Why Your Letting Agents Need Software That Actually Works on Their Phones

It's Tuesday afternoon, 3:45pm. Sarah, a letting negotiator, just finished showing a property. The viewing went well—the prospective tenant wants to put in an offer.

She pulls out her phone to update the property status to "Under Offer" while the details are fresh. Opens your property management system on her mobile browser.

Here's what happens next with most property management systems:

1. Taps the sidebar menu to navigate
2. Menu slides out, covering the screen
3. Taps "Properties"
4. New page loads... but the sidebar is still covering the content
5. Has to tap outside the sidebar to close it
6. Scrolls to find the property
7. Taps "Edit"
8. Modal form opens
9. Tries to tap the "Status" dropdown
10. Mobile keyboard pops up and covers the Submit button
11. Dismisses keyboard, scrolls down, finds Submit button
12. Finally updates the property

Total time: 90 seconds of frustration for what should be a 10-second task.

Meanwhile, the prospective tenant is waiting while Sarah fumbles with her phone. Professional image: damaged.

This is why most letting agents don't use their property management software on mobile. It's not because they don't want to—it's because the software wasn't actually designed for mobile use, just "made responsive" as an afterthought.

This week, we fixed the mobile experience in LetAdmin. This article explains what we changed and why it matters for letting agents who work in the field.

The Problem: "Mobile-Friendly" Isn't Enough

Most property management systems claim to be "mobile-friendly." What they mean is:

• The layout shrinks to fit smaller screens
• You CAN technically use it on a phone
• But it's frustrating and slow

What letting agents actually need is mobile-FIRST design:

• Tasks complete quickly (10-20 seconds, not 90 seconds)
• Navigation doesn't get in the way
• Buttons are easy to tap with thumbs
• Forms work properly with mobile keyboards
• No fighting with the interface

The Real-World Context: Where Agents Use Their Phones

Letting agents use mobile property management systems in specific situations:

1. Between Viewings

Location: In the car, parked outside properties Duration: 2-3 minutes between appointments Tasks:

• Update last property status
• Check details for next viewing
• Respond to landlord enquiries
• Upload quick photos

Requirements:

• Fast login
• Quick navigation
• One-handed operation
• Interruption-tolerant (tenant might call mid-task)

2. During Property Visits

Location: Inside properties, often with poor lighting Duration: 5-10 minutes during checks Tasks:

• Record maintenance issues
• Upload photos of problems
• Update property notes
• Check last inspection date

Requirements:

• Large touch targets (works with gloves in winter)
• High-contrast text (readable in dim properties)
• Camera integration
• Works offline (basements with no signal)

3. Weekend Emergencies

Location: At home, responding to urgent tenant issues Duration: 30 seconds to find information Tasks:

• Find plumber contact for property
• Check when boiler was last serviced
• Look up tenant emergency number
• Forward to on-call team

Requirements:

• Instant access (no waiting for pages to load)
• Search that actually works on mobile
• Critical information prominently displayed

The Mobile UX Fixes We Made in Week 36

Fix 1: Auto-Closing Sidebar After Navigation

The problem:

• Agent taps sidebar link → page loads → sidebar still covering content
• Requires second tap to close sidebar
• Adds 5-10 seconds per navigation
• Multiplied by 20 navigations per day = 3+ minutes wasted

The fix:

• Sidebar automatically closes after tapping a link (mobile only)
• Smooth animation matches the page transition
• Desktop keeps sidebar open (different use case)
• Also closes when tapping outside sidebar (mobile pattern)

Result:

• One tap instead of two
• Faster navigation
• Matches how mobile apps behave
• Agents don't even notice it now (which means it's working)

Fix 2: Form Buttons Stay Above Mobile Keyboards

The problem:

• Modal forms open
• Agent starts typing
• Mobile keyboard appears (occupies 40-50% of screen height)
• Keyboard covers the Submit button
• Agent must dismiss keyboard, scroll down, find button, tap
• Keyboard reappears if they need to edit a field
• Cycle repeats 2-3 times per form

The fix:

• All modal forms now have 96px bottom spacing
• This keeps action buttons above typical mobile keyboards
• Even with autocomplete/suggestion bars (iOS QuickType, Android autocomplete)
• Tested across iPhone SE, iPhone 14 Pro Max, various Android devices

Result:

• Type → Tap Submit → Done
• No scrolling, no keyboard fighting
• Forms feel fast and fluid

Fix 3: Proper Touch Target Sizes

The problem:

• Buttons sized for mouse cursors (24×24px clickable areas)
• Nearly impossible to tap accurately with thumbs
• Worse when wearing gloves (common during winter property checks)
• Agents frequently tap wrong buttons, have to undo and retry

The fix:

• All interactive elements minimum 44×44px (Apple HIG guideline)
• Ideally 48×48px (Material Design guideline)
• Adequate spacing between buttons (prevents mis-taps)
• Larger tap zones around small icons

Result:

• Tap success rate: ~95% (vs ~70% with small targets)
• Faster task completion
• Works with gloves

Fix 4: Consistent Login Page Branding

The problem:

• Agency logos overflowed containers on mobile
• Or appeared misaligned on certain screen widths
• First impression: "this software looks unprofessional"
• Multi-tenant deployments had inconsistent logo positioning

The fix:

• Responsive logo sizing (48px mobile → 64px tablet → 80px desktop)
• object-contain maintains aspect ratio, prevents distortion
• Works across all screen sizes (iPhone SE 375px → iPad Pro 1024px)
• Per-agency branding consistent across devices

Result:

• Professional first impression on any device
• Agency branding displayed correctly
• No overflow or alignment issues

Real-World Impact: Sarah's Tuesday Afternoon (Revised)

Same scenario: Sarah just finished a viewing, needs to update property status.

With fixed mobile experience:

1. Opens LetAdmin on phone (loads in 1 second)
2. Taps sidebar → Properties
3. Sidebar closes automatically (no second tap needed)
4. Scrolls to property, taps Edit
5. Modal opens, taps Status dropdown
6. Selects "Under Offer"
7. Taps Submit (button visible above keyboard)
8. Status updated

Total time: 10 seconds Tenant experience: Professional, agent handles it seamlessly

Time saved: 80 seconds per update × 10 updates per day = 13 minutes saved daily

For an agency with 5 negotiators, that's 65 minutes saved per day, or 5.4 hours per week across the team.

The Bigger Picture: Why Mobile Matters for Agencies

1. Faster Response Times

Letting is a time-sensitive business.

• Enquiries need responses within 15-30 minutes
• Maintenance issues need logging immediately
• Viewing feedback should be recorded while fresh

Mobile-first software enables fast responses regardless of where agents are.

2. Better Data Quality

When software is easy to use on mobile, agents actually use it:

• Property updates happen in real-time (not "when I get back to the office")
• Photos uploaded immediately (not lost/forgotten)
• Notes captured while details are fresh
• Accurate timestamps (actual viewing time, not backdated later)

When mobile is frustrating, agents work around it:

• Handwritten notes on paper (transcribed later, errors introduced)
• WhatsApp messages to office staff (information scattered)
• "I'll update it tomorrow" (often forgotten)

3. Work-Life Balance

Agents can handle urgent issues without being chained to desks:

• Quick property check from home in the evening
• Respond to weekend landlord query
• Approve urgent maintenance from phone

This flexibility improves job satisfaction and reduces burnout.

What's Next: Progressive Web App Features

Week 36 focused on core mobile UX. Future enhancements:

Offline Mode:

• View properties without internet connection
• Queue updates to sync when connection returns
• Essential for basements/rural areas with poor signal

Camera Integration:

• Direct photo capture during viewings
• Video recording for virtual viewings
• Document scanning (tenant ID, EPC certificates)

Geolocation:

• Auto-fill property addresses based on current location
• Track time spent at properties (for compliance)
• "Properties near me" for impromptu area viewings

Push Notifications:

• New enquiry alerts
• Viewing reminders
• Maintenance request notifications

"Add to Home Screen" Prompt:

• Install LetAdmin like a native app
• One-tap launch from phone home screen
• Feels like dedicated letting agent app

We'd Love to Hear from You

Do your agents actually use your property management software on their phones? Or do they wait until they're back at the office? (Be honest!)

What mobile frustrations do your field staff complain about most? Slow navigation? Buttons they can't tap? Forms that don't work properly?

How much time do you estimate your team wastes fighting with mobile interfaces per week? Most agencies underestimate this (it adds up fast).

Get in touch: paul@letadmin.com

LetAdmin is in active development, built by letting agents for letting agents. The mobile UX improvements are being tested by negotiators at Phillip James (370+ properties) who use their phones throughout the day for property updates, enquiries, and viewings. If your team avoids using your software on mobile because it's too frustrating, we'd love to hear from you.