How each one matches payments
Paybill. The tenant enters your business number and then an account number. HomeManager reads the account number as the unit, finds the tenant living there and settles their invoice. It does not matter which phone the money came from.
Till. The tenant enters only your Till number and the amount. HomeManager looks at the phone number that paid and matches it to the tenant registered with that number. It does not matter what the tenant types, because there is nothing to type.
What it costs
Safaricom charges the business a fee on each payment received, and the rates differ between Till and Paybill and between tariffs, so check the current figures when you apply. For the tenant, paying a Paybill or Till is generally cheaper than Send Money to a personal number, though who bears the charge depends on the tariff. Ask Safaricom before you promise tenants it is free.
How to choose, step by step
- List your tenants and note who pays from their own registered phone.
- Mark the ones who pay from someone else's phone, such as an employer, a relative or a spouse.
- Mark any two tenants who share one phone.
- If most pay from their own phone and you want zero typing, choose Till.
- If many pay from other phones, or you collect from a building with changing occupants, choose Paybill.
- Give every tenant written instructions, and make the first payment a small test.
Worked example
A building has 20 units at KES 15,000 each, so KES 300,000 is due monthly. Sixteen tenants pay from their own phones. Four pay from an employer's or relative's phone, and two of those four share a phone.
On a Till, the sixteen match themselves. The other four arrive as unmatched payments, and a manager assigns each from the Payments screen, a few minutes each month. On a Paybill, all twenty match if they type their unit correctly, and the only exceptions are typos. If tenants are reliable with the unit number, Paybill leaves the manager with less work. If they mostly pay from their own phones, Till is the lowest-effort option for the tenant.
When each fits
- Paybill fits larger buildings, tenants who pay from varied phones, and agents who collect for several landlords.
- Till fits small landlords whose tenants each pay from one registered phone.
How HomeManager handles it
HomeManager supports STK push, Paybill and Till in Kenya. Paybill payments match automatically by the unit entered as the account number. Till payments match by the payer's phone number. A payment that cannot be matched, because of a wrong account number, an unknown phone or two tenants sharing a phone, is kept as an unmatched payment, and a manager assigns it to the right tenant from the Payments screen. It then settles the oldest unpaid invoice.
Tenants can also pay by card or mobile money through Pesapal in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Elsewhere, payments are recorded manually, which the AI assistant can do after you press Confirm.
Pick the number, and let the matching happen.
HomeManager reads Paybill account numbers and Till phone numbers so rent settles against the right invoice.
Get Started with HomeManagerFrequently asked questions
Should I use a Till number or a Paybill to collect rent?
Use a Paybill if tenants pay from different phones, because the unit number matches the payment. Use a Till if each tenant always pays from their own phone, because the phone number matches the payment. HomeManager supports both.
How does a Till number match rent payments to tenants?
HomeManager matches Till payments by the payer's phone number. If the phone is unknown, or two tenants share it, the payment is kept as unmatched and a manager assigns it from the Payments screen.
What account number do tenants use on a rent Paybill?
Their unit number. HomeManager treats the account number as the unit and settles that tenant's invoice, whichever phone sent the money.
Can HomeManager collect rent without a Paybill or Till?
Yes. In Kenya, STK push sends a payment prompt to the tenant's phone, and card or mobile money is available through Pesapal. In other countries, payments are recorded manually or collected through Pesapal where it operates.