Listed below is the most common questions people have asked us. Click on the
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The Support Team.
How do I enter Healthy Homes information
The Healthy Homes standard is a standard used in New Zealand.
The healthy homes information can be entered into RentHQ on the tenant details screen using the `Create Agreement` button and then filling out the NZ tenancy agreement including the healthy homes standard. After saving the tenancy agreement, each time you create a new agreement for the same property, the previously saved healthy homes details will be automatically inserted. This PDF file is also printable in a format accepted by Tenancy Services.
At the end of the month a property manager normally pays their landlord clients. Prior to doing these steps make sure you have entered the management fee % against each owner on the owner details screen.
Step 1 - Make sure all your transactions have been entered.
Step 2 - Go to the Owners menu group and choose Disbursements.
Step 3 - Either add a disbursement one at a time for each owner or press the Add Bulk button which will create the disbursement payment transaction for each owner automatically.
Step 4 - Print the owners transaction summary report if you want to sent this report to your client owners.
Step 5 - Print the tenant statement report if you want to send those to your tenants.
(Note - this process can be done at any time of the month, and as often as you wish).
The Healthy Homes standard is a standard used in New Zealand.
The healthy homes information can be entered into RentHQ on the tenant details screen using the `Create Agreement` button and then filling out the NZ tenancy agreement including the healthy homes standard. After saving the tenancy agreement, each time you create a new agreement for the same property, the previously saved healthy homes details will be automatically inserted. This PDF file is also printable in a format accepted by Tenancy Services.
If you have just started using this program and would like to know where to start then read the following steps.
Step 1 - Create owners.
Choose the Owners menu option and create the owners of the properties. If only one owner owns all properties then this step may be skipped.
Step 2 - Create properties.
Choose the Properties menu option and create new property entries for each property which is being rented out. These properties are linked to the owners created in step 1.
Step 3 - Create Tenants
Choose the Tenants menu option and create the details for each tenant which is currently renting the properties you have previously entered. These tenants are linked to the properties created in step 2.
Step 4 and ongoing - Enter income and expense details.
Use the Cashbook menu option to add income and expense transactions which are attributable to the properties you are managing. This will continue throughout the year. Reports and graphs may also be printed or reviewed at regular intervals to watch the progress of the properties.
Go to the Cashbook menu option under the Transactions menu group. Use the Add button to record your rent income entries. Select Rent as the transaction group, along with the amount, date and property, and the correct tenant.
You can also set up an automatic transaction by going to the Function menu and choose Automatic Transactions. Automatic entries will automatically appear on the Dashboard screen.
You can also use the Import Statement option to import an electronic copy of your bank statement including the rent payment transactions.
Landlords, tenant and contractors who are clients of the property manager can log in and view information specific to them.
Each login type has a different login button on the 'Members Login' page. These login pages will all ask for a company name, login name and password. The company name will be your company name - the same as the one you used when you created your RentHQ account. The user name will be their short code. i.e. the landlord code, tenant code or contractors code. Their initial password will also be their short code. They can log in and change their password at any time. You also have the ability to reset their password back to their short code again by going to their respective tenant or landlord or contractors details pages and pressing the Reset button.
For landlords and tenants, you can create a letter via the mail merge facility which contains their login details. Creating letters via the mail merge facility also provides a special URL which contains your company name, which means the client does not need to manually enter it themselves.
If you have just started using this program and would like to know where to start then read the following steps.
Step 1 - Create owners.
Choose the Owners menu option and create the owners of the properties. If only one owner owns all properties then this step may be skipped.
Step 2 - Create properties.
Choose the Properties menu option and create new property entries for each property which is being rented out. These properties are linked to the owners created in step 1.
Step 3 - Create Tenants
Choose the Tenants menu option and create the details for each tenant which is currently renting the properties you have previously entered. These tenants are linked to the properties created in step 2.
Step 4 and ongoing - Enter income and expense details.
Use the Cashbook menu option to add income and expense transactions which are attributable to the properties you are managing. This will continue throughout the year. Reports and graphs may also be printed or reviewed at regular intervals to watch the progress of the properties.
If the property being entered is an apartment building or a similar property with multiple rental units, use the Add Building button on the Properties screen. This screen allows you to quickly create multiple units which can be individually changed later if required.
Yes your existing RentMaster data can be converted to RentHQ. These are the steps required.
1. Open a RentHQ account by going to the 'Getting Started' menu on the RentHQ web site
https://www.renthq.net/purchase/purchase.aspx 2. Create a Rentmaster database backup. Inside Rentmaster go to the file menu and choose Database Maintenance to create the backup.
3. Email the database backup to RentHQ, including the name of your new RentHQ account in the email. We will convert your data and upload it to your RentHQ account for you.
If you want to change an extra fee on top of the normal rent based fee, then you will need to use the Extra Fees section which is found under the owners menu group. You will have to specify the amount and reason for the fee yourself. You can also set up automatic extra fees from the Maintenance menu if you have recurring additional fees.
If you charge the owner a specific amount or a percentage amount each time a repair is done, this can be set up automatically. Go to the Functions menu group and choose Setup then Expense Groups. Choose the expense group(s) used for repairs, and choose the option 'Charge an extra fee to the owner for these transactions'. You also get to specify a percentage amount or fixed value amount.
Full purchase instruction can be found by going to the Purchase page on the web site.
Initially there will be a 2 calendar month trial period which is free. We dont need any credit card details up front for this. After 2 calendar months, if you continue to use the software, you will be sent an invoice monthly there after. You can cancel at any time.
Log into RentHQ, go to the Functions menu and choose Setup, followed by My Account. From there you can see past invoices and payments. Click the Pay Invoice link next to the invoice you want to pay online. Then follow the instructions which will take you to the paypal.com web site to pay using your credit card.
If you are in New Zealand or have a New Zealand bank account you can choose to pay by internet banking. However be aware that it can take longer to process you payment than if you paid by credit card. If you pay by credit card, your payment will be recognised within a few seconds of your payment being processed. If you pay by internet banking, it can take a few days for your payment to be recognised.
Bank account details are as follows
Bank : ASB Bank
Account Number: 12 3045 0580452 00
Account Name: First Byte Solutions Limited
Reference : Use your RentHQ invoice number as your reference.
You can cancel your subscription at any time. Just email us to let us know you want to cancel and we can close your account for you.
We recommend you do a database backup prior to cancelling so you have access to your raw data.
You will not have access to data entry or reporting facilities etc after cancelling.
Log into RentHQ, go to the Functions menu and choose Setup, followed by My Account. From there you can see past invoices and payments. Invoices and receipts also can be printed from there.
No pre-payments on your account are not refundable. Pre-payments can come with discounts. These discounts are offered in exchange for your loyalty and continued use of RentHQ.
When an account is closed, there is no obligation on RentHQ to continue to hold your data. So your data could be deleted at any time after the account is closed. Any invoices outstanding at the time the account is closed do not have to be paid.
Go to the Functions menu group and choose Setup and then Options. From the Company Details tab choose the Load button to load a picture file from your computer to be used as the report logo.
Closed tenants are excluded by default, but can be included again by ticking the Include Closed Tenants checkbox prior to printing the report.
Yes the vacancy report does show when the property will become vacant, and it does this automatically. When the report is run, it will display all properties which are currently vacant, as well as properties which will become vacant in the next 30 days. To mark a property as soon to become vacant, you need to set the tenancy end date on the tenant details screen for the tenant who currently occupies the property.
After entering your tenants, you still need to enter the transactions separately. Go to the Cashbook screen and choose the Add button to enter your transactions. It is these transactions which will show up on your reports.
Yes you can. Go to the Functions menu group and choose Setup and then Options. From the Company Details tab enter your company name and address, and choose the option to print on the reports.
These fields are simply a short value which is used to identify a property or owner or tenant. When creating a property etc, the code chosen should be something which is 20 characters or less, and which easily identifies the property. A good suggestion for a property code may be the street name. The owner code may be the owners surname. For tenants it may be the tenants surname.
Yes you can use RentHQ on as many computer as you like without any additional cost.
Yes you can get access to your data. We actually recommend it. You should do your own database backups. There is a backup facility inside the software itself for this.
The data is a Microsoft Access .MDB database file. You will need Microsoft Access or similar software to access this raw data.
We take the security and privacy of our clients data seriously. We can only provide access to the account holder or with a New Zealand court order.
Go to the Functions menu and choose Setup and then Bank Accounts. Use the Add button to add additional accounts.
Running RentHQ on a mac is not recommended. Yes it can work on a mac, however it has special requirements.
RentHQ will not work on MacOS Catalina or higher.
RentHQ will not work with Safari or Chrome or Firefox on the mac. One browser which does work is SeaMonkey
The latest version of seamonkey does not work properly. You will need to use the older version 2.49.4 which you can download from here
http://www.seamonkey-project.org/releases/2.49.4 Another option is to run the iOS app on the Mac, however the iOS app is primarily designed for the smaller iPhone screen size, and therefore does not have all the functionality of the main desktop software.
RentHQ allows you to have multiple bank accounts. So you would almost certainly have different bank accounts for each currency. When you enter transactions you just choose the bank account the transaction belongs to and enter the value in that currency.
The tricky part comes when you start to do reporting. If you choose properties which are in different countries/currencies RentHQ will just add the numbers together without any currency conversion. So when printing reports you would have to select/deselect properties from the list so that each print only contains one currency. If you had 2 currencies, you would print each report 2 times, once including properties in currency A, and then again after only selecting properties using currency B. This property selection is a manual task.
- Ideally you would have windows 10 or higher which is able to run the Windows app.
- Older version of windows can run the browser version of RentHQ using the Internet Explorer browser. You will need to install the Silverlight plugin to run this.
- You can also use an Android or iOS device to run the mobile app.
- You will need an internet connection.
- RentHQ will generally not work on MacOS, although you can run the iOS app on some Mac's.
- RentHQ will not work on a Chromebook, although you could install the Android mobile app on the chromebook.
At the time of writing this, these devices are not supported.
Windows 10
- Quit all open browsers.
- Open the Start menu.
- Select Settings.
- Select System.
- Select Apps & Features in the left sidebar.
- Find and select Microsoft Silverlight.
- Select Uninstall.
Windows 8:
- Quit all open browsers.
- Open Settings.
- If you are on a touch screen: Swipe from the right edge of the screen, then tap Settings.
- If you are using a mouse or touchpad move the pointer to the lower-right corner of the screen and click, then click Settings.
- Select Control Panel.
- Select Programs & Features.
- Find and select Microsoft Silverlight.
- Select Uninstall.
Windows 7/Vista:
- Quit all open browsers.
- Open the Start menu.
- Select Control Panel.
- Select Programs & Features.
- Find and select Microsoft Silverlight.
- Select Uninstall.
Windows XP:
- Quit all open browsers.
- Open the Start menu.
- Select Control Panel.
- Select Add or Remove Programs.
- Find and select Microsoft Silverlight.
- Select Remove.
Reinstall the Silverlight plugin on Windows:
Go to
https://www.microsoft.com/getsilverlight and follow the instructions from there.
Dropbox.com and Google Drive are web sites for storing files online. All RentHQ attachments can be sent automatically to your Dropbox or Google Drive account. In addition, you can also set up a regularly scheduled database backup directly to your Dropbox or Google Drive account.
RentHQ will only have access to one specific folder inside your Dropbox or Google Drive account. All files outside this folder will not be accessible to RentHQ.
It is recommended you create a Dropbox or Google Drive account for your business rather than using a personal account in case of staff changes. You cannot switch to another account later.
To enable Dropbox, go to
http://www.dropbox.com and open an account, including an email verification process. Then go back into RentHQ, and go to Functions/Setup/Options/File Storage and authorise dropbox.
To enable Google Drive, go to
http://drive.google.com and open an account. Then go back into RentHQ, and go to Functions/Setup/Options/File Storage and authorise Google Drive.
All existing attachments will be moved to your dropbox or Google Drive account.
First go to Settings -> Software Update and make sure you are on the latest iOS version. This may resolve the issue on newer iPhones.
On older iPhones, you will need to manually install a trusted certificate.
On the iPhone, browse to
https://crt.sh/?d=4256644734 This will prompt you to install a configuration profile. You should allow this.
Go to Settings -> Profile Downloaded
Choose to install the certificate
Go to Settings -> General -> About -> Certificate Trust Settings
Find the 'Sectigo Public Server Authentication Root R46' and turn it on if it is not already turned on.
To change the rent amount, go to the tenant details screen and then to the Rent Changes tab. Add a new rent change with the new rent amount and the date the rent change is to come into effect.
Create another income transaction using rent as the income group, but enter a negative value for the amount received.
When you take over someone elses tenant, they will most likely have a positive or negative rent balance at change over date.
The best option is to create the tenant with a tenancy start date of the day they first moved into the house. Then enter the current balance for the tenant. You can then enter rent income transactions from that date onwards.
The paid to date is first of call calculated based on the rent balance. E.g. the rent balance may be 50 owing. Assuming the rent is 70 per week (10 per day), this means the tenant is 5 days behind in their rent. So the paid to date is the end date of the current rent period less 5 days.
If the paid to date is incorrect, it probably means the rent balance is incorrect.
The rent balance is simply the sum of rent due - sum of rent paid. Rent due can be seen by going to the Tenant details screen and looking at the Information tab. The rent due can be manually changed by editing or adding the Rent Changes on the tenant details screen. The rent paid is the sum of all transactions in the cashbook for that tenant with an income group of Rent.
So if the total rent balance is incorrect, it means the rent due is wrong, or the rent income transactions are wrong. Fixing the transactions or rent changes will also fix the rent balance and also fix the paid to date.
This is a common situation where one cheque (or check) is paid to a contractor, but the expense covers multiple properties or expense types. This is best handled by creating multiple expense entries, each for a component of the total cheque value. However, make sure that each expense transaction has exactly the same date and transaction reference number, and then the bank reconciliation report will automatically add these transactions together and print the sum total. This will make it easier to reconcile your bank statements, as well as splitting the transaction into its separate components.
If you have a regular expense (or income), such as interest payments on a mortgage, which appears every month, but the value changes every month, the best way to handle this is to create an automatic monthly expense with a value of zero. When the automatic expense is applied, the computer will create the expense entry with a value of zero. You can then edit this expense entry and insert the correct amount.
After creating the automatic entry, the last applied date is automatically set to the current date. This Last Applied date is used as the basis for when the next occurrence of the transaction should occur. Try setting the last applied date to one month ago or whenever you last recorded that transaction.
The short answer is no. The bank statement transaction import facility can not take into account any fees charged as part of the disbursements. So it is therefore advised to always do your disbursements as manual transactions, and when importing your bank statement, leave the disbursements transactions with a red background colour. Any transaction with a red background will not be imported.
An option is to treat the credit card as a separate bank account. Go to Functions menu and choose Setup and then Bank Accounts and add an additional bank account for the credit card. When entering expenses, you can choose the credit card bank account as the paying account. Then when the credit card is paid back from the real bank account, you add an expense entry using the real bank account for the amount paid off, and you add an income entry using the credit card bank account for the money received into that account. Effectively you are transferring cash from your regular bank account into the credit card bank account.
Yes. Enter an expense transaction on the account the money is coming out of and an income transaction on the account it is going into. You may like to create an income group of 'TransferIn' and mark this income group as not 'Taxable' and 'Exclude from cashfow analysis' and 'Exclude from P&L reporting'. Create an expense group called 'TransferOut' and use the same settings.
Yes RentHQ can handle GST and VAT and other similar transaction taxes. Go to the Functions menu group and choose Setup and then Income Groups and Expense Groups. Against each Income Group and Expense Group you get to specify the tax rate. This way some income and expense groups and be tax exempt or zero tax, while others include tax. Once enabled, the tax amount is calculated automatically for each transaction, although you can manually over-ride the tax amount if required.
No period end is necessary. It is completely optional.
Period end procedures are for property managers who pay their landlords and extract their management fees once a month. If you are not a property manager then it does not affect you. If you are a property manager then it is recommended, but still not mandatory.
Any over-payment of rent is added to the current rental period as an overpayment, so the rent owing might be 100, and the paid amount might be 200. When the next rental period is started, the overpayment is automatically carried forward into the new period. So there can only ever be an overpayment in the current period. It is all handled automatically. A rent status report will indicate the total rent owing as a negative number if they overpay.
Sometimes you have a situation where you want to reduce the rent the tenant has to pay. For example, you might reduce the rent by $50 if the tenant cleans the gutters for you. To credit the rent requires making 2 rent changes, one to decrease the rent temporarily, and another to increase it back to the regular amount again. Go to the tenant details screen, and then to the Rent Changes tab. Create a rent change with a rent change date of the start date of the rent period, and enter the rent amount as the reduced value rent amount. Then create another rent change to increase the rent amount back up to the regular amount again.
You have 3 options.
1) Create another income transaction using rent as the income group, but enter a negative value for the amount received. This is the recommended option.
2) Delete the original income transaction. This is the easy option.
3) Create an expense transaction for the same amount to correct the bank balance. Then to go the Extra Charges menu option and create an extra charge against the tenant for the amount of the cheque. That will increase the amount owed by that tenant. This is a longer option, but keeps a better record of activities.
With `Section 8` tenants, the tenant pays a portion of the rent, and the government assists by paying the balance. For example the property might be charging $1000/month rent, and the tenant is required to pay $700/month.
The way to do this is to create 2 tenants, with both tenants renting the same property at the same time. One tenant is the real tenant, and that tenant will be set to pay $700. The other tenant is the government, and they are set to pay $300. Then when the money is received, you select which of those 2 tenants has paid the money. This way you can separately track the rent income and arrears balance for each of those 2 tenants.
To charge the tenant for an outgoing amount, go to the tenant menu group and choose Extra Charges.
If the outgoings are a regular amount, you can go to the Functions menu group and choose Setup and then Automatic Transactions, and create an Automatic Extra Charges.
When the tenant pays the charge back again, you can record it as a separate transaction in the cashbook, using an income group set up specifically for extra charges. These income groups have the option 'Used to pay back extra charges' ticked. You can also use the Rent income group to pay extra charges as well if you choose.
Yes you can disconnect your Xero account from RentHQ at any time. Go to Functions/Setup/Options, then go to the Xero tab, and click the Disconnect from Xero button.
If you modify your bank accounts in Xero, you should go to Functions/Setup/Options, then go to the Xero tab, and press the Refresh button. This will download the new list of available bank accounts from Xero.