10 Best Property Management Software

Property managers or real estate owners often find themselves juggling multiple tasks, including property advertising, rent and vacancy tracking, lease management, capturing and maintaining tenant records, insurance management, and staying compliant with national, state, and local laws. Nevertheless, investing in the right technology can change the game for property managers. Enter property management software.

A property management solution helps landlords and real estate professionals streamline their rental operations, from listing their property on industry-leading websites, capturing potential leads, conducting tenant screenings and inspections to rent collection. This software also assists in inviting applications, managing renters, responding to maintenance requests, and accounting for all associated costs and revenue.

In this article, we’ve discussed the 10 best property management software tools featured on Software Advice, listed alphabetically, to identify the best solution for you. (Refer to the methodology section for more details.)

1. AppFolio Property Manager: Uses AI to automate property management workflow

AppFolio Property Manager helps landlords with large rental portfolios control, market, automate, and manage tasks related to their units. The tool supports vacancy and rent tracking, tenant screening, property listings management, cash flow management, landlord insurance tracking, website building, a rent comparison tool, automatic bill posting, paperless work order generation, and report customization.

Tenants can use the online portal to pay rent securely via an online payment gateway, communicate with the property owner, submit a maintenance request, schedule a property inspection, and sign up for renters insurance.

The tool uses AI to read PDF invoices from vendors, identifies key details, and assists with payment processing. Its automated accounts payable feature replaces error-prone manual record-keeping. AppFolio offers detailed descriptions of maintenance requests, along with a real-time view of the status—helping resolve issues faster and improve tenant communication.

AppFolio also includes some advanced features such as a leasing assistant powered by artificial intelligence, professional websites for your properties, premium leads, proof of insurance tracking, maintenance contact center, automated accounts payable, and tenant debt collections.

AppFolio offers customer support via email and call. This web-based tool has a mobile-app for both Android and iOS devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.55/5 (1771)
• Notable features: Commercial inspections, Residential inspections, and Payment processing

Online tenant portal in AppFolio Property Manager (Source)

2. Avail: Creates state-specific, lawyer-reviewed rent agreements

Avail lets independent landlords find, screen, and maintain tenants. The tool publishes your properties on popular rental websites such as Zillow, Trulia, Walkscore, and Apartments.com. It helps you manage leads from these rental listings by responding to potential clients, in-person coordination, and virtual meetings. You can also share your property listing on social media platforms such as Facebook to increase your reach.

With its customizable online rental applications, receive detailed information on potential tenants and make the right choice. The tool uses TransUnion to conduct tenant screening and generate credit, criminal background, and eviction reports.

You can also create rental lease agreements using Avail’s state-specific and lawyer-reviewed templates—including all the necessary disclosures and attachments. Customization, such as adding custom clauses, can be done online to prepare the final agreement. It also has an option to get digital signatures from the tenants.

Avail lets tenants register maintenance requests by uploading photos of the issue and receive real-time updates on the progress. Its online rent collection function allows landlords to collect rent payments online via direct deposits. They may also track and report payments and send automated payment reminder emails and receipts.

Avail is a web-based tool that offers phone, live chat, and email support.

• Overall user rating: 4.62/5 (237)
• Notable features: Portfolio management, Document management, and Contact management

Tenant status in Avail (Source)

3. Buildium: Generates a dedicated property management website

The property management software solution, Buildium, helps residential and association property managers administer rental leasing, rental applications, tenant screening, online rent payments, vacancy management, and maintenance cycles and accounting.

Buildium lets you use a pre-built template, personalize it to suit your branding, and create a professional property management website to increase online visibility and attract renters, as well as owners. You can publish documents (such as handbooks and sales sheets) on the website, list your properties, accept rental applications, and communicate with residents, owners, vendors, and employees.

The tool integrates with popular websites, such as Zillow, Craigslist, Facebook, and Zumper to publish your property listings and invite applications. You can customize your property listings and include their unit data, property-specific information, and amenity qualities.

You can also create rental applications with custom fields that fit your requirements. The software dashboard displays the application status and allows you to add or update it manually. Buildium’s tenant screening process is powered by TransUnion. You can request a tenant background check to access full credit, criminal, and eviction history. Once you accept or reject an applicant, an automatic notification is sent to them with further instructions.

Buildium offers customer support via phone and live chat. This web-based tool has a mobile app for both Android and iOS devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.49/5 (1851)
• Notable features: Lease management, Commercial property management, and Property database

Rental application in Buildium (Source)

4. DoorLoop: Includes a CRM and a tenant portal

DoorLoop offers a unified portal for all property management services, including tenant screening, accounting, maintenance management, and property marketing. The tool automates your payment process—from sending automatic rent invoices and late fee notices to maintaining records of payment receipts—thereby eliminating manual calculation of rent payments and late fees.

With a built-in CRM and tenant portal, DoorLoop simplifies the tracking of prospective tenants, lease renewals, rent payment collection, digital lease signing, and tenant screening. It lists your properties on Zillow, Trulia, HotPads, and other property listing websites to get more leads and applications. DoorLoop marketing suite also processes tenant applications, runs background and criminal checks, manages leases, and improves communication with tenants.

Additionally, DoorLoop transforms formerly manual operations, such as bookkeeping and submitting repair requests into digital processes, automating the rental property management process and reducing the workload for managers and owners.

DoorLoop offers customer support via call, live chat, query ticket, and a help center. It is a web-based tool and also has a mobile application for both Android and iOS users.

• Overall user rating: 4.94/5 (108)
• Notable features: Property database, Dues management, and Member directory

Dashboard in DoorLoop (Source)

5. Hemlane: Offers 24/7 repair and maintenance support

Hemlane is a property management solution that covers rental advertising, applicant tracking, tenant screening, lease management, online rent and financial reports, and maintenance. You can promote your rental property on the top 30 rental listing websites (such as Zillow, Padmapper, Realtor.com, and Trulia), which directs prospective renters to your website, and provides an online rental application with a thorough credit and background check.

Hemlane tracks and responds to potential tenant leads after pre-screening to help you make an informed decision. It sends personalized emails and detailed property descriptions to leads and applicants—helping you keep your property at the forefront.

This property management tool has a team of professionals that records repair and maintenance requests while offering immediate assistance. Hemlane sends alerts and notifies users about their lease renewal dates. The tool facilitates rent collection and financial tracking with instant bank verification and automated late fees. You can also enable recurring rent requests and payment reminders.

Hemlane is a web-based tool, optimized for use in mobile web browsers as well. You can connect with specialists via live chat, call, or email.

• Overall user rating: 4.83/5 (126)
• Notable features: Portfolio management, Accounting, and Contact management

Property listing in Hemlane (Source)

6. Innago: Furnishes exportable rent collection reports

Innago automates online rent payments, online lease signing, maintenance requests management, expense reporting, and tenant screening. The tool manages commercial, residential, and student housing properties for landlords, real estate owners, and property managers.

Using Innago’s lease templates, you can create custom lease agreements as per your requirements. You can also create and upload application forms on your website or social media platforms to invite tenant applications.

Innago automates rent payment, collection, and late fee enforcement with custom settings. It also creates collection reports with robust filters and quick presets to help you gain actionable insights. The tool also sends automatic reminders and notifications for upcoming or due rent payments.

Innago accepts maintenance requests from tenants, including category, detailed description, images, and videos; and shares it with the maintenance team for quick remediation. It sends instant alerts/notifications about the status of maintenance requests. Team members can respond to tenant requests from the Innago app, track updates, and inform them of any timeline changes. ​

It allows you to manage tenant applications and extensive screening reports, including payment, credit, criminal, and eviction history. Based on these reports, you can analyze and finalize whether or not your prospective tenant is the right fit.

Innago offers call, chat, and email support. The tool is web-based and is also available as a mobile app for both iOS and Android devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.88/5 (189)
• Notable features: Lease management, Portfolio management, and Rent tracking

Tenant dashboard in Innago (Source)

7. PropertyMe: Generates customized inspection itinerary

PropertyMe automates tenant communications, inspections, bills management, maintenance requests, accounting, and arrears management. The tool streamlines tennant communication with a suite of pre-installed templates for personalized emails, letters, and SMS. It also furnishes internal collaboration with @mentions, sms, and inbound sms.

With integrated geodata, PropertyMe develops a customized inspection itinerary, along with distance and drive time details. You can schedule inspections via map view, use drag and drop to reorder itinerary, and send automated inspection notices to tenants. PropertyMe creates extensive inspection reports, including images and comments.

Using PropertyMe workflow maintenance, you can add and edit tasks, drag and drop documents or images, track the status of each task, and send updates to your tenants. The tool also includes a bills management feature that streamlines recurring payments, bill approvals, and bill scanning.

The tool offers an owner portal that lets clients view property information including historical statements, previous bills, tenancy, images and current financial status of properties on a unified platform. It also has a document management module that enables property management firms to store important documents such as contracts, leases, and purchase agreements against corresponding properties or tenant profiles using drag and drop functionality.

PropertyMe offers customer support via call, email, and query ticket. This tool has a mobile app for both Android and iOS devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.57/5 (44)
• Notable features: Lease management, Property database, and Tenant portal

Inspections in PropertyMe (Source)

8. ResMan: Includes a marketing suite for your properties

ResMan is a property management software with accounting, budgeting, marketing, reporting, tenant screening, and maintenance tools. The tool has a marketing suite that helps you reach, engage, and convert prospects into renters. Its customer relationship management (CRM) module helps advertise your properties and retain loyal clients for the foreseeable future.

ResMan assists businesses to manage lead funnel interactions with prospects and applicants by centrally storing all contact details and past conversations. It also boosts residents’ credit scores by notifying various credit bureaus about on-time rental payments.

The tool provides online leasing to your residents, along with automated screening and payments, and integrated application forms. Its budgeting feature gives access to customizable budgeting templates, allowing you to generate historical data directly from the general ledger.

This property management software has a mobile-based maintenance feature that allows property maintenance managers to access, amend, assign, and complete work orders from any location and respond to urgent maintenance requests. Other features such as expense tracking and inventory management are available for all properties.

ResMan is a web-based tool that offers customer support via call, live chat, and email.

• Overall user rating: 4.5/5 (359)
• Notable features: Lease management, Lead management, and Contact management

Analytics dashboard in ResMan (Source)

9. Tellus: Streamlines landlord-tenant communication with chat

Tellus rental property management furnishes a rental toolkit to manage listings, tenant screening, online rent collection, and landlord-tenant communications. The tool lists your units on top rental websites, including Zillow, Zumper, and Trulia to improve visibility, drive more applications, and increase leads.

Tellus’s tenant screening reports include rental and eviction history, credit reports, employment history, and ID verification to help you make informed decisions about your rental properties. The tool gives tenants easy online payment options, including autopay, one-tap payments, and rent splitting options. It lets landlords restrict partial payments and allocate a bank account to each property.

This solution includes a chat feature for tenants, property managers, co-owners, and handymen, to streamline communication. All communication is stored in the cloud for easy access and future recordkeeping.

Tellus offers customer support via query ticket and a knowledge base. This tool has a mobile application for both Android and iOS devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.17/5 (36)
• Notable features: Tenant portal, Tenant tracking, and Online payments

Rental records in Tellus (Source)

10. Zillow Rental Manager: Conducts rental market analysis

As a property management solution, Zillow Rental Manager helps real estate owners and landlords screen tenants and collect rent payments on a unified platform. It allows landlords to create rental listings by adding property descriptions, images, and videos; and post them across multiple sites, including Trulia and HotPads—improving interaction with prospective tenants and increasing rental visibility.

Zillow collaborates with local law firms to create custom lease agreements that comply with laws and ordinances. The tool also facilitates online rent collection via electronic means, including ACH (automated clearing house), debit and credit cards. Tenants can also set automated payments that allow automatic withdrawals of rent amount from their account.

The Rent Zestimate feature helps assess rental comparables (other properties having similar characteristics such as size, no. of bedrooms, condition, and amenities) in your designated area to design an accurate rental pricing strategy. It conducts rental market analysis to understand potential return on investment.

Zillow Rental Manager offers customer support via help center and a knowledge base. This web-based tool has a mobile app for both Android and iOS devices.

• Overall user rating: 4.34/5 (29)
• Notable features: Online payments, Tenant tracking, and Tenant screening

Virtual tour with an agent in Zillow Rental Manager (Source)

How to choose the right property management software for your business

The tools mentioned above can get you started on your software search, but to find the best property management software that fits your requirements, we recommend considering the following steps.

• Identify your feature requirements: Determine the gaps in your processes and mission-critical tasks that you want the tool to accomplish, such as lease management, double-entry accounting, bill disbursement, tenant screening, and communications. Most property managers look for accounting automation tools, advertising, and tenant self-service modules. Once you have an idea of your requirements, the next step is to pick a tool that aligns with your business goals.
• Assess the accounting module: Some rental property management software enables you to automate accounting tasks such as creating double-entry and triple-entry accounting records—eliminating manual errors and saving you time. They also give you access to downloadable, comprehensive financial reports for property portfolios and relevant data to keep records.
• Check online rent collection module: Most rental property management software include an online rent payment module that helps collect rent conveniently. It also sends timely reminders via email to ensure that rent is received on time. The software also keeps a comprehensive record of payment history between you and your tenants for record keeping.
• Consider the tenant screening capabilities: Tenant screening typically includes a background check, credit reports, previous rental history, eviction reports, income, and employment verification. Check all the tenant screening features your shortlisted tool offers to eliminate unqualified applicants and maintain your market reputation.
• Examine tenant data security and storage: Renting a property involves the exchange of personal information and tenant data. Any kind of data breach may affect the tenant-property manager relationship. Thereby, you should consider investing in a cloud-based property management software that automatically stores files and protects them from data breaches.

Common questions to ask while selecting a property management software tool

Here are some questions to ask property management software providers before making a final purchase:

• Is there a limit on the number of property listings? If you have multiple vacant units, then you need to create multiple listings. Before finalizing a software solution, check if there is any limit on the number of property listings.
• How many tenants can I oversee with this tool? Some property management software are designed to manage single-family houses, but others will allow you to manage hundreds of renters or tenants across many locations. Before you make a choice, ensure that you can work around any such limitation.
• Can I customize rental application forms with this tool? Rental application forms are necessary to gather the required information. Most application forms aren’t one-size-fits-all. Ergo, the software you choose should offer customization. It should also include customizable lease templates to make adjustments to specific clauses.
• Is it mobile-friendly? An easy-to-use mobile application with all the essential features for daily property management operations is a plus. A mobile application lets you mail leases, screen candidates, collect rent, and connect with renters from anywhere. Additionally, your tenants may use their mobile devices to connect with you, submit maintenance requests, and pay rent.
• Does this software offer property reporting and analytics? Real-time data is necessary for property managers to constantly monitor their properties. It provides them with the most recent data on any property. Make sure your selected tool offers reporting and analytics features so you can easily maintain track of your listings.

How did we select these products? Your reviews.

At Software Advice, we consider and verify all our user reviews to recommend the most efficient tools for your business.

Our software recommendations reflect the views and experiences given by your peers. These recommendations are never bought or sold, nor based on the opinion of a single individual.

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To be included in this list, products must:

1. Be listed under Software Advice’s FrontRunners for Property Management Software. Read more about the FrontRunners Methodology here.
2. Include the core features of a property management software—tenant tracking, lease tracking, and residential property management.
3. Meet our property management software market definition: “Property management software helps landlords and real estate professionals track leases, residents and maintenance tasks, as well as collect rent and manage finances to reduce costs and streamline operations.”

The 10 products with the highest customer satisfaction and usability scores are featured in this article from the Frontrunners report for Top Property Management Software.

Disclaimer: We conducted this analysis based on reviews and ratings data as of August 8, 2022. In order to present the most up-to-date information, the product cards show real-time ratings. Please note that this means the ratings value in the product card may not reflect the ratings value at the time of analysis.