Property management software for a South African letting agency: what the job actually needs
An agency does not manage properties; it manages other people's properties, other people's money and other people's tenants, and reports to all of them. Software built for a landlord with three flats does not survive contact with that. Here is what an agency's system has to do, and how Mastendi does it.
Many landlords, one workspace
Every landlord you manage for is a client with their own properties, tenants, statements and mandate. The agency needs to see the whole book in one place — every unit, every arrears, every open job — while each landlord sees only theirs. That is a scoping rule the software enforces on the server, not a filter on a screen, and it is the difference between a portfolio tool and an agency tool.
Agents with their own books
A team is not one login. Each agent gets the properties they look after — their book — and the permissions their role needs: who may record a payment, who may delete a tenant, who may see finances, who may only log maintenance. A restricted agent's screens, exports and searches stay inside their book. A principal sees everything and can hand a book to someone else when an agent leaves.
The rent roll, out of the ledger
The month sheet — every unit, what was billed, what came in, what is owed — is the agency's working document and the landlord's proof. It has to be read from the same ledger the statements come from, not maintained by hand beside it. Recurring charges live on the unit so they survive a change of tenant; every payment settles the oldest debt first from every channel; the roll is right because the ledger is.
Compliance: the FFC, POPIA, the trust account
- Fidelity Fund Certificates — a register of every practitioner's certificate and its expiry, in the system, not a drawer.
- POPIA — consent for screening and reporting, per-audience terms for tenants and owners, and erasure that keeps the financial history the law requires you to keep.
- The trust ledger — a record of what was received for each landlord, what was paid out and what is held, with statements to the client. A record: the software never holds or moves money.
- TPN reporting — an agency with its own membership reports its tenants' payment behaviour each month, and screens applicants on its own account.
Pricing that scales with the book
An agency's cost should follow the leases it manages: a monthly amount, a rate per active lease, billed on the busiest day of the month so a lease that ran all month is paid for. A larger agency negotiates an agreement — an amount that covers a number of leases and a rate for each above it — and the invoice explains itself. What the software must never do is take a percentage of the rent: that is the agency's money and the landlord's, and a supplier has no claim on it.
Mastendi for agencies
Mastendi is built for the agency shape: landlord books with server-side scoping and an owner portal per landlord; agent permissions and books; charges on the unit, oldest-debt-first allocation and a rent roll from the ledger; a rehearsed take-on for the book you inherit; TPN screening and reporting on your own membership; bank reconciliation with statement import or Xero; the FFC register and per-audience terms; a record-only trust ledger with client statements; a tenant portal with WhatsApp self-service; and per-lease pricing with room for an agreement. Priced in rand, with no share of the rent.
Run the book, not the paperwork
Bring the rent roll, and see your landlords' books, your agents' permissions and your first owner statements in an afternoon. Per lease, in rand, with a 30-day trial that includes everything.
Start your 30-day free trialFrequently asked questions
Does Mastendi take a percentage of rent?
No, and it never will. Mastendi never holds or moves money. Agencies pay a monthly amount per active lease, or a negotiated agreement for a larger book.
Can each landlord log in and see only their properties?
Yes. Every landlord gets an owner portal scoped at the server to their own properties — statements, financials, maintenance and documents — and nothing of anyone else's.
Can I limit what an agent sees?
Yes. Each agent has a book of properties and role permissions; a restricted agent's lists, searches, exports and finances stay inside their book.
How do I move an existing book onto Mastendi?
With a rent-roll import that is rehearsed against your own figures before it writes anything: units as named, tenants with their credit, a payment reference per tenant and the month's charges. A re-import cannot double a book.
Does it handle the trust account?
It keeps the trust ledger as a record — receipts for landlords, payouts, balances and client statements — for your books and your auditor. It does not hold or transfer the money.
Disclaimer: This guide is general information for South African property practitioners and is not legal, accounting or compliance advice. The Property Practitioners Act, POPIA and the National Credit Act govern the matters above; confirm your obligations with the PPRA, your auditor or an attorney.