Inspection automation helps streamline the process of scheduling and managing inspections around residents' move-in and move-out dates. By automating this critical task, you can ensure consistent property documentation, save valuable time, standardize workflows, and gain peace of mind.
Inspection Automation Best Practices
Create a Clear Automation Name
Consider choosing a descriptive name for your automation that helps teams quickly identify its purpose. Specifically, consider adding details such as portfolio location, template name/ inspection type to the Automation Name. For example, “New Orleans Portfolio Move-Out Verification” provides clarity and organization.Decide on Property Selection
Select the properties your automation will apply to:All Units: Covers your entire portfolio and dynamically updates when units are added or removed.
Team Units: Targets specific teams and their associated units, dynamically updating when units are added or removed.
Specific Units: Allows you to manually select individual units from your entire portfolio.
Select the Right Inspection Template
Pick an inspection template that meets your needs. Ensure it covers the entire property. Please note templates requiring specific feature selection (e.g., “Maintenance Check”) are incompatible with automation.Ensure Your Inspection Template is Published
In addition to ensuring that you choose the right type of inspection template, you should ensure that the template that you select for your automation is published. You can publish/unpublish templates by going to Account > Inspection Templates > Clicking your inspection template > Unpublish/publish.
Set a Creation Date Rule
Define how many days or weeks before or after a resident’s move-in/move-out date the inspection will be created. For example:7 days before move-in
3 days after move-out
26 weeks after move-in (for a setting it to “7 days before” ensures inspections are ready well in advance.
Define an Appropriate Due Date
Specify how many days after the inspection creation/invite email the inspection should be due. This ensures timely notifications for those involved. We recommend setting a due date that is 14 days (2 weeks) from when the inspection is created.Assign Inspections Appropriately
Assign inspections to the correct individuals or teams. Options include:Current or future residents
Specific teammates
The entire team
Manual assignment to email addresses
Please note that automation will consider the status of the resident at the time of the inspection creation. For example, if an inspection is created 3 days before a tenant’s move in, it should be assigned to “future residents.”
Enable Automation Before 10:30 AM CST
Toggle the automation on or off as needed. When enabled, inspections will be created daily at 10:30 AM CST according to your rules, unless there is an error (see #9). To have an inspection created on the same day you set up the automation, make sure to create and activate the automation by 10:30 AM CST.Address Errors Promptly
If any errors occur during automation, you’ll receive an email notification with details after 10:30 AM CST. Be sure to review and resolve these issues promptly to maintain seamless workflows. Sample errors could include:
No current residents
No future residents
Invalid email address
Note: We recommend you manually create any inspections that could not be generated automatically.
Need more help? Our Customer Support team is always here to help you set up inspection automation that meets your business's needs.