Onboarding Residents
Once all your leases are set up, it's time to begin onboarding your residents to the payments platform. A detailed guide to inviting residents to join the portal can be found here.
Once your residents have joined the portal, the next step is to ensure that each resident adds their payment information and sets up autopay. Most residents prefer to pay using ACH transfers, as the transaction fee is significantly lower compared to credit card payments. Residents can link their bank accounts either manually or instantly via secure integration through Plaid.
Linking a Bank Account Using Plaid Integration
When a resident logs into their portal, they will see an option to Make a Payment. From here, they can view their outstanding balance, add a bank account, make one-time payments, and set up autopay. The setup process is fairly intuitive, but we'll provide a brief overview here.
1. To get started, residents will click Add Payment Method.
2. Residents will be prompted to enter a name and agree to the Dwolla Terms of Service.
3. Select Instant Connection. We recommend this method, as it provides the fastest and most secure way to connect a bank account using Plaid.
4. This will take them through the Plaid setup flow, where they will enter their phone number, select their bank from the list of options, and log in using their online banking credentials via Plaid’s secure interface.
If a resident’s financial institution is not listed, they can opt to connect via Manual Entry instead. (More details on this below)
Once the bank connection is successful, the resident will be able to set up autopay and make payments directly through the Assist platform.
Linking A Bank Account Using Manual Entry
While Plaid integrates with the vast majority of banks, if a resident is using a bank that is not listed they will need to link their bank using manual entry. This process is equally secure, but will take longer to fully validate.
1. To begin, click Add Payment Method and select Manual Entry.
2. Enter Account Details: Residents will be prompted to enter their bank account type, routing number, and account number.
3. Micro-Deposit Verification: To confirm ownership, Dwolla (our payment processor) will make two small deposits into the resident’s account. This process generally takes 1–2 business days.
4. Confirm Deposits: Once the deposits have arrived, residents need to enter the exact amounts in their portal to finalize verification.