Record a payment
Record rent or any other payment a tenant made outside the app, against the invoice it pays.
Before you start
Use this when a tenant paid you outside the app: cash in hand, a bank transfer, or a mobile money transfer to your number. When a tenant pays from the portal, they record the payment themselves and you only approve it (step 4).
- You need to be an Owner or Administrator to record a payment. Managers and Caretakers can approve one, but not record it.
- Every payment is recorded against an invoice. If the tenant paid early, before the invoice for that charge was issued, you can record the payment once the invoice appears.
- The payment method the tenant used has to be active. Owners and Administrators manage them under Organization, then Payment Methods.
- Have the proof of payment ready: a photo of the cash receipt, the bank slip, or a screenshot of the mobile money message. You can't save the payment without it.
1. Open the invoice
In the menu, select Invoices. Search by invoice number or find the tenant's invoice in the list, then open it. You can also select Record payment straight from the list.
2. Enter the payment
On the invoice, select Record payment. A form opens:
- Amount: filled in with what the tenant still owes on this invoice. Change it if they paid part of it. You can't enter more than the balance.
- Payment Method: how the tenant paid, for example cash or bank transfer.
- Receipt: select Upload receipt and choose the proof. A PDF or an image works.
3. Save it
Select Save Payment. You're taken back to the invoice and see "Payment recorded successfully." The payment now shows in the invoice's payments with the status Pending or Paid, which both mean it is waiting for approval. The invoice balance doesn't change yet.
4. Approve the payment
Approval is a second check that the money really arrived. It can be done by you or by any Owner, Administrator, Manager or Caretaker.
- On the invoice, open the payment with View details.
- Check the proof with View Receipt.
- Select Approve. In Amount received, correct the figure if the amount that reached you is different from what was entered. The invoice is settled by this figure.
- Select Approve.
If the proof doesn't match, select Reject instead and give a reason. The tenant sees the reason.
What happens next
Once approved, the payment reads Confirmed and the amount comes off the invoice. A full payment marks the invoice paid; a partial one leaves the rest outstanding. OneView numbers a receipt for the payment, which you and the tenant can download from the payment once your organization's billing identity is complete (see Payment receipts), and the tenant is notified that you received it.
Common problems
I don't see the button to record a payment
Three things hide it. You are a Manager or Caretaker, who can approve but not record. The invoice is already paid in full. Or a payment on it is already waiting for approval, and the invoice shows "Payment under review". Approve or reject that one first.
The payment method isn't in the list
Only active methods appear, and mobile money payments the tenant makes from their own phone in the portal never appear here, because those are recorded by the tenant. An Owner or Administrator can activate a method under Payment Methods.
I approved the wrong amount
An Owner, Administrator or Manager can open the payment and select Void payment, with a reason. The invoice balance is owed again, and you can record the payment again with the right amount. Caretakers can't void payments.
I recorded the payment but the invoice still shows the full balance
That's expected until someone approves it. Recording only says "the tenant says they paid"; approving says "the money arrived".