The upfront investment of AP automation can seem daunting for many property managers. You’ve probably already heard the benefits: fewer late payments, reduced manual work, and better oversight, to name a few. But the thought of shifting your entire team off paper and into a new system sounds like a massive undertaking.
At AvidXchange, we hear this a lot. And we get it—you’re trying to make sure that any addition to your tech stack isn’t just shiny, but truly valuable.
In this article, we’ll share how three property management companies turned AP automation into a smart investment that saved them time, cut down on errors, and paid off fast. You’ll understand the actual ROI of AP automation for property management companies—complete with real numbers to back it up.
ROI in Headcount: Scaling Without Growing Your AP Team
For growing companies, expanding the property portfolio usually means expanding the back office, too. But what if you scale without increasing headcount?
That’s the question Hannah Scherer, Accounting Supervisor at Security Properties Residential, asked herself as the company footprint grew from 30 to over 100 properties in just a few years. For many companies, that growth would require a major hiring push.
Scherer said Security Properties Residential would’ve had to hire at least three additional AP staff members to keep up with its growth. Instead, her team leaned into automation.
“I would recommend businesses move to AP automation as soon as the company is starting to grow, especially if you’re going to be more than doubling in size like we did,” said Hannah Scherer, Accounting Supervisor.
AvidXchange helped them digitize invoices, batch process payments, and route approvals remotely, which was critical for their fully virtual AP team.
“AvidXchange is worth the investment because you’ll be able to onboard additional properties with ease while keeping up with existing payables.”
What once took days now takes hours. And onboarding new properties no longer causes backlogs or burnout. For Security Properties Residential, AP automation became the foundation that allowed them to grow fast without growing their payroll.
And to be clear, automation didn’t replace their team. Instead, it allowed them to stay focused on higher-value work, like reporting and planning, instead of drowning in paperwork.
ROI in Manual Labor: From 40 Hours to 10
Manual invoice processing doesn’t just slow down payments. It also drains your team’s time and energy. One of the biggest contributors to the ROI of AP automation for property management companies is the time saved by eliminating manual invoice work.
Peak Property Management used to spend 40 hours a week just managing invoices. That’s a full workweek dedicated to chasing approvals, answering supplier calls, and keying in data by hand.
“I don’t even know how we were functioning without AvidXchange,” said Ja’Net Penn, Accounting Manager at Peak.
After implementing AvidXchange, that same work now takes just 10 hours per week. That reclaimed time gave the team bandwidth to focus on higher-level tasks like forecasting and financial planning—not babysitting invoices.
The company also saw overdue invoices drop by 50% in just six months, with supplier satisfaction rising by 15%. In other words, when AP runs smoothly, everyone downstream feels the benefit.
The Hard Dollar ROI: $47K Here, $79K There
Time saved is money saved, but the financial ROI goes even further.
At Peak Property Management, automation translated into an estimated $79,000 in annual savings, thanks to reductions in labor, admin costs, and late fees.
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, which manages more than 70 shopping centers, saw $47,000 in savings each year after automating their AP. Prior to AvidXchange, check runs consumed an entire day of printing, double-signing, and mailing. Now, payments are processed digitally in just a few hours.
And that efficiency scales. As companies grow, they don’t have to multiply headcount or office space. Instead, they can rely on smart workflows and digital payments to handle volume without the overhead.
ROI in Reduced Check Fraud
When your AP process relies on printed checks and paper trails, it’s not just slow, it’s risky.
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust learned this the hard way when they were forced to reset a bank account after falling victim to check fraud. That experience led them to rethink how they approached payments.
“We value its enhanced security, especially after a check fraud incident,” said Samantha Day, Accounting Systems Administrator. “Most of our payments are now issued electronically, which not only saves time but also greatly reduces our exposure to fraud.”
AvidXchange’s digital payment features and secure audit trails provided peace of mind and helped streamline their compliance and audit processes.
"Most of our payments are now issued electronically, which not only saves time but also greatly reduces our exposure to fraud."
ROI of Faster Financial Reporting: Smarter Decision-Making
For any growing company, fast and accurate reporting is key. But delayed AP processes can slow everything down, from monthly closeouts to strategic decisions.
Peak Property Management cut the time spent on financial reporting by 30% after automating their AP. With real-time visibility into payment status and invoice tracking, plus custom business intelligence tools like AvidAnalytics, the finance team could produce reports on demand and make decisions with confidence.
So, Is AP Automation Worth the Investment for Property Managers?
Obviously, we’re biased here at AvidXchange. So don’t take our word for it. Look at the numbers we covered above from the respective customers:
- Up to 75% time saved on invoice processing
- $47K to $79K saved annually in labor and admin costs
- 50% fewer overdue invoices, 30% faster reporting
- Zero added headcount, even during rapid growth
- Improved fraud protection through digital payments
The ROI of AP automation for property management companies goes beyond efficiency. It builds a platform for growth, reduces risk, and gives teams the breathing room they need to be strategic.
ROI of AP Automation for Property Managers: The Bottom Line
Look, we get it. If you’ve been processing paper invoices and cutting physical checks for years, the idea of switching to an automated AP system can feel like a massive lift. Maybe even a risk. And yes, there’s an investment of time and money upfront.
But if you want to scale your property management company without burning out your AP team or ballooning your headcount, automation can help. The ROI is clear, and the payoff comes quickly: less time spent on manual tasks, fewer errors, reduced check fraud risk, and up to thousands of dollars in savings every year.
Here at AvidXchange, we’ve been helping property management companies just like yours modernize their AP processes for nearly 20 years. We’re here to guide you every step of the way—from evaluation to implementation and beyond.
Now that you’ve seen what AP automation has done for companies like Peak, Wheeler, and Security Properties Residential, it’s time to see what it could do for your property management company.
Book your demo with us today to connect with one of our AP automation experts. We’ll walk you through how AvidXchange works and help you visualize the impact it could have on your business.
