For property managers
Answer your renters, on the record.
Renters write the file. Managers can only respond.
Claim your building on The Unit File and post a public response under any renter report. Claiming and responding are free. Renter reports stay exactly as they were filed.
Free to claim and respond · Already set up? Go to your dashboard →
What you can do
Two things, in this order
Claim your building
Find your building and confirm that you manage it and can speak for it.
Respond to reports · free
Post one public response under each renter report, marked “Response from management”. You can edit it later, and edits are marked.
What stays the same
The renter record is not for sale
- ×You can't edit, hide or remove a renter report.
- ×You can't change a Unit Score, a rating or the order reports appear in.
- ×No one can pay to bury a rating or boost a building in a ranked list or search.
- ×Renter names are never shown, and responses can't name or describe the renter.
Think a report breaks our guidelines? Use the disputes process. It's free and open to everyone: legal@theunitfile.com.
What a response looks like
Under the report it answers
[The renter's report stays above, unchanged]
Response from management
[Your response, 20–1,500 characters]
Responses don't change Unit Score, ratings, rankings or the order of reports.
- Shows your organization's name. Your name is never shown.
- One response per report. Edits are marked “edited”.
- No links, names, unit numbers, tenant details, ads or legal threats.
- Some responses are held for a quick review before they show.
- Responses never change Unit Score, ratings, rankings or the order of reports.
How verification works
We confirm you manage the building before you can respond
- Create an account
Sign in, then add your organization's name. Your email is never shown on the site.
- Confirm your authority
If your work email is on the same domain as the building's official website, we can usually confirm you right away with a 6-digit code (free email, school and listing-site addresses don't qualify). A work-email approval lasts 90 days from the code; re-confirm with a new code to keep responding. If a domain is the website for more than 5 buildings (a big shared or company domain), or another organization already has a claim on the building, the request goes to manual review instead.
- Or ask for a manual review
No matching email? Choose a leasing-office callback (we call the number on the building's official website), a letter of authorization or a business card. We review by hand, usually within a few business days. Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo and similar) always go to manual review.
- Respond
Once confirmed, a reply box appears under each report on your building. Manual approvals last 12 months.
Good to know
- One account per person. Each response shows the organization name.
- Proof images are deleted 30 days after a decision.
- You can release a building from your dashboard at any time. If management changes, the new manager can ask to claim it; because another organization already has a claim, that request is reviewed by hand, and we end the old claim once we've confirmed the new manager. Responses already posted stay up under the name they were posted with unless they're removed.
- We may remove responses that break the Management Account Terms.
- Is it really free?
- Yes. Claiming and responding are free.
- Can I respond to every report?
- You get one public response per report. You can edit it, and every edit is marked.
- Will I hear about new reports?
- New reports on your claimed buildings show up in your dashboard.
Renters write the file. Managers can only respond.
Manage a building on The Unit File?
Claim it and respond to reports for free.