Property Management App Builder

Best Property Management Software for Small Landlords (2026)

Eight property management tools for landlords with 1 to 50 units, compared on what they do well, what to watch and current prices from each vendor’s own pricing page.

Floot ·

Key Takeaways

  • Self-managing your own units? Start with a free or flat-price tool. TurboTenant, Avail, Innago and RentRedi cover listings, applications, screening, leases and online rent for little or nothing to the landlord, with tenants usually paying screening and some payment fees.
  • Managing for other owners? You need manager-grade accounting. Buildium and DoorLoop document owner portals and owner statements. Buildium’s plans start at 65 dollars a month; DoorLoop’s start at 2.50 dollars per unit per month with minimums.
  • Banking-first is its own category. Baselane pairs free landlord banking and bookkeeping with rent collection, which suits landlords whose main pain is separating property money.
  • Read the fee table, not just the plan price. A free plan with a 2.50 dollar bank transfer fee that tenants pay, or a 3.5 percent card fee, can matter more to your tenants than the subscription matters to you.
  • Build your own only if no product fits. Floot can build a custom property management app, but it does not include tenant screening, trust accounting or low-cost bank transfers. For most small landlords a ready product is the better choice.

Quick-Start Prioritization Framework

ToolBest forStarting price (vendor page, Nov 2026)
TurboTenantSelf-managing landlords who want a free start and optional low annual upgradesFree; Essentials from 149 dollars a year and Pro from 199 dollars a year for 1 to 10 units
AvailLandlords who want unlimited units free, with a per-unit upgradeFree; Unlimited Plus 9 dollars per unit per month
RentRediLandlords who want one flat price with all features12 dollars a month billed annually; 29.95 dollars monthly
InnagoLandlords who want no subscription at allNo monthly fee; tenant-paid payment fees by default
BaselaneLandlords who want banking and bookkeeping with rent collectionCore free; Smart 20 dollars a month on an annual plan
BuildiumSmall management companies handling owners’ moneyEssential from 65 dollars a month
DoorLoopGrowing managers who want per-unit pricing and owner portalsFrom 2.50 dollars per unit per month, with minimums
Floot (build your own)Landlords whose process no product fitsFree to start; Pro 25 dollars a month

Small landlords have more good software choices than ever, and the differences that matter are not always on the feature checklist. Some tools are free to the landlord because tenants pay screening and payment fees. Some charge a flat subscription regardless of unit count. Others charge per unit or per month with accounting built for managing other people’s money. This list covers eight options for landlords and small management companies with roughly 1 to 50 units, including one build-your-own option, with what each does well, what to watch, and the price from each company’s own pricing page as of November 11, 2026. Prices change often; check the linked page before you sign up.

How we chose and compared

We looked for tools that a landlord with 1 to 50 units can sign up for without a sales process, that cover the core jobs (listing, applications and screening, leases, rent collection, maintenance tracking and basic reporting), and that publish prices. For each, we read the vendor’s own pricing page on November 11, 2026 and report only what it says. Where a page did not state something, we say so rather than guess.

Two notes. First, tenant screening and online payments usually involve fees paid by applicants or tenants, so the landlord’s price is only part of the cost. Second, if you manage property for other owners for a fee, check your state’s licensing and trust account rules; that usually points you to software with manager-grade accounting.

1. TurboTenant

Best for: self-managing landlords who want to start free and pay a small annual fee for leases and financial tools.

What it does well

The free plan covers listing and marketing rentals, screening applicants and collecting rent online, with unlimited listings. Paid plans add online lease creation and signing (Essentials) and income verification, tax-ready reports and financial tools (Pro). Pricing is annual and tiered by units, which is easy to budget.

What to watch

Renter-paid fees differ by plan. The pricing page lists a screening fee of 45 dollars under Pro and 55 dollars under Free, ACH rent payments free under Pro and 2 dollars under Free, and 3.49 percent for card payments. The landlord can opt to pay screening instead.

Price

Free. Essentials 149 dollars a year and Pro 199 dollars a year for 1 to 10 units, rising to 199 and 399 dollars for 11 to 30 units and 299 and 699 dollars for 31 to 60 units.

2. Avail

Best for: landlords who want unlimited units on a free plan and a simple per-unit upgrade.

What it does well

The free Unlimited plan includes listing syndication, rental applications and screening report requests, state-specific leases with digital signing, online rent collection, maintenance tracking, a tenant portal, income and expense tracking and messaging. Unlimited Plus adds faster payments, waived ACH charges, custom application questions, lease template customization and a branded property website.

What to watch

On the free plan tenants pay 2.50 dollars per bank transfer; card and debit payments carry a 3.5 percent fee on all plans. The pricing page says screening costs vary by location, with the tenant usually paying.

Price

Unlimited: 0 dollars per unit. Unlimited Plus: 9 dollars per unit per month. At 10 units, Plus is 90 dollars a month, so compare it with flat-price tools as you grow.

3. RentRedi

Best for: landlords who prefer one flat price with every feature and no per-unit charges.

What it does well

RentRedi’s pricing page says every plan includes the same features: rent collection, accounting, screening, listings, messaging, maintenance and support, with unlimited properties, tenants, teammates and connected bank accounts. Plans differ only in billing period. Tenants get phone and chat support, which helps landlords who do not want to be the help desk.

What to watch

You are charged at signup; the page says it is not a free trial but offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Screening is tenant-paid at 39.99 dollars, or 49.99 dollars with income verification. The pricing page does not list ACH or card fees for rent payments, so ask before you commit.

Price

29.95 dollars a month billed monthly, 20 dollars a month billed every six months, or 12 dollars a month billed annually.

4. Innago

Best for: landlords who want no subscription at all and are comfortable with tenant-paid payment fees.

What it does well

Innago’s pricing page states no monthly fee, no setup fee and no contract. Its help center says landlords pay nothing to use it, and that it earns money from optional payment and screening fees.

What to watch

The help center lists 2 dollars per ACH payment and 2.99 percent for card payments, paid by the tenant by default (the landlord can absorb them), and 30 to 35 dollars per applicant for screening, paid by the applicant. The pricing page itself does not list plan tiers or a feature comparison, so test the workflows you rely on.

Price

No monthly fee for landlords.

5. Baselane

Best for: landlords whose biggest problem is mixing property money with personal money.

What it does well

The free Core plan combines landlord banking (unlimited checking and savings accounts, property-specific accounts, debit cards), bookkeeping with property-level income and expense tracking, QuickBooks and Xero sync, a Schedule E tax package, and rent collection with automated reminders, late fees, a tenant portal and autopay. Smart adds automatic categorization, receipt matching, faster rent deposits and role-based shared access.

What to watch

Tenant payment fees: ACH 2 dollars (waived for Baselane deposits) and 3.49 percent for debit or credit cards. Screening is listed from 24.99 dollars. Baselane is banking-first; check that its leasing and maintenance features cover what you need.

Price

Core free. Smart 20 dollars a month on an annual plan, with a 30-day trial.

6. Buildium

Best for: small property management companies that handle other owners’ money and need owner statements, distributions and full accounting.

What it does well

Buildium covers accounting, leasing, maintenance, communications and reporting, with a resident center for online payments, tenant screening and an owner portal. Its owner distribution guidance describes batch owner statements emailed to all owners at once, outgoing ACH to owners and vendors, and an audit trail of user actions. Higher tiers add enhanced screening, phone support, an open API, inspections and eSignatures.

What to watch

Transaction fees vary by tier: incoming EFT 2.35 dollars on Essential, 1.35 dollars on Growth, and free for the first 12 months on Premium (then 0.60 dollars); cards 2.99 percent. Screening is 17 dollars, or 35 dollars applicant-paid, with enhanced screening at 20 dollars on Growth and Premium. Extra business bank accounts are 99 dollars each on Essential. Onboarding is required for new Growth and Premium customers, at a price the page does not list. For a landlord with a few of their own units, this is more system than needed.

Price

Essential from 65 dollars a month, Growth from 202 dollars a month, Premium from 420 dollars a month. 14-day free trial, no credit card required.

7. DoorLoop

Best for: growing managers who prefer per-unit pricing and want owner and tenant portals with accounting.

What it does well

DoorLoop One includes accounting, leasing, maintenance and payments, showings, owner and tenant portals, a company website, unlimited users, unlimited document storage and API access. The pricing page describes detailed and summary owner statements and QuickBooks Online sync. Connect adds an AI receptionist for tenant messages and free incoming ACH.

What to watch

Minimum spend and unit requirements apply to each plan, and the page does not state them as figures, so a very small portfolio may pay more than the per-unit rate suggests. Incoming ACH is 1.50 dollars on One. Screening shows 35 dollars. The Multiply tier is invite only.

Price

DoorLoop One from 2.50 dollars per unit per month (as low as 1.50 dollars per unit above 100 units), Connect from 4 dollars per unit, Multiply from 5 dollars per unit. Yearly billing saves up to 25 percent.

8. Floot (build your own)

Best for: landlords or small managers whose process, reporting or tenant experience does not fit any of the products above.

What it does well

Floot is an AI app builder. You describe the app in plain English, in Floot’s editor or from ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Codex or Cursor, and it builds a full-stack web app with its own Postgres database, logins with roles (for example owner, manager and tenant), file storage for leases and photos, email, web and phone push notifications, and scheduled jobs for rent reminders and renewal notices. You can upload your rent roll as a CSV and ask the AI to import it. Floot Payments handles checkout and subscriptions, paid out through Stripe to the app owner. Publishing is free on every plan, and Floot can build and submit native iOS and Android apps.

What to watch

This is the honest part. Floot does not include tenant screening or credit checks, an accounting integration, trust accounting, or low-cost bank transfers for rent, and Floot apps do not document an offline mode. You design and test the app yourself. For most small landlords, a ready product with screening and payments built in is the better choice; Floot fits when you have a specific need those products do not meet, or alongside one of them.

Price

Free to start (100 building actions a day and a one-time 3 dollar hosting allowance). Pro 25 dollars a month; Power 100 dollars a month. Hosting beyond what is included is metered by usage. No per-unit pricing.

Others worth knowing

AppFolio is widely used by larger managers; its pricing page lists a unit minimum and a minimum spend on its entry plan, so it suits portfolios that are already near the top of this list’s size range. TenantCloud, Landlord Studio and Stessa are also worth a look, and the free plans of the last two are covered in our guide to the best free property management software.

How to choose

Answer three questions in order.

  • Whose money are you handling? Only your own: start with TurboTenant, Avail, RentRedi, Innago or Baselane. Other owners’: shortlist Buildium and DoorLoop, and check your state’s trust account rules.
  • How many units, now and in two years? Per-unit pricing is cheap at 5 units and expensive at 40. Flat pricing is the opposite. Do the math at both sizes.
  • What will tenants pay? Add up screening, bank transfer and card fees. A tenant who pays 2.50 dollars a month by bank transfer pays 30 dollars a year; one who pays 1,800 dollars by card at 3.5 percent pays 63 dollars a month.

Common mistakes when choosing software

These come up again and again.

  • Comparing subscription prices and ignoring tenant fees.
  • Choosing a self-managing tool when you manage for other owners and need owner statements and trust-style accounting.
  • Paying for a manager-grade platform to run three of your own units.
  • Not checking minimum spend or unit minimums on per-unit plans.
  • Migrating everything at once instead of starting new leases in the new tool.
  • Not exporting your data periodically, wherever it lives.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best property management software for a landlord with a few units?

For self-managing landlords with a handful of units, free or low-cost tools such as TurboTenant, Avail, Innago and RentRedi cover listings, screening, leases and online rent. Choose based on tenant fees and the features on the plan you would use.

Is Buildium worth it for a small landlord?

Buildium is built for managers handling other owners’ money, with owner statements, distributions and full accounting, starting at 65 dollars a month. For a few units you own yourself, a free or flat-price tool is usually enough.

Which property management software is free?

TurboTenant, Avail and Innago have free options for landlords, and Baselane’s Core plan is free; tenants usually pay screening and some payment fees. Landlord Studio and Stessa also have free plans.

Do tenants pay fees with landlord software?

Often. Screening is commonly applicant-paid, and many platforms charge tenants for bank transfers or card payments unless the landlord absorbs them or upgrades.

Can I build my own property management app instead?

Yes, with an AI app builder such as Floot, but it does not include tenant screening, trust accounting or low-cost bank transfers. It makes sense when no product fits your process, or alongside a product that handles screening and payments.

What software do I need if I manage properties for other owners?

Software that produces owner statements and distributions and supports your state’s trust account requirements, such as Buildium or DoorLoop. Check your state’s licensing and trust account rules first.

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