Online rental applications are a win-win rental scenario for you and your applicants. Property management software is often the best solution for meeting all of your rental application goals, plus the added bonus of built-in tenant screening reports and move-in options that connect an approved applicant with one of the properties in your software.
Giving your rental applicants the option to apply for a property online can simplify your leasing tasks. Online rental applications are a win-win rental scenario for you and your applicants.
Applicant win – your applicants will appreciate the convenience of applying online.
Landlord win – all the applicant’s information will be in a digital format that you can use for ordering background screening reports without needing to manually enter any data.
How do applicants pay their rental application fees?
Rental applications often require applicants to pay a rental application fee that is used for ordering tenant screening reports. If a landlord does not have a way of collecting these fees online along with their online rental application, they will be required to physically collect the fee from their applicant.
Physically collecting the rental application fee nearly eliminates the convenience of having an online rental application system in the first place.
Landlords can get the best of both worlds by looking for options that allow for both online rental applications and online rental application fee payment options. The solution? Property management software is often the best solution for meeting all of your rental application goals, plus the added bonus of built-in tenant screening reports and move-in options that connect an approved applicant with one of the properties in your software.
Online Renter Payment Options for Landlords
There are different options landlords can choose from when it comes to collecting renter payments online. Renter payments include things like rent, rental application fees, pet fees, and late fees. Some landlords choose to accept Venmo or Zelle payments from their applicants, while others look to software designed for online rent collection.
The right software for landlords gives you all tools for rental management, plus easy ways to collect renter payments online – including online rental application fees.
Online Rental Application Fees and Online Rental Applications
If you already use a property management software program, check to see the options that allow you to offer an online rental application and collect the rental application fees online. Property management software, like Rentec Direct, gives landlords the complete online rental application process, from a customized online application to online rental application fee collection.
When using a full-suite property management software program, you’ll be able to do much more than collect renter payments or process online rental applications. Take your rental property from vacant through the listing and leasing process and on to move in and rent collection, creating a digital record along the way.
Want to collect rental application fees online?
You can apply for a merchant account through Rentec Direct via our secure integration with CSG Forte. Once approved by CSG Forte, you will be able to begin processing renter payments in your Rentec Direct account. When submitting your application for a merchant account, you’ll want to make sure you apply for ACH payments and credit and debit card payments.
Your Rentec Direct account supports online rental application fees when applicants pay by credit or debit card – all you need to do is enable credit card processing for your merchant account.
Already have a merchant account with Rentec Direct but aren’t able to process online rental application fees?
If you are unable to collect rental application fees online, this probably means your account is only configured to accept ach payments. Online rental application fees can only be collected by credit card or debit card.
All you need to do is enable credit card processing by submitting a quick enablement form to CSG Forte. Simply email your Rentec Direct Success Team and we can guide you through the process, success@rentecdirect.com.
Benefits of Adding Credit Card Payments to your Rentec Direct Account
- Collect rental application fees online
- Your applicants can conveniently pay their rental application fee online when they submit their rental application. This allows you to streamline the leasing process and instantly begin your tenant screening process, since you aren’t trying to coordinate collecting a physical payment.
- Instant tenant payments
- Your tenants can make one-time payments which will be instantly reflected in their account and deposited in your business checking account the next business day.
- Minimize Late Pays or No Pays
- Tenants experiencing financial hardship will be more inclined to pay their rent on time using a credit card versus paying their rent late or not at all. Fewer eviction notices! During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, some financial reports stated that credit card rental payments were up 30%!
- Help tenants build their credit score
- According to recent research by Experian, 79% of millennials and Gen Zer’s are actively trying to increase their credit score. Make it easier to build credit by allowing tenants to pay their rent by credit card.
Final Thoughts
The convenience of providing online rental applications when finding a new tenant for your rental property will streamline your leasing process. You’ll be able to quickly list your property, collect your application and application fees, and order tenant screening reports.
Property management software gives you the easiest options for collecting rental application fees online. Solutions like Rentec Direct go beyond rental applications and allow you collect rent online and organize all your property and tenant data in one secure location.
Hi Kaycee, we have a 48 unit apartment complex and are Rentec clients since 2015. We implemented online applications and payments in 2018. It has worked well. We do have one area for suggested Rentec improvement: We suggest the application itself have more screen edits to require applicants enter valid data, and not leave key data fields such as monthly income or number of residents blank. Perhaps these could be made configureable to activate or not as a parameter in the property configuration. We have had problem situations where unqualified applicants are able to complete an application by skipping through key fields. This results in a situation where we usually refund the application fees by check, which is inefficient. Thank you for the consideration of this idea.
Hi Mike!
Rentec Direct has an excellent solution for obtaining required information and avoiding incomplete applications.
The online application settings allow Custom Fields set as “Required” If you would like one of the default questions to be required, change the default option to “No” and add the question below as a “Custom Question”, check the “Required” box and Save Changes
For more helpful information about setting up online applications check out this link to the knowledgebase: Setting Up Your Online Rental Application