How to list vacant homes and take rental applications

Turn a unit between tenants, then list it on a public page of homes to rent, with a form on each to apply or ask to view.

Updated 2026-10-25

The Listings tab in Rentals gives your business a public Homes to rent page. Every long-term unit that is vacant and marked as listed appears on it, with its asking rent, bedrooms, the day it is available and your description. Each home has a form where people apply or ask to view it.

There is no fee to apply, and Otto does not screen applicants.

Turn a unit between tenants

When a tenant moves out of a long-term unit, open the unit and press Start turn. Otto marks the unit as setting up and makes one unscheduled job for each step: Move-out inspection, Cleaning, Repairs and paint and Ready check, each called "Turn — " and the unit name and step. Schedule and assign them on the Jobs page as usual.

The Turns tab shows each turn with its steps and how many are done. When every step's job is done (or cancelled), press Ready to let. The unit goes back to vacant. Switch on List it first to put it straight onto the homes to rent page.

Ready to let stays grayed out while a step is still open, and says how many. A unit takes one turn at a time.

List a home

Open the Listings tab and press the unit.
Switch on Listed.
Type the Asking rent a month, the Available from date (leave it empty for "available now") and a Description.
Press Save.

A listed unit shows on the page only while its Status is vacant. Mark the unit active again once it is let, and it comes off the page on its own. The tab shows each unit as on the page, listed, not vacant or not listed.

Share the page

Under Homes to rent page, press Copy link and put the link on your website, in an email or on a window card. Open shows the page as visitors see it. Type a line for the top of the page and press Save to add it.

New link makes a new address and stops the old one working, so anywhere you shared it will need the new one.

The website chat

When the chat bubble is switched on for your website, Otto's answers there know the homes on your homes to rent page: their asking rent, bedrooms and when each is available, and the link to apply or ask to view. It mentions only homes that are on the page right now, and never promises a viewing time.

Work through applications

Each application lists the person's email and phone, when they want to move in, how many people would live there, their monthly income as they typed it, pets, when they could view and their message. The applicant is added to your contacts (or matched to the contact with the same email).

Change the state with the menu: New, Viewing, Approved or Declined.
Book viewing makes an unscheduled job, "Viewing — " and the unit name, for the applicant. Schedule it on the Jobs page. The application moves to Viewing.
Ask for documents makes a Client documents request for photo ID, proof of income and a landlord reference, and leaves its email in Reviews for you to approve. The applicant adds the files on their private page. This needs Client documents switched on; the button says so when it is off.

When you approve someone, add the lease on the unit as usual: see how to add units and leases.

If it doesn't work

"This unit already has a turn in progress. Open it on the Turns tab." — finish that one first.
"Turns are for units let long-term." — short-term units get a turnover job after each stay instead.

"The homes page is for units let long-term." — short-term units are listed on their booking sites.
"A viewing job already exists for this application." — open it on the Jobs page.
The page says "This page is not available" — the link was replaced with New link, or Rentals was switched off.