The importance of going paperless– Then and Now
At TenantMagic we have always stressed the importance of going paperless for the rental application process. It provides landlords, property managers and real estate agents with convenience and ease of use. It also helps keep applicant’s personal information secure.
Removing paper from the application process was important before the pandemic. Now it is critical. The use of paper typically involves personal interactions that need to be avoided when possible.
Fortunately, Tenant Magic can assist not only with the eliminating paper from the application process, but also with rent collection and verification document management.
Past reasons for paperless applications
In a previous post I described how personal information is crucial to be able to make a qualified decision. Here is a link to a post that does a good job of explaining why this data is important when assessing rental applicants. https://bit.ly/2I6rDG9
Real estate agents, property managers and landlords greatly increase the risk of identity theft when using paper rental applications.
Paper applications are easy to be viewed by unauthorized individuals. I have seen them laying out in the open at many offices. Rental offices by their nature normally have people regularly coming in. There are also cleaning and maintenance people that could access them, especially when the offices are closed and no one else is around.
Electronic applications allow the applicant to receive their application via email and complete the entire process online. The landlord or agent receives the completed application and reports in a secure manner, assuring that the information is only viewed by those that have the proper permissions.
The new normal
Business owners are constantly looking for new ways to reduce personal interactions since the pandemic hit. TenantMagic has always allowed property owners and real estate agents to remotely engage with their applicants during the application process.
TenantMagic has since addressed other activities where in-person interaction can be eliminated. We recently added ID verification document management. Landlords and agents can now request paystubs, bank statements, etc. from withing the TenantMagic program. The applicant simply uploads them when receiving the request. The requested documents are then electronically sent to the landlord or owner as PDFs that can be downloaded and stored for their files.
Automated Rent Collection
For many landlords, rent collection regularly involves personal contact when requiring paper checks for rent payment. TenantMagic has recently partnered with PayClix which allows tenants to pay their rent electronically to their landlords directly from their bank account or with a credit card. This eliminates one more personal interaction between the tenant and landlord.
A brief self-promotion – Landlords that register with TenantMagic get special promotional pricing with PayClix’s automated rent collection program.
Moving Forward
We are all looking forward to the day when we can interact with others like we did before the pandemic. But that is not to say that many of the personal interactions we eliminated for business reasons are going to come back. Many of them were simply a waste of time. Automating paper-based processes for landlords and tenants is one area where allowing them to go about their day without having to interact in-person needlessly will be welcomed.
About TenantMagic
TenantMagic provides online rental applications with the most comprehensive screening reports available. It is fast, easy to use and free to landlords and agents. TenantMagic provides outstanding customer service by phone 7 days week.
Contact – Jay Apple japple@tenantmagic.net (877) 462-0960 www.tenantmagic.net