Introduction

Contracts are the foundation of Tenancy in LoftyWorks. In this Getting Started Guide, we are going to cover how to add a new Contract. 

Add a Contract

There are two ways in which you can initiate the process behind adding a Contract. You can either:

• Select + at the top of your page next to the Search Bar, followed by Contract

• Alternatively, you can select a Property within your system and select Add Contract from the Contract tab

A Contract consists of three parts - the Basic Information, the Recurring Charges, and the One Off Charges.

Contract Creation

Basic Information

On the first page of the contract, you enter key details about the contract, such as the type, start and end date, and tenant. 

On this screen, you can define the following:

• Link the Property to the Contract that you are creating
• Define the Contract Type. For example, a Firm Term or month-to-month
• Define or update the Contract Status, whether it is in Draft, Active, or Cancelled
• Define the Contract Reference. By default, LoftyWorks places a reference of "C-FirstNameLastName-StartYear". This can, obviously, be adjusted if you have your own method for defining your Tenancy References.
• Define the dates of the Contract
• Link your Tenant and Guarantor to the Contract

Recurring Charges

On the second page of the contract, you will enter the financial information related to the Lease. 

We encourage you to take advantage of the Recurring Invoices when you set up your contract. Creating a Recurring Invoice will give you a reminder when the rent is due and make it easier for you to follow up on outstanding payments. 

On this screen, you can define the following:

• The agreed Rent Amount and Deposit Amount for the Contract
• If you charge a Management Fee, you are able to select the nature of it and the amount here.
• We recommend setting up a Auto Invoicing to help you keep track of your receivable rents. This will create a reminder for you that you can mark as received, even if you receive the payment outside of Xero. 
  • The Rent Day should reflect the next date you plan to receive rent - meaning, even if you are entering a contract that started 6 months ago, you should set the Start Date in the future as the next date the Tenant should pay you rent.

One-Off Charges

The final screen will allow you to add any one-off charges. Under Contact Type, you can select if this charge should come from the Tenant or the Landlord. 

Manage Contract

Once you click Complete, you will be taken back to the Contract screen. On this screen, you can manage the following:

• The Details of the lease, including Start and End Date, Rent Amount or Tenants.
• The Financials pertaining to the lease, including Rent and Recurring Invoices. 
• A record of any Deposits you have collected as a part of the tenancy. 
• Any Documents pertaining to the lease.
  
  • Documents uploaded to the Contract will be visible to any Tenants on the Contract. 
• A history of all previous Invoices.
• An Audit History of all changes made to the Contract, timestamped with the name of the user who made the change.

Questions?

Thank you for taking time to invest in your LoftyWorks learning. We hope you enjoy our best-in-class Property Management software. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, quips, queries, or quandaries, please email support@loftyworks.com.