Collecting rent online is a game-changer when it comes to streamlining your rental process. As the world is constantly changing and becoming more digital, having the ability to collect rent online will enable you to run your rental business virtually – no more waiting for cash and checks in the mail.
Even more importantly, automatic reminders, direct deposits into your bank account, and a secure process will help ensure you will get paid on time every month – if you’re still on the fence about switching to online payments, read our guide on collecting rent online and all of the benefits of doing so.
Through your TurboTenant account, setting up rent payments takes less than five minutes — read below as we guide you through the process of how to set up and start collecting rent through TurboTenant.
Collect Rent Online → Report Rent for Free
Now, not only do landlords enjoy the convenience of collecting rent online, but by doing so, your tenants can build credit by reporting rent payments to TransUnion for free. Learn more about Rent Payments & Rent Reporting.
What Are Online Rent Payments?
Collecting rent online is convenient for both tenants and landlords and offers flexibility, security, and fast payments. While there are ways to collect rent online using a digital wallet and apps such as Venmo and CashApp, these methods do not provide the same convenience of collecting rent directly in your TurboTenant account. Here is a quick breakdown of what’s included in TurboTenant’s online rent payment feature:
- Automatic Reminders – Tenants will be notified every time they have a charge waiting to be paid and when they have unpaid charges on their account; we will send reminders until they have completed their payment.
- Automatic Deposits – Unlike with cash or checks, which often require you to go to the bank, the money your tenants pay will be deposited directly into your bank account.
- Documentation – Having everything in one place for your rental business will help you keep organized – online rent payments allow you to keep track of rent payments in your account along with tenant information, leases, messages, and other documents.
- Payment Tracking – The convenience of tracking your online rent payments allows you to see the status of charges, which tenants have paid, or which tenants have late payments. This will also allow for easy bookkeeping and come in handy during tax season.
- Payment Notifications – You won’t have to worry about having to go back and check your account to see if a payment has gone through – we will notify you as soon as your tenant pays or if it’s past due.
- Partial Payments – If you’ve allowed for partial payments to help ease financial burdens on tenants or if you have multiple tenants on a lease, partial payments is a great solution to help you charge the rent amount you need at any given time.
How to Set Up Online Rent Payments in TurboTenant
Setting up rent payments in your landlord account is very simple, free for landlords, and should only take you a few minutes – if you aren’t signed up with TurboTenant yet, create your free account here.
To start collecting rent payments you will need to first create a lease. Once you have a lease, or if you already had one, navigate towards the Payments tab on your lease and click the Set Up Payments button as shown below.
At the next step, you will have to enter your legal name and phone number to verify your information. Once you are verified, you can connect your bank account so you can receive payments directly. Landlords can be reassured that their money and information will be safe as we connect your account to Stripe, an industry leader, which encrypts your information and will not be viewed by renters or TurboTenant.
After you have entered your bank information, you will need to await approval from our team before you can start accepting payments – this usually takes less than 24 hours:
How to Make Charges
Now that your account has been approved to accept rent payments – it’s time to start your rent collection process! You will be able to charge tenants on the leases you have created within TurboTenant, and they will be reminded seven days in advance of when the charge is due. There are two types of charges you can make:
Monthly Charges
Monthly charges obviously include rent, utilities, and fixed parking fees – monthly charges will occur on the same day each month and are for the same amount every time.
One Time Charges
One time charges are perfect for things such as security deposits, late fees, and even prorated rent.
How Do Tenants Pay?
Online rent payments offer full flexibility to tenants by letting them pay through an ACH transfer (also known as a bank transfer) for free or with a debit or credit card with a 3.49% processing fee. Your tenant will be notified about any charges or outstanding charges they have. As the landlord, you don’t have to worry about collecting sensitive information from your tenants. TurboTenant handles getting them setup and keeping their information secure. When you initially send a charge to a tenant, they will receive an email that will ask them to make a payment and set up their bank account information or add a debit/credit card to their renter account.
Tenants will be able to see every charge on their account that has been paid or that is late – when a charge is past due they will continue to receive an email notification informing them until they complete the payment. If renters are skeptical about switching to online rent payments, it is important for you as a landlord to communicate the benefits for both of you – it won’t involve direct contact, it’s easier for them, and is actually more secure than sending cash or checks in the mail. If renters have questions on the security of their information, please have them contact our support team at [email protected] to answer any questions.
How Long Will it Take for Payments to be Deposited Into My Account?
The estimated time for payments to be directly deposited into your bank account on average is 5-7 business days. However, this varies from bank to bank and you may need to ask your bank to remove any holds after accepting your first payment through TurboTenant.
Collecting Rent Through TurboTenant FAQ
Can I charge late fees?
Yes – the one time charges feature is perfect for late fees, pet deposits, security deposits, or any other type of fee you might have listed in your lease agreement.
How is it secure?
Our rent payments platform is completely confidential and secure with the use of Stripe, an industry leader in payment processing, to safely transfer your tenants payment directly into your bank account. Furthermore, you and your renters information is encrypted to protect your payment information.
How do I handle multiple tenants on a lease?
Landlords have the option to turn on partial payments if they want which are the perfect solution if you have multiple tenants on a lease. Each tenant on the lease can go in and pay their portion of the rent instead of just one having to pay it all. This makes sure everyone is responsible for their rent and hopefully will reduce roommate conflict. For more tips on renting to roommates, visit here.
How can I tell if my renter made a payment?
We will email you immediately when a tenant completes a charge you sent them – we will also notify you if they did not make a payment on time.
