User Guide - RentLar

Getting Started

RentLar is a comprehensive property management system that provides two portals:

Staff Portal — For administrators, landlords, managers, and staff to manage properties, tenants, and payments.
Tenant Portal — For tenants to view their room details, payment history, and communicate with management.

System Requirements

A modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari)
Internet connection
Valid login credentials provided by your administrator

Default Admin Credentials

Important: Change the default admin password immediately after your first login for security purposes.

Field	Value
Username	`admin`
Password	`admin123`

Authentication

RentLar supports flexible authentication, allowing users to log in with either their username or email address.

Logging In

1

Navigate to the Login Page

Visit the application URL and click "Sign In" or go directly to /login.

2

Enter Your Credentials

In the "Username or Email" field, enter either your username or email address. Then enter your password.

3

Two-Factor Authentication (if enabled)

If your account has 2FA enabled, you will be redirected to enter a 6-digit verification code from your authenticator app.

Logging Out

Click your profile avatar in the top right corner of the navigation bar and select "Sign Out" from the dropdown menu.

Staff Dashboard

The staff dashboard provides an at-a-glance overview of your property portfolio:

Total Properties — Number of registered properties in the system
Active Tenants — Currently occupied rooms
Monthly Collections — Total rent collected this month
Vacant Rooms — Available rooms across all properties

The dashboard also shows recent activities, quick action buttons, and a table of the latest payments for fast access to common tasks.

Property Management

RentLar uses a four-level property hierarchy to organize your portfolio:

Property Hierarchy

Level	Description	Example
Property Name	The top-level property	Sunrise Apartments
Property Number	Subdivisions / buildings	Block A, Block B
Property Block	Sections within a number	Floor 1, Floor 2
Property Room	Individual rentable units	Room 101, Room 102

Adding a New Property

1

Navigate to Properties

In the sidebar, go to Property Management → Properties.

2

Click "Add Property"

Fill in the property name, location, and other required details.

3

Add Numbers, Blocks, and Rooms

After creating the property, drill down to add numbers, blocks, and individual rooms with their rental rates.

Room Status

Vacant — Available for new tenants
Occupied — Currently assigned to a tenant
Under Maintenance — Temporarily unavailable for rental

Tenant Management

Adding a New Tenant

1

Navigate to Tenants

In the sidebar, go to Property Management → Tenants.

2

Click "Add Tenant"

Fill in the tenant's personal information including name, phone, email, ID/NIN, and emergency contacts.

3

Assign a Room

Select the property, number, block, and room to assign the tenant. The room status will automatically update to "Occupied".

4

Set Up Credentials

Create a username and password for the tenant so they can access the Tenant Portal.

Tenant Lifecycle

Active — Tenant currently occupies a room
Vacation — Tenant has vacated; room becomes available again

When a tenant vacates, record the vacation through Tenants → Vacations. This archives the tenancy history and frees up the room.

Payments

RentLar supports multiple payment types to track all financial transactions:

Payment Types

Type	Description
Rent Payments	Monthly rent collected from tenants
Security Deposits	Upfront deposits (security fee payments)
Water Payments	Water utility billing
Vendor Payments	Payments made to service vendors
Staff Payments	Salary and compensation payments

Recording a Rent Payment

1

Navigate to Payments

In the sidebar, go to Finance → Rent Payments.

2

Click "Record Payment"

Select the tenant, enter the amount paid, payment date, and payment method.

3

Save

The payment is recorded and the tenant's balance is updated automatically. A receipt can be generated.

Tip: Use the payment filters to view payments by date range, property, or payment status (paid, partial, overdue).

Reports & Analytics

Generate insightful reports from the Analytics section in the sidebar:

Income Reports — Total revenue by property, timeframe, and payment type
Occupancy Reports — Room utilization and vacancy rates
Tenant Reports — Tenant activity, payment compliance, and history
Water Meter Readings — Consumption tracking and billing
Audit Logs — Complete system activity trail for accountability

Notifications

RentLar includes an in-app notification system for both staff and tenants:

Notifications appear as a badge on the bell icon in the top navigation bar
Click the bell to view your latest unread notifications
Click "View All" to see your complete notification history
Use "Mark All as Read" to clear all unread notifications at once

Notification Types

Type	Description
Payment	New payment recorded or payment reminders
Tenant	New tenant registered or tenant updates
System	System announcements and welcome messages
Alert	Important alerts requiring attention

Security & Two-Factor Authentication

Protect your account with two-factor authentication (2FA) using any TOTP-compatible authenticator app such as Google Authenticator, Authy, or Microsoft Authenticator.

Enabling 2FA

1

Go to Settings

Click your profile avatar in the top right, then select Settings.

2

Enable Two-Factor Authentication

In the Security section, click "Enable 2FA". A QR code will be displayed.

3

Scan the QR Code

Open your authenticator app and scan the QR code. The app will generate a 6-digit code.

4

Confirm with a Code

Enter the 6-digit code from your authenticator app to verify and activate 2FA.

Important: Save the QR code or secret key in a secure place. If you lose access to your authenticator app, you will need an administrator to disable 2FA on your account.

Disabling 2FA

To disable 2FA, go to Settings → Security and click "Disable 2FA". You will need to enter your current password to confirm.

Tenant Portal

Tenants have their own portal with limited access to view their information:

What Tenants Can Do

View Dashboard — See their room details, payment status, and balance
Payment History — View all past rent payments and receipts
Profile Settings — Update personal info, change password, upload photo, and enable 2FA
Notifications — View system notifications and announcements
Submit Requests — Send maintenance or service requests to management

Tenants log in from the same login page as staff. The system will automatically detect whether the credentials belong to a staff member or a tenant and redirect accordingly.

Account Settings

Access your account settings by clicking your profile avatar in the top right navigation bar.

Profile Photo

Upload a profile photo by going to Settings and clicking the "Change Photo" button. Supported formats: JPEG, PNG, GIF (max 2MB).

Update Profile

Edit your name, email, and phone number from the Profile section in Settings.

Change Password

1

Go to Settings

Navigate to Settings from your profile dropdown.

2

Password Section

Enter your current password, then enter and confirm your new password.

3

Save

Click "Update Password" to save your new password.

Troubleshooting

Cannot Log In

Ensure you are using the correct username/email and password
Check if Caps Lock is on
If 2FA is enabled, make sure the code from your authenticator app is current (codes change every 30 seconds)
Contact your administrator to reset your password

Page Not Loading

Clear your browser cache and refresh the page
Try a different browser
Ensure you have a stable internet connection

Payment Not Showing

Verify the payment was saved (check for success notification)
Refresh the payments list
Check the date filters — the payment may be outside the selected range

Need Help?

Contact your system administrator for additional support or to request new features.