Connect your sheet (optional)

You can use the assistant on sample data right away. When you want your real numbers, hook up a Google Sheet and an AI key—the steps below are for whoever helps with tech.

Where things stand

Spreadsheet

/tmp/rent-desk-data/portfolio.json

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Assistant model

Keyword matching only, until an AI Gateway key is added

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Who can do what

Open, and add-only. Anyone with the link can add entries but cannot change existing rows. Set APP_PASSCODE before putting this on the internet.

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What is in there now

2 properties · 30 units · 26 current tenants · 77 payments · 12 expense entries

Connect your Google Sheet

A service account is a robot Google account. You share the sheet with its email address, and this app signs in as that robot. No passwords to keep up with.

1. Make the spreadsheet. Create a blank Google Sheet and copy the long id out of its address bar, the part between /d/ and /edit.
2. Make a service account. In the Google Cloud console, enable the Google Sheets API, then create a service account and a JSON key for it.
3. Share the sheet with it. Share your spreadsheet with the service account's email address as an Editor.

4. Add the environment variables.

GOOGLE_SHEET_ID=your-spreadsheet-id
GOOGLE_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_JSON={"client_email":"...","private_key":"..."}
AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY=your-ai-gateway-key
APP_PASSCODE=her-passcode-adds-entries-only
OWNER_PASSCODE=your-passcode-can-also-edit

Locally that is a .env.local file. On Vercel they go in the project's environment variables.

5. Build the tabs. Once the variables are set, this button creates every tab with the right column headers.

Practice mode — this prepares the same tab layout locally without Google credentials.

What each tab holds

You can always type in the sheet by hand. The assistant reads and writes these same columns, so keep the headers as they are. Odds and ends about a unit — air filter size, lockbox, paint colour, appliance models — live in UnitNotes, one row per fact.

Tab	What it is for	Columns
Properties	One row per apartment complex.	property_id, name, address, city, state, zip, notes
Units	One row per door, with market rent and whether it is occupied, vacant, or being renovated.	unit_id, property_id, unit_label, beds, baths, sqft, market_rent, status, notes
Tenants	One row per tenant, past and present, with lease dates and monthly rent.	tenant_id, unit_id, name, phone, email, status, move_in_date, move_out_date, lease_start, lease_end, monthly_rent, deposit, rent_due_day, notes
Payments	Every dollar collected: rent, late fees, deposits.	payment_id, date, unit_id, tenant_id, period, category, amount, method, reference, notes
Charges	Extra amounts owed on top of rent, mostly late fees.	charge_id, date, unit_id, tenant_id, period, type, amount, status, notes
Renovations	Renovation projects per unit, with a budget and a status.	renovation_id, property_id, unit_id, scope, status, start_date, target_date, completed_date, budget, contractor, notes
Maintenance	Work orders and repair requests.	work_order_id, date_reported, property_id, unit_id, issue, priority, status, vendor, scheduled_date, completed_date, notes
Expenses	Money spent, optionally tied to a renovation project or work order.	expense_id, date, property_id, unit_id, category, vendor, amount, description, renovation_id, work_order_id, notes
UnitNotes	Household facts worth remembering per unit: air filter size, lockbox, paint color, breaker panel, appliance models, parking spot. One row per fact; a newer row for the same label wins, and the old one stays as history.	note_id, unit_id, label, detail, added_at, added_by
Requests	Changes that need the owner: move-outs, corrections, anything that means editing a row. Added here instead of changed in place.	requested_at, requested_by, about, request, status
Settings	Late fee amount, grace period, and other preferences.	key, value, notes
ActivityLog	A log of every change the assistant makes, so nothing is a mystery later.	logged_at, actor, action, details