The lease credit feature allows you to apply credits directly to any lease for rent adjustments. This keeps all transactions organized in one place with automatic tenant notifications.
Common Scenarios for Applying a Credit (Balance Adjustments Only)
Lease credits reduce the tenant's next rent balance - they don't move or refund funds.
Maintenance Reimbursements
When a tenant pays for a repair, you can apply a lease credit for that amount to reduce their next rent payment.
Overpayment Adjustment (not a refund)
If a tenant accidentally overpays rent, apply a lease credit to reduce a future charge. This does not issue a refund.
Fee Forgiveness
Credit tenants when you decide to forgive late fees or other charges on the lease.
How to Apply a Lease Credit
In your left nav menu, click into the Payments tab
Click the Actions button on the top right of your screen
Click the Create Credit button
Select the lease you'd like to apply the credit to in the dropdown
Enter your credit amount and add an optional description explaining the reason for the credit (e.g., "Plumbing repair reimbursement")
6. Confirm the credit by clicking Continue
Note: Credits automatically apply to the next payment made on that lease.
And voilà - you've successfully added your first credit! The credit is immediately applied to the lease balance (not to individual tenants) and will appear in any subsequent payment confirmation emails.
Important: Credits will not appear in Sent Charges until the related payment has been made. You can view all credits anytime in the Lease Profile → Payments section.
Tip: You can also create a credit directly from the Leases page under the Payments tab using the same steps.
The credit will be applied immediately to the lease balance & reflected in your record of sent charges & in any subsequent payment confirmation emails.
Note: You can follow these same steps on the Leases tab under the Payments section to create a credit as well.
How to Remove a Credit
If you need to remove a credit that was applied by mistake:
In your left nav menu, click into the Lease Profile tab
Click into the lease with the applied credit.
Navigate to the Payments tab
Look for the applied credit balance amount displayed at the top
Click the trash icon next to the credit balance
Confirm you would like to remove the credit from the lease
You'll see a "Credit Removed" confirmation message when the credit has been removed from the lease.
If you need to edit the credit, you'll need to delete the credit and create a new one.
Credit Amount Format Error
If you receive a "Please match the requested format" error when adding a credit, the amount may be entered in an unsupported format.
When entering a credit amount, do not include commas.
✅ Correct: 1000.00
❌ Incorrect: 1,000.00
After you submit the credit, TurboTenant will automatically format the amount and display it correctly as $1,000.00.
How to Delete a Credit After the Tenant Has Paid
If a tenant has already made a payment and the credit was applied to it, you can still delete that credit. Once deleted, the tenant will owe the remaining balance that the credit had covered.
Navigate to the Lease Profile and open the lease.
Click the Payments tab and locate the charge the credit was applied to.
Expand the charge to find the credit line item, which shows the credit amount and the date it was applied.
Click Delete next to the credit line item and confirm.
What happens after deleting an applied credit: The tenant will have a remaining balance equal to the credit amount that was removed. If the deletion occurs after the charge's due date, this remaining balance will appear as past due.
What Tenants See
In the Tenant Dashboard, Credits appear as a "CREDIT BALANCE" in the tenant's payment overview, showing the total credit amount available.
Note: Credits automatically apply to the next payment made on that lease.
Email Notifications
Tenants also receive an automatic email notification when a credit is applied to their lease, disclosing the credit amount & the description if provided by the landlord.
FAQs: How Tenant Credits Are Applied
Q: Can I use a lease credit to return a security deposit?
A: No, a lease credit is designed to offset a future rental charge on the lease. A security deposit refund is a separate transaction. Using a credit here will misclassify the transaction. Learn more about returning Security Deposits through TurboTenant.
Q: What's the difference between recording an offline payment vs applying a lease credit?
A:
Recording an offline payment means the tenant paid outside of the online rent-collection flow (cash, check, Zelle, etc.), and you're logging that payment in TurboTenant so the ledger stays accurate. Click the following article to learn how to record an offline payment.
Applying a lease credit means you're actively reducing the tenant's upcoming rent obligation (for example: reimbursement for a repair, rent concession) so that the system automatically adjusts their next charge.
Don't conflate the two: if the tenant paid offline, you record the payment; if you're giving the tenant credit for something you owe them or are crediting them for (but not a deposit refund), you apply a credit.
Q: Can tenants apply for split credits themselves?
A: No. Tenants cannot choose how a credit is applied or split across charges. The system will automatically apply the credit based on the payment flow.
Q: What happens if multiple tenants are splitting the payment?
A: Credits will be applied to whoever submits their payment first. The system does not split the credit between tenants.
Q: Will tenants see how the credit was applied?
A: Yes. Tenants receive an itemized receipt showing the charges covered and how the credit was used.
Q: Do payment emails show the credit?
A: Yes. The Payment Received email includes a breakdown showing the credit applied to the tenant's balance.
Q: What if the tenant's payment fails?
A: If a payment attempt fails, the system will reapply the credit to the tenant's account automatically. It will remain available for the next payment.
Q: Does Autopay use credits automatically?
A: Yes. If the tenant is enrolled in Autopay, the credit will automatically apply to their next scheduled payment.
Q: Does Livble take credits into account?
A: No. Livble does not factor in credits when calculating the payment amount.
Workaround: Ask the tenant to make a manual partial payment equal to the credit amount to ensure it's used.
Important: If you want to ensure a tenant uses their credit, communicate early, especially if they're splitting rent or using Livble.