Short answer
A dorm or apartment management system runs the monthly rental cycle in one place: room status, contracts, water and electricity readings, invoices, payments, repairs and deposit refunds. One building with standard rent usually fits off-the-shelf software; several buildings or mixed commercial space usually justify a custom build. Either way, billing must follow Thailand's 2025 residential rental announcement.
Key points
- Thailand's 2025 rental announcement covers landlords with three or more units, but not dormitories under the Dormitory Act.
- Deposit and advance rent together are capped at three months' rent for leases up to three years.
- Utilities may not exceed what the provider charges you, and the contract must state the calculation.
- Invoices go out at least 3 days before the due date; deposits come back within 7 or 14 days.
- Standard rent in one building: off-the-shelf. Several buildings or mixed commercial space: build your own.
What does a dorm management system do?
It closes the monthly rental loop (read meters, bill, collect, repeat) without anyone keying the same number twice. A system for dorms, rental rooms or apartments should cover:
- A room map and status (vacant, reserved, occupied, notice given) across every building
- A tenant register and contracts: start and end dates, rent, deposit and advance rent
- Water and electricity readings per room, with a photo of each meter
- Automatic invoices and receipts built from rent, utilities and each room's service charges
- Payments and reconciliation, so you see at once which rooms have paid and which haven't
- Repair requests from tenants, tracked until the job is done
- Move-out: room inspection, damage deductions and the deposit refund on time
- Reports on income, vacancy and arrears by building or by month
- Read metersWater and electricity per room on a phone, with a photo.
- BillRent, utilities and service charges by each room's contract.
- Send invoicesAt least 3 days before the due date.
- CollectReconcile payments and see who still owes.
- Repairs and move-outsTrack repairs, inspect rooms, refund deposits on time.
Which Thai rental rules must the system follow?
The system has to enforce the deposit cap, bill utilities at no more than cost, send invoices in advance and count down deposit refunds. These come from the Contract Committee announcement making residential rental a controlled-contract business, B.E. 2568 (2025), published in the Royal Gazette on 6 June 2025 and in force 90 days later. It applies to landlords with three or more units, in one building or several, including rentals made online, but not to dormitories under the Dormitory Act or to hotels.
If the software can't bill this way, the owner corrects invoices by hand every month. The table covers only the rules that touch the system. This guide is not legal advice; if you aren't sure your business is covered, ask a lawyer or the Office of the Consumer Protection Board.
- Landlords with this many or more are covered
- 3 units
- Cap on deposit plus advance rent
- 3 months
- Minimum notice before an invoice falls due
- 3 days
- Deposit refund: no damage / after deductions
- 7 / 14 days
| Topic | The rule | What the system does |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit and advance rent | For leases up to 3 years, together no more than 3 months' rent | Warns when a contract exceeds the cap |
| Water and electricity | No more than the utility charges the landlord; the method is stated in the contract | Bills from meter units by the contract method and shows the calculation |
| Rent and service charges | No rate changes before the contract ends | Locks each room's rates until the contract is renewed |
| Invoices | Sent at least 3 days before the due date; the tenant may ask to check the charges | Schedules invoices and keeps the meter photos for tenants to see |
| Room condition at move-in | An inspection record attached to the contract, with a copy for the tenant | Stores the inventory and move-in photos to compare at move-out |
| Deposit refund | 7 days with no damage, 14 days after deductions, counted from the end of the lease and the return of the room | Counts the deadline and reminds staff |
Where do meter readings and utility bills go wrong?
Utility bills go wrong at the meter reading, and they are also the line tenants question most. A good system has staff read each meter on a phone, photograph the dial, and flags at once any reading far above or below last month, because that is usually a misread number rather than a tenant suddenly using more power.
The rate the electricity and water authorities charge you may not be a single fixed number, so agree the calculation method in the contract and have the system apply it the same way to every room every month. Keep other charges, such as common-area fees or internet, on their own lines rather than folding them into electricity.
Can you send rent invoices and collect payment through LINE?
Yes, and it saves more work than anything else. Each tenant links their room to LINE once; from then on the system sends each month's invoice with a PromptPay QR for that amount, the tenant sends the slip back on the same page, and staff confirm it instead of matching slips in chat. Repair requests, with photos, go through the same page.
Messages the system sends count as LINE OA push messages. With several hundred rooms, work out the monthly messaging cost while designing the system.
- Link the roomThe tenant links their room to LINE once.
- Send the invoiceEach month, with a PromptPay QR for that amount.
- Send the slipThe tenant replies with the slip on the same page.
- ConfirmStaff confirm the payment; no matching slips in chat.
Off-the-shelf dorm software or a custom system?
Off-the-shelf software starts fast and suits standard rent collection; a custom system suits several buildings, a mix of rooms and commercial space, or rules of your own. A new building or one with a few dozen rooms can stay on Excel with a careful person in charge, but as rooms multiply, copying meter units and checking slips eats the start of every month.
| Off-the-shelf dorm software | Custom system | |
|---|---|---|
| Suits | One or a few buildings with standard rent | Several buildings, rooms plus commercial space, or special rules |
| Ready to use | Quickly: sign up and enter your rooms | After design and development |
| Cost | A monthly or yearly subscription | A one-off build plus maintenance |
| Your own rules | As far as the settings allow | As agreed in the scope |
| Accounting and LINE | Whatever the vendor supports | Designed around the accounting software and LINE OA you use |
| Where data lives | With the provider | Where you choose |
What should you check before choosing a dorm system?
Run last month's real data through it, from meter readings to a full set of invoices; you will find problems faster than in any demo. Then put these questions to the vendor or the team building it:
- Can it bill utilities by the method in your contract, and show the calculation on the invoice?
- Does it send invoices on a set date and keep meter photos that tenants can open?
- Does it handle several buildings, several rent rates, and short and long leases in one system?
- Can access be split, so a meter reader sees units but not money?
- Tenants' ID card copies are personal data under the PDPA: where are they stored, and who can open them?
- Can you export every room, tenant and payment record if you ever leave?
When is a custom dorm system worth building?
Build your own when the way you work is the part off-the-shelf software can't configure: monthly rooms, long leases and shop space in one project, documents that must match your accounting software, or tenants doing everything through your own LINE Official Account. If you only want to stop billing in Excel, try off-the-shelf first.
If you build with us, our engineers work with AI assistants and answer for every line of the result. The scope is written as a list of agreed deliverables before work starts, and you see progress throughout.
Before choosing a dorm management system
- Is the utility calculation written into the contract, and can the system bill by it?
- Do deposit and advance rent stay within 3 months for leases up to 3 years?
- Do invoices go out at least 3 days before the due date?
- Are meter photos and move-in room photos kept as evidence?
- Does the system count the 7-day and 14-day deposit refund deadlines?
- Can you export all your data if you ever switch?
Frequently asked questions
Is there free dorm management software?
Yes: ready-made Excel templates, and programs that are free up to a limited number of rooms. They suit small buildings. Before you commit, check that it can bill utilities by the method in your contract, show the calculation on the invoice, and export rooms, tenants and payment history if you ever move to another system.
Is rental room software different from apartment management software?
The core is the same: room status, contracts, meters, invoices and payments. The difference is size and rules. Apartments often have several floors or buildings, several contract types and extra charges such as parking or internet, so the system has to handle that variety without anyone correcting invoices by hand.
How much can a Thai landlord charge per unit of electricity?
The 2025 announcement sets no fixed figure. A landlord with three or more units may not charge more than the electricity authority charges them, and the contract must state the calculation method. Dormitories under the Dormitory Act are outside this announcement. Ask a lawyer or the Office of the Consumer Protection Board about your own case.
How many days does a Thai landlord have to return a deposit?
Under the 2025 announcement, 7 days if the room has no damage, or 14 days for the balance after deductions, counted from the end of the lease and the return of the room. It applies to landlords with three or more units. A good system counts the deadline for you and reminds staff before it passes.
Can one system run both apartments and commercial space?
The core is the same, but commercial leases often add rent based on turnover, stepped increases over several years, and tax treatment that differs from residential rooms. Off-the-shelf dorm software rarely covers that, so a project with both is usually a case for a custom system.