Buildium Training - Ep. 8 Maintenance Requests, Vendors and Bills

Hey everybody, welcome back toAPM Help Academy. Today, we’re going to dive intomaintenance requests, vendors, and bills in Buildium. This is a core part of property management, so it’s important to get familiar with it in the software.

Maintenance Requests from Tenants

Maintenance requests usually come from tenants. You cansign in as a tenant to see what they experience.

• On the tenant portal homepage, they clickRequest → Create Request.
• They’ll be asked:
  • Category (e.g., HVAC, keys/locks, lighting)
  • Subject (e.g., “Bedroom light isn’t working”)
  • Attachments (usually photos)
  • Permission to enter (Yes/No, plus pet info if yes)
• Then they click Submit Request.

On your side, every tenant maintenance request comes in as atask in Buildium:

• Go to All Tasks → you’ll see the new request.
• You can update the task with:
  • Status (In Progress, Completed, etc.)
  • Due date
  • Assigned staff member or collaborator
  • Messages to tenants
  • Attachments
• Click Save and Share to notify tenants and rental owners.

Work Orders

If you want to involve a vendor, create awork order:

• Go to Work Orders → Add Work Order.
• Enter details:
  • Subject (e.g., “Light needs fixing”)
  • Vendor
  • Entry preferences
  • Work to be performed
  • Notes, status, and due date
  • Parts and labor estimates, GL account allocation, invoice number

Optional: Email the vendor directly from Buildium. Templates are automated with tokens for all the work order details.

• Once saved, the work order connects directly to the task. Every work order automatically generates a task, or you can link it to an existing task.

Recording Bills

After work is completed, you canenter a bill:

• Update the task to Completed → selectEnter Bill.
• The bill can auto-fill from the work order or be adjusted manually.
• Enter:
  • Invoice date
  • Due date
  • Vendor
  • Memo (e.g., “Fixed plumbing problem at Franklin Street”)
  • Property or unit charged
  • GL account (e.g., Repairs, Plumbing)
  • Amount
• Save the bill → it’s ready to pay.

To pay the vendor:

• Go toPay Bills → Select Bill → Prepare Payment.
• Options:
  • Handwritten check → enter check number
  • Buildium check printing or remote check printing add-on
  • EFT (requires vendor account info and ePay enabled)

You do not need a work order to create a bill. If work has been completed, you can record a bill directly in accounting. The work order is optional but helpful for tracking tasks and communication with vendors.

Vendor Management

Managing vendors is critical in Buildium:

• Go to Maintenance → Vendors.
• You can:
  • Add new vendors
  • Edit vendor info
  • Inactivate vendors (if they have financial history, they cannot be deleted)
  • Mark 1099-eligible vendors for year-end filing

Vendor profiles also store financial history:

• Bills, checks, refunds, etc.
• Vendor ePay/EFT info for payments

Keeping your vendor list clean ensures smooth 1099 filing and accurate accounting.

Submitting Requests for Owners or Residents

If a tenant or rental owner cannot submit a request, you cancreate the task manually:

• Go to Tasks → Add Task → selectResident Request orRental Owner Request
• Fill out the details → Buildium will email the person automatically

Owners can submit requests as well:

• Go to the owner portal →Request → Add Request
• Description of need → Submit → appears as arental owner request task

Anonymous requests may come from the Buildium-provided website.

That wraps upmaintenance requests, work orders, bills, and vendor managementin Buildium.

Thanks for watching! Don’t forget tolike and subscribe, check us out atapmhelp.com, or reach out atinfo@apmhelp.comif you need assistance.

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