Brian,
Software conversions are challenging, but they're manageable and your data lost should be minimal if you know what to look out for. Typically, you would want to pull your rent roll, unit mix, and management summary before the conversion to give you something to compare to. Then make sure you have a stop date for transactions, keep your tenants notified, and have your new software do the switch. The software that you pick can affect what kinds of things will convert, but whichever company you go with can set your expectations there so you know how much prep work you have ahead of you, and how much time you'll need to spend correcting things.
I've worked on around 300 software conversions over the years and I've seen everything from a totally seamless conversion with no data loss at all, to a conversion where tenant info got all mixed up and names and addresses were swapped around on units. Most go well, but so long as you have your data records before the conversion, you should be fine.
Some common issues i've seen include:
- Unit amenities not coming in correctly, so make sure yo have your unit mix before the conversion for any corrections
- Tenants with multiple accounts come over without these accounts linked - you can usually link these back after the conversion
- Autopays usually don't transfer - make sure to let your tenants know if this happens
- The old software sometimes doesn't shut off your payment processor immediately and you can end up with phantom transactions in the old software that aren't reflected in the new one, so make sure to watch for this or manually shut off payments to avoid it
- E-leases don't usually come over- you can usually get a bulk download to keep these for your records though, they just won't show up in the tenant account
- ledger info, notes, etc normally don't come in. There are some softwares that can bring these over but most cannot.
- Discounts and recurring fees usually don't come over
- Past due accounts tend to come over without any late or lien fees added
- Prepaid accounts, especially on anniversary billing can come over with incorrect paid through dates sometimes
Post conversion though, I normally check high level data points from the management summary and then drill down from there as needed. Total sqf, total units, occupied units, gross potential rent, occupied rent, etc before and after should be matching. If they aren't that's when you investigate closer and try to find which data points are causing issues and see what may need to be corrected.
I will say though, don't let fear of the job ahead stop you from taking action. Modernizing your software can give you so many more options on services, marketing efforts, tenant management, etc. The benefit definitely outweighs the risk. Good luck!
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Katie Cowen
Product Development
Move It - NSA
Greenwood Village CO
(720) 786-5783
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-21-2023 10:40 AM
From: Brian Taylor
Subject: management software change
Question. We've about "had it" with our current self storage management software, unfortunately after 26 years. Who has made a change from one software to another? How much of a mess is it to do that? Did you lose any tenants from your database, etc. BTW, we have due dates on tenants anniversary, not the first of each month. Just looking for some guidance and opinions on such, it's quite a big decision. Thanks. Brian Taylor, Manager, FM 707 SELF STORAGE Abilene, TX.
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Brian Taylor
Facility Manager
FM 707 Self Storage
Abilene TX
(325) 676-5886
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