Digitalizing property management with Salesforce: real-life case and our insights
Property managers frequently find themselves bogged down with inefficiencies of manual data entry, fragmented communication, and the lack of a centralized system. Such tasks often mean spending an average of 20 hours per week on them—time that could be used for strategic decision-making. On top of that, dealing with diverse stakeholders like vendors, landlords, owners, and renters can create data inconsistencies, slow response times, and inflate operational costs.
Without an integrated system, these tasks become overwhelming, leading to rising costs and stunted business growth. That’s where Salesforce steps in. As a cloud-based CRM platform, it transforms property management by providing a centralized hub for data, automating repetitive tasks, and enabling real-time communication. It’s not just about making processes easier—it’s about empowering property managers to deliver better service, make data-driven decisions, and focus on growth.
At Noltic, we’ve seen the impact firsthand. Our team has helped companies across industries, including real estate, overcome challenges by implementing tailored Salesforce solutions. If you’re looking for ways to automate your operations and provide exceptional service, you’re in the right place.
How we leveraged Salesforce for property management and boosted operational efficiency for our client
Managing properties at scale isn’t easy, especially when you handle diverse customer groups, from landlords and vendors to tenants and property owners. One of our clients, a UK-based property management company, faced this challenge head-on. Dedicated to ensuring safe, clean, and comfortable living environments, they provide a wide range of services, including property management, sales and lettings, insurance, and consultancy. However, their traditional processes couldn’t keep up with their growing needs.
The challenges: inefficiency, complexity, and cost
The company encountered a range of challenges that slowed their operations and increased costs:
- Vendors, landlords, renters, and owners had varying needs and inquiries, creating complexity and delays in communication.
- Their existing systems couldn’t handle simultaneous requests from different groups, limiting their ability to scale effectively.
- Property owners needed easy access to budgeting data and client information, but the tools available were outdated and disjointed.
- Clients wanted timely updates on repairs and maintenance, yet the system lacked real-time communication capabilities.
- Inefficient processes meant more time and resources spent on manual tasks, reducing profitability.
The solution: a Salesforce-powered platform designed for efficiency
Partnering with Noltic, the company sought to modernize its operations with a custom Salesforce CRM solution. Here’s how we approached the project:
- We built a user-friendly Salesforce property management app and web portal to serve as a centralized hub for all property and client information. The property management application was using Salesforce to handle multiple simultaneous inquiries, ensuring scalability and flexibility.
- Our team automated essential tasks like managing repair and maintenance requests to reduce manual effort and errors.
- Enabled property owners to access budgeting data and client information quickly and easily, all in one place.
- We have equipped the system to send timely updates to clients about repair and maintenance work, improving transparency and trust.
- Built a platform that automated routine tenant management tasks, from tenant onboarding to issue resolution and offboarding.
The results: efficiency, savings, and satisfied clients
- Automating processes and centralizing data simplified daily operations and reduced administrative workloads;
- With improved efficiency, the company significantly reduced operational expenses;
- Timely updates and a more organized system resulted in happier tenants, landlords, and property owners;
- The new system was robust enough to handle simultaneous inquiries and flexible enough to adapt to future growth.
Property management automation: 8 lessons learned from the implemented project
Real estate management is far from straightforward. Whether overseeing residential complexes or commercial office spaces, no two companies operate the same way. Each has unique processes, property types, and business goals.
For example, automating workflows in a residential building with dozens of individual tenants is entirely different from managing a corporate office tower with fewer but more demanding clients. This variability underscores the need for tailored automation solutions that meet the specific requirements of your operations, accelerate workflows, and maximize the value of your properties.
1. Centralize your data management
Managing property and tenant information across disconnected systems often leads to inefficiencies, duplicate entries, and errors. However, implementing a single centralized data platform can solve these issues.
In our client’s case, a custom Salesforce CRM consolidated lease agreements, financial transactions, and maintenance requests. This centralized system provided accurate data in real time and eliminated the need to juggle multiple tools or spreadsheets. Salesforce Sales Cloud can also be your go-to tool for managing leads and tenant inquiries, while Service Cloud helps track tenant service requests.
As our CTO, Vlad Petrovych, shares, "One of the biggest benefits of Salesforce for our client is its cloud-based nature, which means they can access crucial information from anywhere at any time. This feature has been critical for remote property management, allowing their team to stay connected and responsive no matter where they are. Plus, Salesforce comes equipped with intuitive tools for data integration, like Flow Builder. This allows them to easily connect with external systems, ensuring that all their data is synchronized across platforms, making their operations smoother and more efficient."
2. Automate routine communications
Communicating effectively with tenants and property owners is essential, but it can be time-consuming, especially if you manually send reminders for rent payments or updates. You can use tools like Salesforce Marketing Cloud or Einstein Automate to set up workflows for:
- Sending rent reminders and notifications for overdue payments;
- Providing real-time updates on maintenance requests;
- Sharing alerts about lease renewals and upcoming inspections.
For our client, we also implemented Salesforce Reports and Dashboards to give property managers insights into tenant satisfaction trends and highlight areas for improvement. Vlad adds:
"No matter your specific needs, Salesforce has a powerful suite of tools designed to simplify your processes. For instance, with Flow Builder and Process Builder, you can easily set up reminders for rent payments, send timely maintenance updates, and notify tenants about lease renewals—all with just a few clicks. This level of automation doesn’t just save time; it significantly improves your relationships with landlords and boosts your overall business performance. By reducing the likelihood of missed payments or unresolved issues, you increase efficiency and build trust and satisfaction among everyone involved."
3. Simplify maintenance management
Maintenance management can quickly spiral into chaos without proper tracking and task allocation. For our client, we automated the entire maintenance workflow by allowing tenants to submit requests directly through the portal. These requests were automatically assigned to the right personnel and tracked until resolved.
Preventive maintenance tasks were also automated, with the system sending reminders and tracking completion status. Hence, our client ensured properties remained in excellent condition, preventing larger issues down the road.
Additionally, you can use Salesforce Field Service to schedule, assign, and monitor maintenance jobs. You can set up direct communication between property managers, technicians, and tenants while tracking progress in real-time.
4. Automate as many workflows as possible
Using Salesforce tools like Omnistudio and Salesforce Flows, we helped our client automate key tasks, including:
- Tenant screenings;
- Rent collections and overdue notices;
- Lease renewals and contract generation;
- Property inspections;
- Move-in and move-out processes.
This way, tasks that once took hours were now completed in minutes, with improved accuracy and fewer chances for mistakes. The client found themselves freed from the daily grind of administrative work, allowing them to focus more on strategic growth and creating a better experience for tenants.
5. Integrate Salesforce with payment solutions
Managing payments and financial transactions across multiple platforms can be challenging. However, you can integrate Salesforce with third-party payment systems such as Stripe or PayPal to simplify rent collection and set up automated updates for payment statuses. MuleSoft can facilitate these integrations, ensuring smooth data flow between Salesforce and payment platforms.
By integrating our client’s Salesforce setup with payment gateways and accounting systems, we enabled:
- Automated rent collection and receipt generation;
- Real-time reporting on occupancy rates and revenue trends;
- Data-driven pricing adjustments based on tenant behavior and market conditions.
6. Customize and scale your solution
Our client’s complex workflows required a highly customized Salesforce implementation. The solution was designed to handle multiple user groups, manage simultaneous inquiries, and support remote property management. You can use Salesforce App Builder and Lightning Components to create custom solutions that align with your specific processes. Beyond customization, scalability ensured the system could handle future growth.
7. Enhance move-in and move-out procedures
The move-in and move-out processes are often bottlenecks in property management. For our client, we automated key steps such as:
- Scheduling move-in inspections;
- Processing security deposits;
- Assigning tasks for record updates and tenant communications.
The system ensured no steps were missed, minimizing errors and delays during tenant transitions. Additionally, you can use Salesforce Flow and Custom Objects to automate checklists for inspections, tenant onboarding, and finalizing payments, as well as Service Cloud to ensure that tenants receive timely updates and support during these transitions, creating a smoother experience.
8. Focus on data-driven decision-making
With Salesforce’s analytics tools, our client gained insights into every aspect of their operations, from tenant behavior to revenue patterns. For instance, the Einstein Discovery tool adds predictive analytics, helping you anticipate tenant churn, optimize marketing efforts, or project future property values.
Trust our experience to digitalize your property management using Salesforce
Digitalizing real estate operations is not a simple task—it requires a partner who understands your challenges and can design a solution tailored to your specific workflows and goals.
At Noltic, we have been consulting, designing, and implementing Salesforce solutions since 2017. Over the years, we’ve delivered more than 110 projects across industries of all sizes, earning a 4.9 rating on Salesforce AppExchange and 5.0 on Clutch. Our team includes 10 Salesforce Certified Architects and has accumulated over 300 Salesforce certificates, ensuring that you’re working with some of the most qualified experts in the field.
We’ve partnered with property management companies to automate their operations, improve communication, and reduce costs through Salesforce solutions. Whether you’re managing residential complexes, commercial spaces, or mixed-use properties, our expertise can help you transform your operations through Salesforce.
FAQs
What are some best practices for implementing Salesforce in property management?
To ensure a successful implementation, focus on centralizing data management, automating routine tasks, and customizing the platform to fit your unique needs.
- Use Salesforce CRM to consolidate property, tenant, and financial information;
- Leverage Salesforce Experience Cloud to provide tenants and property owners with a user-friendly portal;
- Automate routine workflows like tenant communication, maintenance requests, and rent collection using tools such as Flow Builder and Process Builder;
- Engage an experienced Salesforce partner, like our team, to tailor the platform to your specific workflows and ensure scalability for future growth.
How can I integrate Salesforce with other property management tools?
Salesforce offers powerful integration capabilities, including APIs and pre-built connectors, to integrate with tools like accounting systems, payment gateways, and property management platforms. With solutions like MuleSoft or Salesforce Flows, you can create seamless data synchronization across systems. Working with an expert team can help you outsource integration tasks to set up an efficient data exchange.
What is the cost of implementing Salesforce for property management?
The cost depends on the scale of your operations, the level of customization needed, and the features you require. Smaller implementations with basic property management workflow automation are more affordable, while large-scale projects, including Salesforce Experience Cloud and advanced integrations, may require a higher budget. Outsourcing to a skilled Salesforce partner helps optimize costs and ensures efficient execution.
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