1–20 unit landlords

Landlord software guides for people with a few doors — not a call center.

Small Portfolio Desk is a quiet directory of useful pages for independent landlords managing roughly 1–20 residential units. We focus on tools you can actually run yourself: rent collection, screening, leases, maintenance, and light bookkeeping.

Affiliate / referral disclosure: Some pages may later include affiliate or referral links. If we earn a commission, we will say so on that page. Recommendations are written against published criteria first; sponsorship never buys a top slot. No affiliate programs are connected yet.

Who this is for

Owners self-managing a duplex, a few SFHs, or a small multifamily
Landlords outgrowing spreadsheets who are not ready for full PM-company software
Anyone comparing flat-rate vs per-unit pricing before locking in

How pages are chosen

Start from a real search question landlords ask every week.
Score tools on criteria you can verify (pricing model, rent collection, screening, maintenance, accounting depth, mobile apps) — not star ratings we invent.
Call out uncertainty: fees change, free tiers shrink, “unlimited” often has caps.
Skip thin listicles. If a page cannot earn a bookmark, it does not ship.

Start here

Best PMS for 1–5 units

Criteria-first shortlist for DIY landlords. Flat-rate vs free tiers vs “too much software.”

RentRedi vs TurboTenant vs Avail

Side-by-side on pricing shape, rent collection, screening, maintenance, accounting, and mobile for ~1–20 units.

Per-unit vs flat-rate break-even

Annual software math at 3, 8, and 15 units — flat, free-first bands, and $9/unit premium.

Switch checklist before you migrate

What to export (leases, balances, deposits, docs), DIY-tool portability notes, cutover timing, tenant notice.

Tenant payment fees (ACH, card, cash)

What small landlords pay beyond the subscription — RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail fee shapes + $1,500 worked examples.

Tenant screening costs (who pays, what’s in the bundle)

Credit / criminal / eviction fees on RentRedi, TurboTenant, and Avail — defaults, income add-ons, 1- vs 2-adult math.

Where DIY tools list vacancies

Zillow / Apartments.com / Realtor.com syndication maps for RentRedi, TurboTenant, and Avail — plus paid boost shapes.

Late fees & autopay (who sets what)

Grace periods, auto late-fee shapes, and who actually controls tenant autopay on RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail.

Maintenance & work orders (tenant submit, photos, vendors)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail tickets: photos, status, notifications, vendor email vs coordination, free vs paid gaps.

Lease & e-sign (state forms, wet vs e-sign)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: state templates vs upload, wet vs e-sign, who signs, free vs paid gaps, Dropbox Sign notes.

Accounting & Schedule E export (categories, CSV/PDF)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: Schedule E categories, bank sync, receipts, free vs paid books depth, year-end CPA export paths.

Owner statements & 1099 contractor pay (vendor totals, CPA handoff)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: owner/investor statements, vendor spend for 1099-NEC prep, who files vs exports totals, free vs paid gaps.

Security deposits & move-out (held vs returned, deductions)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: separate deposit banks, partial returns + photos, ACH vs external refunds, free vs paid ledger depth.

Tenant notices & communication logs (late rent, entry, portal history)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: reminders vs formal notices, entry heads-up, chat export, forms library — operational trail vs statutory proof.

Document vault & lease files (folders, exports, switch)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: Documents Hub vs property/lease docs vs lease attachments — folders, who can see files, free vs paid gates, what exports when you migrate.

Rent roll & occupancy reports (exports, free vs paid, cutover)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: what “rent roll” means, Vacant/Rented/Expiring views, CSV/PDF/email exports, free vs paid gates, switch handoff.

Insurance & COI reminders (policies, expirations, certificates)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: landlord policies vs tenant renters proof vs vendor COIs, expiration nudges, free vs paid gates, switch handoff.

Inspection & condition reports (checklists, photos, e-sign)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: native Condition Reports vs printable PDFs + Signature Request vs lease-attachment checklists; free vs paid gates; cutover handoff.

Applications & lead pipeline (inquiry → showings → screening)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: lead capture, showings, online apps, screening handoff, free vs paid gates, cutover.

Renewals & lease extensions (notice windows, e-sign, rent bumps)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: expiration reminders, renewal vs extension vs new lease vs month-to-month, rent bumps, free vs paid gates.

Partial payments, credits & balance adjustments (short pays, concessions)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: short pays, Create Credit vs charge edits, remaining balance vs late fees, free vs paid gates, cutover.

Eviction & collections handoff (pay-or-quit docs, Stop Payments, counsel packs)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: past-due vs pay-or-quit docs, Block / Disable / Stop Payments, ledger exports for counsel — not a how-to-evict guide.

Section 8 / HAP payments (split rent, offline HAP, ledger labels)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: contract rent vs HAP + tenant portion, offline/ACH recording, method labels, late-fee traps — not PHA compliance advice.

Bank reconciliation & deposit matching (payouts, batches, bank feeds)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: batched deposits, payout timing, deposit reports and CSVs, bank-feed double-count traps, a monthly close checklist.

Utility billing & charge-backs (water/sewer/trash re-bills, splits, flat fees)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: Utility charge types, recurring vs one-time, roommate splits, RUBS-style duplex math, autopay and late-fee gaps, sharing the bill.

Pet fees, pet rent & pet deposits (set-up, autopay gaps, assistance animals)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: pet rent as its own charge vs folded into rent, autopay and late-fee coverage, refundable deposits, application pet questions, Colorado cap example.

Prorated rent & move-in charges (first month, mid-month, move-out credits)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: auto-proration vs manual amounts, actual-days vs 30-day math, move-in cost bundles, mid-month move-out credits, free vs paid gaps.

NSF & returned payment fees (ACH bounce, bank fee vs landlord fee)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: processor return fees vs lease NSF charges, TT NSF category vs RR/Avail Other, clawbacks and deposit reversals, free vs paid gaps.

Holdover & month-to-month conversion (lease end, charge continuity, rent bumps)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: what happens when the term ends with no renewal, Convert to MTM vs end-of-term settings vs new MTM lease, silent charge stops and double-billing, MTM rent bumps vs legal notice.

Roommate & co-tenant changes mid-lease (add, remove, replace, re-split rent)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: screening the incoming roommate, Tenant Change Addendum vs amendment vs new lease, split charges and autopay after the swap, deposit transfer models, joint-and-several basics.

Co-signers & guarantors (screening, signing, notices, mid-lease adds)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: guarantor screening and who pays, co-signer role vs “add as tenant” vs “sign as lessee,” portal access and late notices, TT’s no-addendum rule for new co-signers, joint-and-several vs limited guaranty, Colorado income-cap caution.

Early lease termination & lease-break fees (buyouts, final balances, stopping autopay)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: TT lease-builder early-termination clause vs your own lease, posting the fee before archiving, deleting future and already-sent rent charges, tenant-controlled autopay, deposit vs fee double-counts, mitigation basics, SCRA and Colorado domestic-violence cautions.

Subleases & lease assignments (consent, screening, who the portal bills)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: sublease vs assignment vs new lease (and the vendors’ conflicting “sublet” wording), screening the newcomer, keeping a subtenant off your rent charge, TT Replace addendum vs RR Edit Lease + Unlink vs Avail new lease, autopay and deposit models, Colorado consent-reasonableness and “sublessor” rules.

Buying or selling a rental with tenants in place (estoppels, deposits, re-pointing rent)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: no per-property transfer between landlord accounts, TT Forms Pack estoppel certificate, stopping the seller’s charges and tenant autopay without deleting history, adding the occupied unit and inherited deposit for the buyer, payout re-pointing for an LLC move, Colorado deposit-transfer and one-business-day new-landlord notice rules.

Required lease disclosures & addenda (lead paint, radon, Colorado statements, e-sign order)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: which templates add the federal lead disclosure and Colorado radon, identity, source-of-income, and bilingual habitability statements, which make you upload your own, signing disclosures before the lease, TT’s Pro gate for uploaded e-sign, RentRedi’s single-checkbox signature, portal posting, and 3-year retention.

When a tenant dies (ending the lease, stopping autopay, deposit and belongings, Colorado’s Letty’s Act)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: no “deceased” status anywhere, so shorten the term, delete future charges, and stop autopay without wiping history; RentRedi’s unlink auto-pause, TurboTenant’s Edit Term and Move Out Tenant, Avail’s end-date change and new-lease handover; who can take the deposit (personal representative or Colorado small-estate affidavit), and C.R.S. 38-12-801(3.5) limits on fees and rent acceleration.

Abandoned units & left-behind belongings (confirming abandonment, stopping charges, storing and disposing of property)

Side-by-side RentRedi / TurboTenant / Avail: no “abandoned” status or notice anywhere, so stop future charges and autopay while keeping the unpaid balance and history; when Colorado lets you retake a unit without court (C.R.S. 38-12-510’s reasonable-person test and its three-months’-rent-or-$5,000 penalty), lien-exempt belongings, the 30-day / 15-day certified-mail disposal rule in 38-20-116, and the deposit deadline after a surrender.

Coming next

When a tenant files for bankruptcy on DIY landlord tools (the automatic stay and what it means for rent reminders, late fees, autopay, and collections; post-filing rent; the residential-eviction exceptions in 11 U.S.C. 362(b)(22)–(23) and 362(l); keeping the ledger clean for a proof of claim). Our site has no bankruptcy coverage yet, and it changes what you’re allowed to send from the app