In yet another first, at ApnaComplex , we launch a new “Society Registers” module to specifically cater to Maharashtra based housing societies.

The new module, Society Registers, enables associations and housing societies to comply with some of the regulatory needs as per The Maharashtra Housing Society Act. The Society Registers module is a central place to maintain all data as required by the regulatory authorities in the formats defined per the Society Act.

At present, ApnaComplex supports following registers

• Form-J (Register of Members)
• Register of Committee Members
• Register of Investments
• Register of Nomination
• Register of Shares
• Property Register
• Levy Charges Register
• Audit Reports Register
• Transfer Register

And more are in the pipeline. All data into the registers can be added/modified/deleted with the history of all changes made being automatically stored. Society committee members can print the registers directly or download them into excel as per their needs.

With this addition, ApnaComplex becomes the first and the only web-based solution to cater to specific needs of Maharashtra Societies.

While the registers are created with primary objective to meet needs of Maharashtra based societies, Associations from other parts of the country as well can definitely benefit from them to maintain data in extremely structured way regarding their complex/society.
For example, a Transfer Register helps keep track of the history of a given Flat – who was original owner, and when a re-sale happened and to whom. An Levy Charges Register helps keep track of the history of how corpus fund / maintenance charges are levied in a society and the basis for the same.

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ApnaComplex is a web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits!

Sobha Althea and Azalea – a premium residential property in Yelahanka, Bangalore has gone live this week on ApnaComplex.  The society of this 176 flats + 26 villas complex, has chosen ApnaComplex after a detailed evaluation and comparison with other software.

Writing to us on this occasion, Mr. Kannan, President of Sobha Althea and Azalea Apartment Owners Association has the following to say -

“We evaluated several options for managing our Association – Sobha Althea and Azalea Apartment Owners Association and zeroed in on Apna Complex.

Some of the key factors that went in favour of Apna Complex were the ease of operating the portal, the quality of thought that has gone into designing the portal, the clarity & level of commitment of the ApnaComplex team in ensuring continuous updation and modernisation of the portal taking into account individual customisation requirements.

The portal is quite comprehensive for managing the day to day running of an Apartment Complex at a reasonable cost. The on-boarding is fast and our experience in setting up the database for our complex was very smooth and easy. We wish Apna Complex all the luck in expanding their base.”

Thank you Mr. Kannan Viswanathan and Mr. N.K. Balasubramanian of SAAAOA for the nice words and we look forward to serve Althea and Azalea complex!

We are blessed with another solid testimonial from a happy customer – Mr. S V Padmanabhan, Hon. President of  Dhyanaprastha Township Owners Society. Here is what he has to share about ApnaComplex:

“We started using ApnaComplex portal since mid Feb. 2011 after preliminary trials, especially with the Accounting System packaged with it. This is what makes this portal unique and suitable for our township for senior citizens. It is managed by the owners – all senior citizens. Apart from common services typical of other societies, we offer centralized cooking / catering of food and housekeeping besides car / driver

To keep track of expenses and income, we wanted an online Accounting System that could be accessed and monitored remotely by the Treasurer and any Office Bearer of the Managing Committee. ApnaComplex makes it possible. At any time it is possible to ensure that all transactions are up-to-date. We can generate reports that can help control expenses. Any member can get information on bills raised and payments made. The system is user friendly and does not call for the services of an accountant.

The portal is also rich in other features that can be used by all members. In short, ApnaComplex is very well suited for most housing societies. The license fee is reasonable in the context of the benefits that can be realized by its use. I wish ApnaComplex success in their endeavour to promote their application.”

Thank you Mr. Padmanabhan. We are glad we are of help to make life of senior citizens in your society a little less hassle free.

The managing committee in every housing society is responsible for maintaining and managing the infrastructure. There is a steady stream of revenue that the management committee gets every month, as and when all residents in the apartment complex pay their maintenance dues.
There are other ways through which a managing committee can earn some steady revenue, so that it can build new structures and improve the existing infrastructure without cutting a hole through the pockets of all residents.

Interestingly, an apartment association can mimic a government’s functioning and use penalties as a form of revenue, to ensure that its internal processes are carried out in an unaffected manner.

Why Use Penalties As A Source Of Revenue?

Using penalties as a source of revenue can aid an association in two ways.

• Creating Order: It will help in tightening up the existing system and making the residents more responsible and punctual when it comes to paying their dues. A system where no action is taken on defaulters will only invite more lethargy and bring in complacence. A managing committee can create a set process in this way, bringing in more control and transparency to its administration.
• Tapping Into A Revenue Source: It will act as a source of money, and in this way new structures that are essential for every housing society like Rain Water Harvesting structures (including pits, dug wells, hand pumps, trenches, and recharge wells) can be constructed straight from the apartment association’s funds without collecting money from the residents. As long as this system is made transparent, there will be no issues whatsoever. Members of the managing committee should maintain records for all penalties collected and how and where the money has been put to use.

Wondering how to easily keep track of the penalties and payments against them?
More often that not, the reason for not imposing penalties in a housing society is the administration hassle associated with imposing them and ensuring a collection of the same. Its a nightmare to keep track of these without help of proper tools.


ApnaComplex’s powerful accounting features come in handy here. Treasurers can easily post the penalty charges to a member’s account and the member clearly would be aware of the penalty charge s/he has to pay. Treasurers can easily track the payment against the penalty. Most importantly, this brings about a transparent way of dealing with situations leading to penalty. What’s more – ApnaComplex being a complete accounting solution – the penalties collected can be categorized under any number of different heads of your choice – such late payment penalties, or common area penalties etc. and all of them would get reflected in your balance sheet and income/expense statement that every member can clearly understand. Absolutely, more transparency.

Yet another instance where using ApnaComplex not only saves effort, but also improves orderliness and even generates revenue for your society. Sign up your society today and get the benefits.

Where Can Penalties Be Charged?

Every housing society has its own set of bye laws, and these bye laws will provide information about the many penalties that can be levied on defaulters. The members of the managing committee can charge some penalties for the following acts:

• Violation of Bye-Laws – Most association bye-laws has rules on how balconies must be kept clutter free not spoiling the facade of the apartment complex, how to manage garbage, how to maintain sound levels etc. Still, there could be Residents/Owners who violate terms by having messy balconies, cause inconvenience to neighbors with loud music or wood work during nights etc. and association can consider imposing penalty charges for the same.
• Damage To Common Areas – The managing committee in a housing society can fine people for damaging important structures in the apartment’s common areas. A person who causes any form of damage to elevators, benches, roads, staircases, or swimming pools in the housing society can be fined. Penalties can also be charged for damages caused to gym equipments or library assets.
• Raising Pets – Though, not exactly a penalty, this is one major source of revenue that an association can tap into. Not all housing societies have bye laws that allow people to raise pets; so members of the managing committee can charge people who have pets in their household (if pets aren’t allowed). A pet deposit can be taken or pet rent can also be levied every month to create a steady source of revenue.
• Late Payment Of Dues – This is the most obvious and frequently used – Residents in the housing society who don’t pay their maintenance charges within the stipulated time can be penalized, and for this, a deadline should first be set and made public. This will help in making the collection process more effective.

But remember, before imposing any penalties, all the associated rules and the penalty amounts must be proposed, discussed, and voted in an AGM. Association cannot impose penalties with out first getting them approved in an AGM and recording those minutes.

Apartment complexes can now throw all physical notice boards out of the window, thanks to the advent of apartment management software like ApnaComplex!

The Old School Model

Apartment notice boards have been used in all apartment complexes in order to keep all residents aware of the latest developments and events. But with the sudden explosion in the size of many apartment complexes and escalating structures, notice boards can hardly serve their original purpose now.

Moreover, people these days are held up with countless responsibilities, so much so that even performing a small task like visiting the notice board can eat up a significant portion of their time. In the age of instant communication, relying on age old techniques such as this will solve no definite purpose. Apartment management software comes with a solution for this.

Virtual Notice Boards

With the arrival of apartment management software, the entire concept of keeping people updated has taken a huge turn. Virtual notice boards are now available through such software, and these will help you keep track of all occurrences and events within the apartment complex.

• Virtual notice boards display all notices in a single screen, in very small snippets that can be enlarged by choice
• Notices in virtual notice boards can be split into multiple categories to ensure there is no clutter.
• Administrators can post notices that contain information or guidelines for residents to follow.
• There are notices that are put up by residents who are looking to buy/sell items and indulge in other commercial activity.
• Notices come inbuilt with an expiry date that is set as default, and they will expire soon as this time is reached. This way, the notice board will not get cluttered with old notices.
• The notice board can also be integrated with electronic mails, and notices that come up in the board will be detected and sent as a notification to your mail inbox.
• Critical / Emergency Notices can be sent as SMS as well as posted on the notice board. The applications in apartment management software are all thus interconnected.
• Notices pertaining to accounts, expense reports and pending dues can be immediately posted up on the notice board with the click of a button. The process is very easy when compared to other traditional methods.
• You will also be able to easily respond to notices, and the author of the notice will be duly informed about the same.

These are a few advantages of using virtual notices through apartment management software. These are gaining popularity over conventional notices mainly due to their usability and the convenience they offer.

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ApnaComplex is an apartment managment software. We are offering a 30-day no obligation free trial for every complex. Go ahead and register your complex and see how you can manage your complex more easily, efficiently, and effectively.

Apartment management software can help in organizing the tasks and duties of all members in the Managing Committee, and it can also help the residents involve themselves actively in the process. All apartment complexes are now shifting to virtual means, with networks of communication being built between the residents through apartment management software.

What is Apartment Management Software?

Apartment management software is nothing but basic communication oriented software with built in tools for managing assets, parking lots, calculating interests and maintenance amounts, maintaining expenses etc. A central database is also maintained through such software and entries for every single resident will be present. These will be regularly updated in order to make the entire process smoother. Residents will also have many features like forums where they can interact freely, inform each other about events in the apartment complex and schedule meetings with ease. All this and more will be readily possible with the help of apartment management software.

The Need

Residents in an apartment need to be constantly informed, regardless of where they are or what they’re doing. Take for instance, a simple issue like cleaning the water tanks.

This is a regular process that falls under maintenance and every apartment complex has to implement this in a monthly basis in order to keep up the standard of drinking water. However, residents need to be informed about this beforehand, so that they can save up a particular amount of water before the cleaning process, following which, the supply of water will be cut off.

This cannot be done manually or through notice boards, as walking from one door to another is not a practical measure and people may miss out on the notice pasted in the board.

A small issue like informing the residents about a cleaning procedure may snowball into a problem this way, without the right tools for communication. This is where apartment management software steps in. With such software, residents can be informed about the procedure through group messages or through updates that are posted in the main forum and SMSs be sent periodically. This is one major advantage of using apartment management software.

Installing the Software

Modern apartment management software such as ApnaComplex are offered over the internet in Software-as-Service model. This means there is nothing to install or buy any expensive hardware or software licenses. The software is offered on monthly subscription basis. The software typically have a free packages towards the start (ApnaComplex offers a 30-day no-obligation trial for any complex). When an apartment complex that is interested in integrating and organizing its information online starts off with using apartment management software, a free package can be used. This will be put up for evaluation, and the members of the Managing Committee can see the results for themselves and then decide on whether the software is useful.
Once the software gets official approval from the Managing Committee, it can be used extensively, after the apartment complex subscribes to it.

All residents can then be invited to join the network in a moderated way. Members of the Managing Committee will have a separate version of the software and regular residents and tenants will be given a separate version that does not involve management issues. This way, the entire process can be simplified using such apartment management software.

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ApnaComplex is an apartment managment software. We are offering a 30-day no obligation free trial for every complex. Go ahead and register your complex and see how you can manage your complex more easily, efficiently, and effectively.

An apartment management portal (such as ApnaComplex) is the latest buzz, as these portals have made the activities and responsibilities of all members in every apartment association very easy. These portals will allow you to perform all tasks including collecting and regulating dues and income, and will also give all residents the authority of knowing how their maintenance fee is being spent.

The entire process of managing a huge apartment complex becomes way more transparent through the use of an apartment management portal, and this is one of the main reasons why major complexes opt for it.

Members of the Managing Committee in an apartment will have extended versions of this apartment management portal, as they will have access to a few functions that normal users can’t do. Some of the things you can get done easily are:

Managing Users

• Users can be easily managed through this software, and new accounts can be created, old ones deleted and inactive ones can be deactivated through just the click of a button.
• The software will also allow you to upload resident details directly from a spreadsheet into the database, and accounts for new residents can be easily created this way.
• Multiple Roles: You can also provide a few residents special access to some tools and applications that are locked for use by the Managing Committee. Such special permits can be easily provided to specific residents.
• Staff Management: Clear cut roles can be created for the staff, thus assigning each person unique responsibilities.

Countering Complaints

• Complaints can now be easily posted in a forum and instantly addressed, through the help of an apartment management portal.
• Complaints can be customized for viewing only by members of the Managing Committee, or they can also be freely viewed by everyone.
• Updates through mail and messages will be available, and complaints will also escalate if unaddressed.

Facility Booking for Events

• You can easily book public spaces that are common among residents, such as the swimming pool, for your private party or other events.
• All residents will be provided calendars through which they will be able to specify the dates when they’ll be hosting or organizing random events, so that the schedule of others is not affected in any case.
• Certain facilities can also be booked through hard booking (through cash).
• Administrators can set up rates for using facilities beyond a point, and regulate the same using this software.
• Administrators can view overall utilization and history of past bookings towards the end of the month or year.

Automated Email and SMS Notifications

• All members – including owners and tenants can be reached by email and SMS
• Coupled with User Management which provides an upto date directory of all owners and tenants, association can be in constant touch with all members
• Set up automatic email/sms notifications upon updates to complaints, noticeboards, when new charges are posted, payments are realized etc.
• Communicate to a specific filtered set of users such as non-residing owners of a specific block, tenants across the complex etc.

Maintaining Charges & Payments

• This feature enables all members to clearly know thier maintenance dues
• No longer do you have worry what the total due is even when you are not staying in the apartment complex and outside country.
• Not only you can know your dues, you can record the payments made by you to the association and inform the association that you have paid – no more hassle of missing communication
• In addition, you can maintain all the receipts of your payments online and access them from any where. No more need to maintain folders to file your receipts or depute someone in collect receipts in person.

These are just a few of the many processes that you can carry out with an apartment management portal.

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ApnaComplex is an apartment managment software offering all the above and many more features. We are offering a 30-day no obligation free trial for every complex. Go ahead and register your complex and see how you can manage your complex more easily, efficiently, and effectively.

Every apartment complex should have proper apartment management software in order to manage all issues smoothly. There are many processes involved in maintaining an apartment complex well, and apartment associations usually have a hard time juggling these responsibilities with panache. Using apartment management software can, in this way, help them in the long margin.

Responsibilities and Duties

Apartment associations will normally have a lot on their plate, as their primary duties will be to:

• Calculate a perfect (and equal) maintenance charge for all residents
• Collect the specific amount regularly and without fail
• Regulate the income and improve existing infrastructure with the same
• Repair damages made to the infrastructure, if any
• Create an open forum where people can register their complaints and ask queries
• Communicate constantly with all residents and keep them informed on running events
• Conduct an open discussion where residents and members of the apartment association can interact and talk more freely
• Ensure apartment security and resident satisfaction

All these responsibilities and commitments need to be fulfilled without compromising in any section. In a real world scenario, this will be quite hard to follow as notice boards and other modes of communication used will normally be cluttered and hardly used.

Where Traditional Modes Lose Out

• Apartment complexes are growing in size, and connecting and reaching across to 1000 residents will be impossible (unless you’re planning to take a Rath Yatra)
• Managing finances and maintaining accounts will be hard, due to the sheer number of residents and simultaneously, the paperwork involved
• Maintenance funds for huge apartment complexes can run up to crores of rupees, and any slip-ups will prove disastrous for the apartment complex

Apartment Management Software- The Perks

In a scenario where people tend to focus more on their virtual lives rather than their physical ones and interaction among people is at an all time low, communicating with all residents and keeping them regularly informed about their dues and payments can be harder than usual.

This is exactly where an apartment management software scores.

By using apartment management software, you can easily organize all events in an apartment, schedule meetings and even bring together people, encouraging their participation in apartment activities!

Imagine an apartment portal that keeps all residents constantly informed about the changes being made in infrastructure and the expenses involved in the same. Wouldn’t the system be heartwarmingly transparent?

 

Members of the association will no longer harbor any doubts about the use that their maintenance money is being put to, with the help of apartment management software such as ApnaComplex. This increases their participation in community activities and brings back their trust in the Managing Committee.

Such software also helps in maintaining open communication among residents. If a particular resident is planning on having a party by the common swimming pool, the resident can post the information on this online forum and keep all other residents informed first, before going ahead with the plan. Such open communication will keep people informed throughout, and will contribute a lot in maintaining peaceful coexistence.

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Read our other articles in this series:

And they lived happily ever after…!

Live a perfect life with ApnaComplex

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ApnaComplex is an apartment managment software. We are offering a 30-day no obligation free trial for every complex. Go ahead and register your complex and see how you can manage your complex more easily, efficiently, and effectively.