Property Management Software for Small Landlords (2024)

Small landlords can simplify their work by using modern software instead of relying on traditional tools like Microsoft Excel and QuickBooks.

As a real estate investor or property manager with a small portfolio, property management software offers a more efficient and streamlined solution. Here's a list of the best property managment software for small landlords in 2024:

1. DoorLoop
2. Landlord Studio
3. Hemlane
4. Avail
5. Rentec Direct
6. Stessa
7. Rentroom
8. TurboTenant
9. RentRedi
10. TenantCloud
11. SimplifyEm
12. ManageCasa
13. Zillow Rental Manager
14. Landlordy

What to Look for in Property Management Software as a Small Landlord

As a small landlord with between one and ten rental properties, your goals can vary. You might want to quickly grow your portfolio or manage your existing rentals more efficiently. You aim to provide convenience to your tenants while cutting down on manual tasks.

With today’s property management software, you can achieve these goals. Whether you focus on growth or efficiency, automation significantly reduces the time you spend managing properties, allowing you to concentrate on expanding your business.

Online Rent Collection‍

Enables tenants to pay rent conveniently from anywhere, with features like auto payments, late fee enforcement, payment reminders, and automatic rent receipts.

Tenant and Lease Tracking

Tenant and lease tracking is a crucial feature in property management software, particularly for small landlords. This feature streamlines the management of tenant information, lease agreements, and rent schedules, ensuring that landlords can efficiently handle their rental properties without being overwhelmed by administrative tasks.

Tenant Screening

Finding the right tenant is paramount. A bad tenant can financially devastate a landlord. The best property management software allows you to collect applications and fees online and run background checks on potential tenants via integrated services, ensuring you find the best tenants without jumping through hoops.‍

Maintenance Request Management

Managing maintenance requests can be challenging. A maintenance request management system organizes requests, pictures, and contacts, and taps into a network of vetted contractors, eliminating the costly overhead of a property management company.

Accounting and Financial Reporting

Keeping track of rent payments, expenses, and financial health can be overwhelming. Comprehensive financial reporting features in the software provide a clear picture of your financial situation, consolidating all financial aspects in one place.

The software allows for comprehensive income and expense tracking. Automated entries record rent payments, fees, and other income, while expense management tools help track maintenance costs, utilities, and other property-related expenses. This ensures that landlords have an accurate and up-to-date view of their financial situation at all times.

Integration with Other Tools

Integration with other tools is a critical feature of property management software, allowing seamless connection with various external applications for enhanced efficiency.

Property management software can sync with popular accounting tools like QuickBooks, facilitating smooth financial management. Integration with payment gateways enables secure and efficient online rent collection. Marketing tools integration helps in listing properties on multiple platforms, streamlining vacancy management.

Owner Portal

For small landlords, an owner portal is essential, providing easy access to property performance and financial information. It centralizes data, allowing small landlords to view real-time updates on rent payments, expenses, maintenance requests, and lease terms. The portal improves efficiency by enabling the generation of reports, tracking financial metrics, and seamless communication with tenants.

Best Property Management Software for Small Landlords

1. DoorLoop

We've noticed our competition often puts themselves first, but DoorLoop stands out with a 4.9 star rating on both Capterra and Software Advice. These peer-reviewed ratings are found on two of the most reputable software review sites which guided us in creating this list.

DoorLoop offers property management software designed for small landlords and property managers. It includes features such as automated rent payments, maintenance management, tenant screening, lease tracking, and financial reporting.

The platform supports marketing with rental listing syndication and provides a tenant portal for easy communication. DoorLoop aims to streamline property management tasks, improve efficiency, and enhance tenant satisfaction with its user-friendly interface and robust customer support.

DoorLoop offers a free demo, competitive pricing, and a comprehensive feature set. Whether you're managing a few properties or a vast portfolio, this software excels in meeting diverse needs. If you're seeking a solution that ticks all the boxes, look no further.

With DoorLoop, you can:

• Manage all accounting tasks, from automating rent payments through various methods to comprehensive financial reporting and account management.
• Oversee work orders efficiently, allowing tenants to submit maintenance requests via the app, and enabling you to assign and pay vendors directly.
• Communicate directly with tenants through the app, significantly simplifying interactions.
• Provide owners with a portal, for straightforward reporting and check printing.
• Streamline new tenant onboarding, from auto-listing properties to conducting tenant screenings.

Additionally, DoorLoop is designed for simplicity and ease of use. The user interface is exceptionally responsive, with fast loading times and a design that makes navigation and task management intuitive and quick.

DoorLoop Pricing

DoorLoop offers affordable pricing, starting at $49 per month for up to 20 units, including a promotional rate. Its comprehensive features maximize value for your property business, enhancing lease compliance, optimizing operations, and more.

To leverage these benefits and more, consider trying DoorLoop’s all-in-one property management software. It’s specifically designed for both small and large-scale investors and property managers, whether you're overseeing a few properties or several.

Schedule a free Demo here.

2. Landlord Studio

Landlord Studio offers property management software for landlords, focusing on efficiency and organization. It features expense tracking, online rent collection, tenant screening, automated reminders, and financial reporting.

The platform integrates with Xero for accounting and provides a mobile app for managing properties on the go. Landlord Studio aims to simplify property management tasks and support landlords with various portfolio sizes.

Landlord Studio Pricing

Landlord Studio's "Go" plan is free to use, and has a limit of 3 units.

Their Pro plan starts at $12 per month when billed annually. They also offer a 14 day free trial.

3. Hemlane

Hemlane is a property management software designed to streamline tasks for landlords and property managers. It offers features such as rental advertising, tenant screening, lease management, and rent collection. The platform also provides maintenance coordination and 24/7 customer support.

Hemlane also provides maintenance coordination, allowing landlords to receive bids from local professionals. Additionally, it offers a hybrid property management solution with local agents for tasks like property showings and inspections.

Hemlane Pricing

Hemlane offers three pricing plans: Basic, Essential, and Complete.

• Basic Plan: Costs $34 per month for the first unit and $2 per additional unit. It includes online rent collection, tenant screening, and listing syndication.
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• Essential Plan: Costs $40 per month for the first unit and $15 per additional unit. It offers features like maintenance coordination and full tenant screening with income verification.
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• Complete Plan: Costs $60 per month for the first unit and $40 per additional unit. It includes everything in the Essential plan plus local agent support for property showings, inspections, and lease signing.

4. Avail

Avail provides comprehensive property management software for DIY landlords. It offers tools for advertising rental properties, screening tenants, creating customized leases, collecting rent, tracking maintenance requests, and managing property finances.

Key features include: online rental listings, tenant background checks, digital leases with e-signatures, and detailed financial reporting. Avail emphasizes ease of use with a user-friendly interface and provides educational resources to help landlords improve their management skills. Additionally, it ensures data security with 256-bit encryption.

Other features include:

• Online rent payments
• Work order management
• Tenant screening
• Automatic listings

One of Avail's advantages is that it has a UI that’s easy to maneuver. However, it can be challenging to get started, because Avail doesn’t offer many tutorials or a comprehensive knowledge base for learning how the software works.

Avail Pricing

Avail offers a free plan that includes essential features for managing rental properties. This plan allows landlords to list properties, screen tenants, create and sign leases, and collect rent online without any cost.

If you want to get many of their more valuable features, it will cost you $7 per unit per month. Their Unlimited Plus paid plan is pricey, even compared to some of the higher-end options on this list.

5. Rentec Direct

Rentec Direct offers property management software for landlords and property managers, focusing on ease of use and comprehensive features. It includes online rent collection, tenant screening, accounting tools, maintenance tracking, and marketing services through rental listing syndication.

The platform also provides detailed financial reporting, tenant and owner portals, and a user-friendly interface. Rentec Direct aims to streamline property management tasks and improve efficiency with robust support and educational resources.

It has one of the most comprehensive sets of features of any option on this list. Its accounting features in particular are diverse, including everything from online rent payments to robust reporting tools.

Rentec Direct is a property management tool with a large set of property management features and a great pricing model.

Rentec Direct Pricing

Rentec Direct’s pricing starts at a base of $45 per month, billed annually for up to 25 units, with pricing increasing based on a tiered model.

6. Stessa

Stessa is a property management software designed to help landlords and real estate investors manage their rental properties more efficiently. It offers features such as automated income and expense tracking, real-time financial reporting, tenant management, and tax preparation tools.

Users can link their bank accounts to Stessa, which automatically categorizes transactions and generates reports like the Income Statement and Net Cash Flow. The platform also includes tenant screening and lease management capabilities. Stessa offers a free version and paid plans with additional features.

Stessa Pricing

Stessa offers a free plan that includes essential features like automated income and expense tracking, unlimited property listings, and financial reports. The Pro plan, priced at $16 per month (billed annually), adds features such as Smart Bill Entry, receipt scanning, mortgage tracking, and advanced reporting.

There is a 30-day free trial available for the Pro plan, allowing users to experience additional features before committing. Both plans are designed to help landlords and real estate investors streamline their property management tasks.

7. Rentroom

Rentroom is a comprehensive property management software designed to streamline various aspects of property management. It offers a wide range of features, including online rent collection, tenant communication, maintenance management, and accounting services.

The platform is designed for scalability, allowing it to handle portfolios of any size, from a single unit to thousands of units.

Rentroom also provides integration with popular tools like QuickBooks and supports various property types, including residential, commercial, student housing, and self-storage.

Rentroom Pricing

Rentroom offers two pricing plans for property management: the Essential Plan and the Professional Plan.

• The Essential Plan costs $1 per unit monthly, with a minimum charge of $50 per month. This plan includes features such as online rent collection, tenant communication tools, maintenance tracking, and basic financial reporting.
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• The Professional Plan costs $2 per unit monthly, with a minimum charge of $100 per month. It adds advanced features like custom branding, integrations with accounting software, and enhanced support services.

8. TurboTenant

TurboTenant is a property management platform designed to simplify the rental process for landlords and tenants. It offers a range of tools including online rental applications, tenant screening, and lease agreements.

The platform also provides marketing features, allowing landlords to create professional listings and syndicate them to various rental websites.

TurboTenant supports online rent payments and maintenance requests, enhancing communication and efficiency for both landlords and tenants. The software aims to streamline property management tasks and improve the overall rental experience.

TurboTenant Pricing

TurboTenant offers a free plan for landlords that includes rental marketing, online applications, and basic tenant screening. Additional features are available on a pay-as-you-go basis, such as premium tenant screening reports with a background check and credit report for $55.

TurboTenant also provides an optional Premium Plan for $99 per year, which includes features like unlimited state-specific lease agreements, lease addendums, e-signatures, and the ability to add custom questions to applications.

9. RentRedi

RentRedi is a property management software designed to assist landlords and property managers in managing their rental properties efficiently. The platform offers a variety of features, including online rent collection, tenant screening, maintenance coordination, and customizable lease templates.

It also supports tenant communication through a mobile app, which facilitates easy interactions between landlords and tenants. RentRedi emphasizes user-friendly design and integration with other tools like Zillow and Realtor.com for listing properties.

RentRedi Pricing

RentRedi offers a pricing plan of $19.95 per month when billed annually ($9.95 per month for the first three months), or $24.95 per month when billed monthly. This plan includes unlimited units and provides landlords with features like online rent collection, tenant screening, maintenance management, and accounting tools.

RentRedi also supports integrations with services like Realtor.com and Zillow, and offers mobile apps for both landlords and tenants. They offer a 14-day free trial, allowing potential users to test the service before committing.

10. TenantCloud

TenantCloud is a cloud-based property management software designed for landlords, property managers, and tenants. It offers features such as online rent collection, tenant screening, rental applications, digital leases with e-signatures, maintenance request management, and accounting integration with QuickBooks.

The platform also supports marketing through automatic listing syndication and provides customizable financial reporting tools.

TenantCloud includes team management capabilities, a dedicated owner portal, and mobile apps for convenient access. It aims to streamline property management tasks and enhance efficiency.

TenantCloud Pricing

TenantCloud no longer offers a free plan, but it provides an affordable Starter option for $15.60 per month if billed annually.

This plan is ideal if you're a DIY landlord or have a small portfolio, as it includes essential features like rent payments, maintenance management, and listings with applications.

If you manage a larger portfolio, you might consider the Growth plan at $29.30, billed annually. This plan enhances your capabilities with advanced features such as a lease builder, landlord forms, and a property message board.

11. SimplifyEm

SimplifyEm offers user-friendly property management software for landlords and property managers, featuring tools for rent collection, tenant screening, maintenance tracking, lease management, and financial reporting. It integrates with QuickBooks and supports trust accounting.

SimplifyEm provides flexible pricing plans and a free trial to accommodate various portfolio sizes. The software aims to streamline property management tasks and enhance efficiency through automation and detailed reporting.

SimplifyEm is an excellent option if you’re primarily looking for an accounting tool for managing your properties.

SimplifyEm makes tracking and collecting rent easier, but it does have some unique features like payment reminders.

It has a free trial version that’s unique among other property management software tools in that you can test out the complete software for a limited time without putting any sensitive information in.

SimplifyEm Pricing

SimplifyEm's paid plans start at $35 per month, making it one of the most affordable paid plans on this list. However, it only covers up to 10 units. You'll have to pay more for more units.

12. ManageCasa

ManageCasa is a property management software that simplifies tasks for landlords, property managers, and HOAs. It offers features like tenant management, lease tracking, maintenance management, and accounting.

The platform supports online rent collection and communication tools to enhance tenant interactions. ManageCasa also provides customizable dashboards and reporting to help users monitor property performance and financials. It is designed to streamline property management processes and improve efficiency, catering to both residential and commercial properties.

ManageCasa Pricing

ManageCasa offers two primary pricing plans: Starter and Growth.

• The Starter plan costs $1 per unit per month and includes features like online rent payments, maintenance management, and tenant communications. There is a minimum monthly fee of $100.
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• The Growth plan costs $2 per unit per month and adds features such as automated leasing and premium accounting tools, with a minimum monthly fee of $200.

ManageCasa also offers custom solutions for larger portfolios, providing tailored features and pricing.

13. Zillow Rental Manager

Zillow Rental Manager is an online tool designed to simplify the rental property management process for landlords and property managers. It allows users to create rental listings, which are syndicated to Zillow, Trulia, and HotPads.

The platform offers features like online rental applications, tenant screening with background checks, and credit reports. Additionally, landlords can collect rent payments online and manage leases digitally.

Zillow Rental Manager Pricing

• Tenant Screening: Basic tenant screening reports are available for $29, which includes a credit report and background check. A comprehensive screening option is also available for $35, which includes eviction history.
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• Rent Collection: Zillow offers free online rent collection for landlords and property managers, allowing tenants to pay rent using debit, credit, or ACH transfers.

14. Landlordy

Landlordy is a property management app designed for small landlords. It integrates with smartphone features to help landlords manage properties, track rent payments and expenses, create and share rent invoices, and generate financial reports.

The app also manages maintenance records and sends reminders for important dates like rent renewals and safety checks. Landlordy is user-friendly, offering features like a document scanner, drag-and-drop support for photos and PDFs, and easy communication tools. It is tailored for landlords managing small portfolios and offers both free and premium versions.

Landlordy has both an iOS and Android app version and a good UI. Compared to some of the other options, the feature set of Landlordy is minimal. The free version is limited to a single rental property/unit, single tenant lease and has limitations on number of expense/payment records.

Still, if you’re looking for something basic that helps you collect rent online for your first property, it’s worth a look.

Landlordy Pricing

• $14.99 for up to two units
• $49.99 for up to 10 units
• $99.99 for unlimited units

Regardless of the property management software you choose, one thing is certain: It can significantly automate your operations, especially if you manage a small portfolio.

To be considered in this review, the software had to offer:

• Demo or free trial - Small landlords have the opportunity to "try before they buy," allowing you to experience firsthand how the software performs in real-world scenarios. This trial ensures that the software not only meets your operational needs but also integrates seamlessly with your existing technology stack
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• Affordable pricing - you may be working with a limited budgets, making affordable pricing essential. You want software that provides excellent value for the money, ideally featuring customizable pricing plans that can adapt to your evolving needs.
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• At least a 4-star rating from reputable sites - The software received high ratings from reputable review platforms such as Capterra, Software Advice, and app stores, indicating strong user satisfaction and credibility. Positive reviews reflect effectiveness and reliability, making it a trusted choice.
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• Ease of use - The software should feature an intuitive user interface that is straightforward to learn and navigate, reducing the time required for training and adaptation.
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• Features & integration capabilities - The software boasts a robust suite of features and offers extensive integration capabilities, allowing you to seamlessly connect with other essential tools and services. This functionality enhances operational efficiency and provides a comprehensive, all-in-one solution for managing rental properties.
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• Scalability - you may aim to expand your property portfolio, so, it's beneficial to choose software that scales easily. Such software should accommodate additional properties or various types of properties without significantly increasing costs or complexity.