer much information about it online.
Features include:
- Tenant communications
- Maintenance management
- Robust accounting features
- Owner reports
Pricing
Yardi Breeze separates its pricing based on property type, with separate pricing tiers for residential and commercial. They also use a monthly minimum, which is considerably higher than most options on this list.
Yardi’s residential Breeze plan starts at a high $100 per month minimum at $1 per unit. Their Breeze Premium plan starts at $400 monthly minimum at $2 per unit and goes up from there.
DoorLoop
DoorLoop offers every major feature of top property management software!
Plus, you get it all baked into one convenient, lightning-fast, easy-to-use platform.
Not to mention great customer service that makes getting started (including migrating) and learning the software simple and straightforward.
DoorLoop’s features include:
- Full accounting suite so you can make DoorLoop your all-in-one property accounting tool
- Plus, a convenient QuickBooks Online integration if you prefer to use DoorLoop strictly for property management
- Tenant portal to make collecting rent easier and centralize all tenant communications
- Maintenance management system
- Leasing tools to make getting clients in, and setting them up, completely streamlined
- And much more
Pricing
DoorLoop’s all-in-one property management solution offers competitive pricing starting at just $59 for 20 units.
Bottom Line
By investing in a reliable solution, you will be able to streamline operations while providing an exceptional resident experience.
When choosing the best software... we believe that DoorLoop is one of the top contenders for an affordable price.
Schedule a free demo of DoorLoop to see how it can benefit you!
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