WiseGeek Article About PM Software and a Quick Rentegration Update.

While working on our SEO, I cam across this article on WiseGeek. While general and brief, the article does a pretty decent job explaining many of the basic uses of property management software. Thought I'd share, for those of you out there who might still be using a manual system.

Beginning with basic inventory functions, property management software provides the ability to maintain complete descriptions of each of the rental properties involved in the business. Property managers have the ability to segregate the rentals by type, such as commercial and residential. Property management classifications can also be created using location as well, grouping various properties into cluster groups that the landlord can set up in the software. Landlords and property managers also have the ability to group properties based on monthly rates as well.

Property management software allows the manager to create individual profiles on each unit within a given property as well. For example, most property management softwarepackages will allow the user to not only include a description of the dimensions of the space, but also such details as carpet type and color, wall color, any specifications about the doors and windows, decorative molding, and appliances included with the unit. Digital images can also be uploaded and stored in the property management software, making it very easy to have a solid record of the condition of the unit when the current tenant first leased it.

Along with the physical inventory, many property management software packages include space to save profiles on the tenants. This can include company or individual names,credit reports, copies of correspondence to and from the tenant, payment habits, and any other information the landlord deems necessary to properly manage the property.

Reports that access the information can easily be created and printed if needed for either review of a lease or in the processing of an eviction. Many property software packages allow landlords to scan documents received from the tenants and upload them for storage as well. This helps to ensure there is a complete and permanent record to refer to in the event there is a dispute of what has transpired during the course of the business relationship.

Among the other features of most property management software packages is the ability to create templates for various forms, rental agreements and lease agreements, and letters that are commonly used when managing properties. Customized documents can be created with the templates and then saved in the appropriate file. The templates can save a lot of time when it comes to generating late notices, final notices, eviction notices and even general notifications to tenants.

In other news, our Utah forms set will be live next week. California forms are next up. We're still anticipating a release by the end of the year.

For those of you out there waiting for Rentegration.com to release forms fora specific state, please let us know which state and how many units you own or manage there. We're working on prioritizing the order of our state form production and feedback from users and prospective customers will be very helpful. Within the next month or so, we will be rolling out a basic set of generic, non-state specific forms to act as a stop gap while we are in production for the rest of the states.

Lastly, word from our tech staff is that there will be a significant upgrade, including the roll out of a major new feature, just after the New Year. We think you're going to be quite pleased!

Things are picking up around here. Rentegration is building momentum for 2010.

Thanks for reading. If you're not using Rentegration, please give us a look.

- Luke Miller