How do I set up Rent Collection to collect rent and invite a tenant?

With Baselane's Rent Collection tool, landlords can create lease terms, generate automated invoices, and invite tenants to pay rent online. 

In this article, we will cover

• Adding your property

• Setting up Rent Collection

• Fees for Rent Collection

• Tenant onboarding guide

Adding your property

1. Go to the Properties tab:

2. Select Add Property and enter the property details.

   • Property type

   • Property name

   • Street address

   • Single or multi-unit

   • Optional Details: # beds, # bathrooms, and size are optional and will be used in the Rent Roll reports.

3. Once completed, select Create Property.

Setting up Rent Collection

1. Go to the Rent Collection tab:

2. Select Set Up Rent Collection.

3. Choose the Property & Unit (Step 1):

   • You may create multiple rent collections for a single property (e.g., future tenants, tenants splitting rent, etc.).

4. Enter Rent Details (Step 2):

   • Lease term: Fixed or Month-to-month

   • Lease start and end date

   • Rent amount

   • Recurring fees

     • These are recurring monthly charges with a fixed amount, such as a pet or parking fee.

   • Due date

     • Note: If Rent Collection is set up after the rent due date (for example, rent is due on the 1st and you set up Rent Collection on the 2nd), the invoice for that month will not be generated. 

     • If you still need to collect rent for the current month, you can create a custom one-time fee directly in Step 3 of the Rent Collection setup.

   • Late fees

     • One-time or daily late fees can be applied. 

     • To learn more, please visit How to Set Up Per-Day Late Fees in Baselane's Rent Collection Tool

5. Add Fees & Deposits (Step 3):

   • Security deposit

   • Last month’s rent

   • Prorated rent

   • One-time fees (e.g., move-in fee)

6. Review payment invoices (Step 4):

   • Preview of all invoices generated for the duration of your lease term, including fees and deposits

7. Select the Bank Accounts (Step 5):

   • You can receive rent into either a Baselane Checking account (ACH fee waived) or an external bank account (ACH rent payments will include a $2.00 fee per invoice)

     • Landlords choose whether the tenant or landlord pays the $2.00 ACH fee for rent deposited into an external bank account.

     • You can update this selection in two places:

     • Within the active Rent Collection: Select the active rent collection → scroll to the bottom of the rent collection details → select Tenant ACH payment fee → choose who pays the ACH fee (Landlord or Tenant).

     • In Workspace Settings:
       You can also set your default ACH fee preference for all future rent collections from your Workspace Settings.

     • Go to your Dashboard.

     • In the upper-right corner, select your name.

     • From the dropdown, choose Workspace Settings.

     • Select Rent Collection.

     •  Choose whether the landlord or tenant pays the $2.00 ACH fee for rent deposited into an external account.

   • Security deposits can be deposited into either a Checking or Savings account.
     

8. Add Tenant Details (Step 6):

   • First name

   • Last name

   • Email

   • Phone number 

   • Note: If the tenant has been added to Baselane before (for example, from a previous rent collection), select Existing Tenant instead of entering their details again.

9. Review & invite tenant (Step 7):

   • Review the details entered in Steps 1–6 to ensure all information is accurate. Make any necessary edits before proceeding.

   • Once you select Confirm & Invite Tenant, Baselane will automatically send your tenant an email and text message with instructions to create their Tenant Portal account.

   • If you prefer to share the invitation link directly with your tenant, you can do so after the rent collection is active:

     • Go to the Rent Collection tab

     • Select the Active rent collection

     • In the Tenant Onboarding Progress section, click Copy Invitation Link

     • Share the link with your tenant through your preferred communication method

Fees for Rent Collection

• Credit/Debit Card Payments: A 3.49% processing fee is added to each invoice when the tenant pays by debit or credit card. This fee is added directly to the rent invoice, paid by the tenant, and is not charged to the landlord.

• Collecting rent into an external bank account: Rent deposited into non-Baselane banking accounts incurs a $2 fee per rent invoice paid via ACH (account number/routing number).

  • Landlords may choose to cover this fee or pass it on to the tenant.

• Collecting rent into a Baselane banking account: $2.00 fee waived and free for tenants.

Tenant onboarding guide

Review the guides below to understand the onboarding flow and communications your tenant will receive after you invite them.

• Tenant Onboarding Guide (English & Spanish) – Covers creating an account, adding a payment method, viewing invoices, and paying rent.

• Renter Onboarding Guide (Spanish)10 MB
• Renter Onboarding Guide (English)3 MB