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Free Property Management Software for California Landlords
- Our property management software is free for any landlord, with no limit on units and no credit card.
- It was built by a California landlord law firm, so it follows California rules: rent statements, late fees, notices and leases with the required disclosures.
- Tenants get their own portal to see their balance, receive statements and documents, and send repair requests.
- Good records are the best protection if a tenant stops paying and the case goes to court.
Most small landlords in California manage their rentals with a notebook, a spreadsheet and a folder of receipts. That works until a tenant disputes a payment, a late fee is challenged, or an eviction case asks you to prove exactly what was owed and when. We see the same problems in our eviction cases every week, so we built a free tool that helps landlords keep clean records from the first day of the lease.
What the software does
Rent tracking and monthly statements
Record every charge and payment for each unit. The software builds a month by month statement showing rent, late fees, other charges, payments and the balance carried forward. You can print only the unpaid months, choose the months you want, or print a summary without the payment details. If the lease start date or a month of rent is missing, the statement warns you before you send it.
Automatic rent and late fees
Turn on automatic billing and the monthly rent is charged on the due date. If you set a late fee and a grace period in the lease, the fee is added only after the grace period ends. California only allows late fees that are a reasonable estimate of the landlord's actual costs from late payment, so keep the amount modest and put it in the written lease.
Statements by email or text message
Email a statement to the tenant, or send it by text message from your own phone. A text includes a private link to the statement, so tenants without email can still read it. You can turn the link off at any time.
Tenant portal
Invite a tenant and they get their own login to see their balance and statements, read documents you share, and send repair requests with photos. Everything stays in one place instead of scattered text messages.
Lease agreement builder
Prepare a California residential lease from the information already in your account. The builder includes the state disclosures and lets you attach separately signed pages such as the lead based paint disclosure, Megan's Law notice, flood hazard disclosure, bed bug information, the Tenant Protection Act notice, a mold disclosure, a smoke and carbon monoxide alarm acknowledgment, and a move in inspection checklist with a list of keys. It also checks the security deposit against the California limit.
Notices, documents and reminders
- Download California notices, such as the 3 day notice to pay rent or quit, laid out to fit a window envelope.
- Store leases, photos and receipts in a document library and share them with the tenant when you choose.
- Set reminders for rent, a handyman job or your own deadlines, sent by email or prepared as a text for you to send.
Repairs, handymen, expenses and profit reports
Track repair requests from report to completion, keep a list of your handymen, record expenses by property, and see a simple profit report for the year. At tax time, the numbers are already organized.
Why a law firm built it
When an eviction goes to court, the landlord has to prove the rent, the payments and the amount demanded in the notice. A 3 day notice that asks for more than the rent actually due, or includes late fees, can be thrown out, and the landlord has to start over. Landlords with clear, consistent records avoid most of those problems. The software is our way of helping landlords get that part right before there is a dispute.
How to get started
- Create your free account.
- Add your property and units, then add each lease with the start date, rent and due date.
- Enter past charges and payments, or use the button that adds missing rent charges.
- Invite your tenants to their portal, and turn on automatic billing if you want it.
The built in How to guide walks through each step. See all the features on our free property management software page.
The software, and any lease, notice or statement made with it, is general information and not legal advice. Using it does not create an attorney client relationship. See our terms of use.
Related: How to keep rent records that hold up in court | Free case review
This article is general information about California law as of its date, not legal advice for your situation. Laws and local ordinances change, and court decisions can be reviewed or reversed. Reading it does not create an attorney client relationship.