By Jonathan Pierce, property-management operations specialist with 10 years of vendor accounting and maintenance workflow experience
Last reviewed: July 26, 2026
DoorLoop is property management software used for leasing, rent collection, accounting, maintenance, reporting, and owner communication. Its vendor tools help management companies connect contractors with properties, work orders, expenses, bills, credits, and payments.
This independent guide is not affiliated with or operated by DoorLoop.
A vendor record, a DoorLoop user account, a bill, and an outgoing payment are four different objects. Creating one does not automatically complete the others. That distinction explains many cases where a contractor cannot see a job or has not received payment.
What vendor management means in DoorLoop
DoorLoop uses vendor records to identify contractors, suppliers, and service companies connected to maintenance work and property expenses. Vendors can be attached to bills, expenses, tenant requests, and work orders.
A vendor record is primarily an accounting and operational record. It tells DoorLoop who performed the work or who should be paid.
A DoorLoop user account provides login access.
This creates two possible setups:
- Vendor only: The contractor can be connected to expenses, bills, and work records, but does not log in to DoorLoop.
- Vendor and user: The contractor has a vendor record and a user invitation, allowing assigned work and permitted screens to appear inside the account.
DoorLoop specifically says that a contractor who needs notifications and task or work-order access must also be added as a user. Creating only the vendor record is insufficient for that purpose.
Do access design first. Skip giving Full Access merely because a contractor needs to update one work order.
DoorLoop login for staff and vendors
DoorLoop company users receive an invitation email, create a password, and then use the standard DoorLoop login page with the invited email address. Management adds users under Settings > Users and assigns a role during setup.
DoorLoop provides four standard roles:
- Full Access
- Accountants
- Maintenance Team
- Property Owners
Pro and Premium accounts can create or edit custom user roles, while Starter accounts are limited to the standard roles.
A contractor who received a user invitation but cannot see assigned work may have one of three problems:
- The invitation was never accepted.
- The wrong user role was assigned.
- The user lacks access to the relevant property or task category.
DoorLoop notes that tasks and work orders cannot be assigned to a user until the invitation has been accepted and the user becomes active.
Check invitation status first. Skip creating another login until management verifies the original user record.
Why maintenance work is missing
DoorLoop’s user-role permissions can restrict maintenance staff to assigned tasks or let them see all tasks. The permissions use different access levels inside Tasks & Maintenance.
For a maintenance user who cannot see work, DoorLoop recommends checking access to:
- Vendors, tenants, and users
- Tasks
- Work orders
- Tenant requests
- Owner requests
- Properties and units
- Files, notes, and tags
- Maintenance-related reports
After the role is updated, DoorLoop advises having the user log out and sign back in.
This is usually a permissions issue, not a browser failure.
A user can also be restricted to selected properties or bank accounts. DoorLoop says those access choices can be edited directly on the user record and take effect immediately.
Do role and property access first. Skip resetting the password when the user can sign in but sees an empty maintenance list.
Assigning a vendor to a work order
DoorLoop work orders can be created from Tasks & Maintenance > Work Orders. A vendor can be attached to the work order for operational and accounting tracking.
When the vendor is also a DoorLoop user, management can add that person or company under Assignees. This enables in-app access and notifications, subject to the assigned user permissions.
The vendor field and assignee field are not the same thing.
Vendor: Identifies the contractor associated with the job.
Assignee: Identifies the active DoorLoop user responsible for viewing or updating the work.
A vendor may therefore appear on the work order but still be unable to open it. That usually means the vendor was not added as an active user or was not selected as an assignee.
Check both fields. Skip recreating the work order when the access relationship is incomplete.
Creating a vendor bill
A bill records money the property or management company owes to a vendor for services, repairs, utilities, materials, or another expense. DoorLoop’s current bill workflow is available on Pro and Premium plans rather than Starter.
A complete bill should use the correct:
- Vendor
- Property
- Expense category
- Bill date
- Due date
- Amount
- Description
- Supporting invoice or file
The property assignment is especially important. It affects financial reports, owner statements, vendor credits, and which account ultimately pays the expense.
Creating the bill does not mean the vendor has been paid. It records an accounts-payable obligation.
Do the bill first when the invoice will be paid later. Skip entering the same invoice as a separate expense unless the accounting treatment genuinely requires it.
Paying a bill
DoorLoop’s bill-payment workflow begins with + Create New > Pay Bills under Vendor Transactions. Management chooses the open bills and records how they were paid.
A bill payment can be recorded for money sent outside DoorLoop, such as a manually issued check. DoorLoop also provides an ePay option when outgoing payments have already been configured.
This creates a critical difference:
Recorded payment: DoorLoop marks the bill as paid because management reports that payment occurred elsewhere.
Outgoing ePay: DoorLoop is used to initiate the actual electronic payment.
Do not select a generic payment method merely to close the bill when no money was sent. That makes accounts payable appear correct while the vendor remains unpaid.
Check the payment route first. Skip creating another bill when the problem is an unsent outgoing payment.
Setting up outgoing payments
DoorLoop’s outgoing-payment system is powered by Checkbook.io and uses Plaid during bank connection. It can be used for vendor bills, owner distributions, tenant refunds, and other outgoing transactions.
The setup requires management to connect an eligible bank account through the Plaid flow. After setup, outgoing payments can originate from an expense, bill payment, owner distribution, or tenant refund.
A prepared ePay transaction may still require a final send action.
DoorLoop’s outgoing-payment screen may show:
- Send: The recipient information is ready and the payment can be released.
- Add Info: Required outgoing-payment information is missing for the tenant, owner, or vendor.
DoorLoop instructs management to complete the recipient profile when Add Info appears, then return to send the payment.
Do status first. Skip telling the vendor that payment is processing while DoorLoop still shows Add Info.
Vendor payment information
DoorLoop provides a separate setup process for a vendor’s outgoing-payment details before an ePay can be sent.
Management should confirm:
- The correct vendor record
- A valid recipient email
- The connected funding account
- The property tied to the expense
- The amount being paid
- Whether the payment is electronic or a paper check
- Whether the transaction has actually been sent
Do not request a vendor’s online banking password. Plaid authentication and recipient payment setup should occur through the official connected workflow.
When a contractor says no payment email arrived, management should inspect the outgoing-payment status and vendor email before creating another bill payment.
Digital payments versus mailed checks
DoorLoop’s Checkbook.io integration can send electronic payments or mail physical checks to owners, vendors, and tenants. After the underlying expense, bill payment, refund, or distribution is created, management uses Accounting > Outgoing Payments to complete the send process.
DoorLoop also supports native check printing. Printed-check settings apply to checks that management prints itself, not ePay checks sent through the outgoing-payment integration.
These workflows should not be mixed.
Native printed check: DoorLoop records and formats the payment, but management prints and delivers the check.
Mailed Checkbook.io check: DoorLoop’s outgoing-payment partner sends the physical check.
Digital ePay: The recipient receives an electronic payment workflow.
Use the correct delivery method. Skip recording a printed check and an ePay for the same invoice.
Correcting a vendor bill or bill payment
DoorLoop allows bills to be edited or deleted when an amount, date, property, category, or other assignment was entered incorrectly.
Bill payments are separate transactions. DoorLoop says they can be located through the Bill Payments List report, Transactions List report, bank register, or the vendor’s Transactions tab.
This distinction matters after payment.
Editing the original bill may not correct the payment transaction already attached to it. Management may need to review both records.
A safe sequence is:
- Confirm whether the bill is unpaid or paid.
- Find the associated bill payment.
- Check whether money was sent outside DoorLoop or through ePay.
- Correct or void the payment when necessary.
- Edit the bill.
- Recreate the correct payment only after the earlier transaction is resolved.
- Review the vendor ledger and bank register.
Skip deleting accounting records solely to make a report total look right. Preserve a clear audit trail.
Applying vendor credits
A vendor credit reduces the amount owed on a future vendor bill. DoorLoop gives the example of a $400 landscaping charge later reduced to $350, leaving a $50 vendor credit.
The credit must use the same vendor and property as the bill to which it will be applied. DoorLoop applies eligible credits during the bill-payment process.
That property rule is easy to miss.
A $50 credit entered for Property A will not automatically reduce a bill for Property B, even when both bills use the same contractor.
Check:
- Vendor
- Property
- Category
- Credit amount
- Related invoice or explanation
Do matching first. Skip manually reducing an unrelated bill because the vendor’s company-wide balance appears correct.
A refund actually received from a vendor should be recorded through the appropriate bank or credit-card refund process rather than treated automatically as an unused vendor credit.
Using the Vendor Ledger report
DoorLoop’s Vendor Ledger report collects a vendor’s bills, bill payments, and expense transactions in one place.
Use it when the contractor’s statement does not match DoorLoop.
The report can help identify:
- Duplicate bills
- Unpaid invoices
- Partial bill payments
- Vendor credits
- Direct expenses entered without a bill
- Payments assigned to the wrong vendor
- Transactions posted to the wrong property
A vendor ledger and a bank statement answer different questions. The ledger explains what DoorLoop says is owed and paid to the contractor. The bank statement confirms actual money movement.
Compare both. Skip creating a balancing transaction until the mismatch has been traced.
Vendor records and 1099-NEC filing
DoorLoop supports preparing and filing Form 1099-NEC information for vendors. The feature is intended for reporting qualifying nonemployee compensation paid to contractors and service providers in the United States.
The vendor record and payment categorization need to be accurate before tax preparation begins.
Management should review:
- Vendor legal name
- Tax identification details
- Mailing address
- Payment totals
- Expense categories
- Excluded payments
- Corrections and vendor credits
- Whether the vendor is subject to Form 1099-NEC reporting
DoorLoop provides the software workflow, but it does not determine tax status for every vendor. IRS rules, entity type, payment method, and the nature of the services can affect whether and how a payment is reported.
Tax reporting is high-stakes. Confirm classifications and filing decisions with a qualified tax professional rather than relying only on the DoorLoop total.
Frequently asked questions
Is a DoorLoop vendor automatically a user?
No. A vendor record is used for bills, expenses, and maintenance tracking. The vendor must also be added as a user to receive account access and in-app assignments.
Why can’t a vendor see a work order?
The user invitation may not be active, the vendor may not be an assignee, or the assigned user role may lack task, property, or work-order permissions.
Does creating a bill pay the vendor?
No. A bill records the amount owed. Management must separately record or send the bill payment.
Can DoorLoop send vendor payments electronically?
Yes. Outgoing payments powered by Checkbook.io can be used after management connects an eligible bank account through Plaid.
What does Add Info mean under Outgoing Payments?
Required recipient information is incomplete. Management must finish the vendor, owner, or tenant outgoing-payment profile before sending.
Can DoorLoop mail a paper check?
Yes. The outgoing-payment integration can send paper checks to vendors, owners, and tenants.
Why is a vendor credit not reducing the bill?
The credit may use a different vendor or property. DoorLoop applies credits only to eligible bills with matching records.
Can DoorLoop prepare vendor 1099 forms?
DoorLoop provides a workflow for Form 1099-NEC vendor reporting. Tax details and filing eligibility should still be verified carefully.
