Real estate is a challenging and paper-and-file-heavy business that needs to keep track of many types of files, like purchase deals, property listings, lease agreements, and more. In the fast-paced business world of today, it’s important to have a system that works well and can be relied on to streamline operations, boost output, and cut down on mistakes.
Document organization that works well is important in every field, even real estate. It includes putting all of your documents, both digital and paper, in one place where they can be easily found and organized. Landlords can make their teams more productive, lower their risks, and work together better by following best practices for handling documents.
Best Practices for Managing Documents in Real Estate
Having an organized, central location for all your real estate documents is key to keeping your operations running smoothly. It can cut down on stress significantly and give you a greater sense of control. In addition, it’ll save time for you and everyone on your team.
Here’s what you need to know about creating a structured, centralized location for your real estate documents.
In addition to advanced financial reporting tools, STRATAFOLIO can make it a breeze to organize and manage your commercial lease agreements and other paperwork. In the File section, you can organize all your documents for easy access and retrieval.
If you’re just getting started with STRATAFOLIO, you’ll receive full-service onboarding. This involves connecting your new real estate management platform to your existing QuickBooks accounts and helping you to set everything up to ensure future success. As a part of this process, we can help make sure your documents are all uploaded to the system. Here’s what you need to do.
1. First, Get Your Materials Together
Your documents might be stored on your desktop, scattered around the office, in a cloud folder, or in a physical file folder. Perhaps a combination of all of the above! No matter your existing system, the first step in organizing your documents is to get everything together. If you have any documents that are only in hard copy form, now is the time to scan them in so you have a digital copy.
You may have to get the cooperation of others in your office to get all the contracts, invoices, receipts, spreadsheets, reports, and other paperwork together. However, it’s worth the effort. Now, if the person who normally handles the paperwork is unavailable, on vacation, or leaves the company, it won’t be a problem. Your commercial lease agreements and other documents will all be in one place and easily accessible by others.
2. Discard Anything You Don’t Need
Part of organizing your paperwork involves discarding anything that is unnecessary to keep. If you’re certain that it’s redundant, inaccurate, or unneeded, chances are, it’s OK to get rid of it. This way, it won’t clog up your space. As a result, it’ll be easier to find what you need.
Many of the tasks that need to be done to handle documents can be done automatically by commercial real estate software. This saves time and cuts down on mistakes. This kind of software gives you a central place to store, organize, and get papers. It can also send alerts and reminders about due dates, automate document processes, and let team members work together.
3. Upload the Files
Now, it’s time to upload everything to your central location, whether this is the Files section of STRATAFOLIO or another cloud-based storage solution. We can assist you with this as a part of the onboarding process.
4. Make an Upkeep Plan
After getting your documents together, you’re probably tired of sorting through them! The good news is, you can prevent them from becoming an unmanageable mess in the future. This means getting in the habit of adding any new documents to your centralized location. You may want to block out some time once a week or once a month to ensure that everything remains organized and caught up.
Commercial real estate software helps you put papers in the right place and make sense of their placement. This makes it easier to find documents when needed and keeps team members from having to spend a lot of time sorting through piles of papers.
5. Finally, Enjoy the Ease of Accessing Your Files!
It’s important to keep real estate documents safe because they often have private information on them. The papers should only be available to people who are allowed to see them. This can help stop data breaches, unauthorized entry, and any problems related to the law. Now, any time a lender, buyer, or investor is asking for a document, you can promptly provide it to them. Everyone in your office can access the information they need without wasting anyone’s time.
Get Started Today!
Managing real estate documents well is important for any real estate business. You can streamline operations, boost productivity, lower mistakes and compliance risks, and make it easier for team members to work together by putting all of your documents in one place, using a real estate filing system, keeping your documents safe, and using real estate document management software.
Are you ready to start using STRATAFOLIO to manage your commercial real estate business? Request a 1:1 demo and get one step closer to a more streamlined and organized real estate business!
