It’s partly why she’s kept her team so small – together with just her two daughters, Leandra cares for around 120 rental properties across the West Rand.
Interview with
But just because she likes to be hands-on doesn’t mean she wants to do all the administrative work by hand – and that’s where PayProp comes in. PayProp automates rental reconciliation, reporting and accounting, freeing Leandra and her family up to manage the business the way they want.
The search for efficiency
Over the years, Leandra tried out many different property management systems and found each one more frustrating than the last. In her experience, all of them had confusing designs and required too much manual data entry, which rightly made her worry about the risk of human error.
Then in early 2020, she came across PayProp’s many glowing online reviews. She read about PayProp’s powerful automation and ease of use, and that was enough to make her want to book a demo.
Leandra was still a bit hesitant due to her history with disappointing industry software. However, she was ready to find out more when a PayProp sales manager went the extra mile by visiting her office to show her the platform in person.
The cost was also a concern at first. But I don’t even feel it because of how the pricing is structured. Either way, I’m happy to pay it, for all the comfort you get in return. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
A dream come true
Leandra’s workload was reduced right from the start. Throughout the onboarding process, before any of the heavy-duty financial automation, PayProp did most of the heavy lifting to get Leandra’s account on the system – only needing her to provide and verify her portfolio information so the support team could transfer it to PayProp.
Then came the real benefits as she witnessed PayProp’s astonishing automation of the entire payment life cycle, starting with the complex and tedious processes of collecting multiple forms of rent payment, applying reconciliation methods specific to each, as well as calculating and paying an array of recipients according to landlord-specific rules. All within minutes, requiring only a few clicks in approval.
Before PayProp, manual accounting devoured precious hours that could otherwise have been spent on the frontline of the business meeting with clients or conducting property inspections. Using the time and energy saved with PayProp’s smart technology, Leandra and her staff can focus on building meaningful relationships with their clients.
I don’t have sleepless nights before an audit anymore. I don’t have to worry about making accounting mistakes. It’s nice to have that time back. And my owners and tenants are happier because of it. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
And because account totals displayed on PayProp are pulled directly from the bank in real time, Leandra is confident that the statements she sends to owners and tenants are accurate and up to date – something she would previously lose sleep over.
If she needs to check back on a disputed transaction later, PayProp’s complete and uneditable audit log makes it easy to find what she’s looking for – including humor error or whether a transaction failed due to bank downtime.
With PayProp’s management reporting feature, Leandra has access to detailed reports on her trust account and rental portfolio to track her business performance or even compare it with the average local or national competition – and it’s proven to be a great tool for marketing as well as business development.
We actually print some of these reports and put them in our ‘brag bag’ that we take to potential owners. It’s even helped some of them decide between us and another company. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
This is especially beneficial given the current rental market, which Leandra says is more challenging than she’s ever seen in her 20 years of experience. But with features such as PayProp’s automated arrears reminders and Tenant Assessment Report supporting her, Leandra feels prepared to take on any market conditions.
Additional benefits
Overall, Leandra finds PayProp much more user-friendly than any of the systems she had tried before. PayProp has built-in integrations with many popular services including Mailchimp, Fixflo and Experian, with more in the works.
By using the Mailchimp integration, her oldest daughter can quickly and easily send custom client e-mails with Leandra Real Estate branding, automatically pulling in the contact details captured in their PayProp account. Personal contact with her clients has always been a top priority for Leandra, making straightforward owner and tenant communication a must-have.
Because of how intuitive PayProp is, Leandra doesn’t often have queries about how the platform works. But when she does, she can rely on PayProp’s local team of friendly platform experts. All PayProp clients receive unlimited free training and support, so help is only ever a call or e-mail away.
The best part about PayProp is the helpline. They’re all so nice, they’ll guide me through each step if I need it, and they can all help me in English and Afrikaans. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
Paying it forward
Rather than keeping her competitive advantage quiet, Leandra has been recommending PayProp to her fellow rental agents, hoping to rescue them from the same pitfalls she once faced.
Most recently, she talked a colleague out of selling her entire rental business when her bookkeeper suddenly left the agency. Thanks to her experience with PayProp, Leandra could explain how its easy-to-use payment automation makes bookkeeping a breeze even without a dedicated employee.
She said, ‘I can’t do this on my own.’ And I said, ‘But you can!’ She just signed up with PayProp at my recommendation and I’m so excited for her. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
Thanks to partnering with PayProp, Leandra is exactly where she wants to be professionally: leading her successful rental agency from the front. If she could change just one thing about her journey, it would be discovering and switching to PayProp sooner.
PayProp is the best thing that could have ever happened to me. Leandra van Wyk, Owner
