Synova Connect

AppFolio

Connect AppFolio so your Synova receptionist can answer caller questions about available rentals, unit details, and properties from live data.

This guide walks you through connecting your AppFolio account to Synova Connect so your AI receptionist can answer caller questions about available rentals, unit details, and property information using live data from your portfolio. No coding required — setup takes about a minute once you have your API credentials.

Plan availability. AppFolio and other third-party software integrations require Professional ($299/mo) or Enterprise ($599/mo); they are not included with Starter ($99/mo).

What you'll need

  • An AppFolio account with API access enabled (AppFolio Plus, AppFolio Plus + Database API add-on, or Property Manager Max).
  • AppFolio Plus alone gives you read access, which is enough for the integration's three default workflows (Available Units, Unit Details, Property Details — all read operations).
  • If you want the AI to also create or update entities in AppFolio (open work orders during a call, add notes to a unit, update tenant information, and similar changes), you'll need write API access, which comes with Plus + Database API add-on or Property Manager Max.
  • Admin access to your AppFolio instance so you can generate API credentials.
  • A Synova Connect account.
  • About 5 minutes.

The three default workflows work on any AppFolio plan with API access, including Plus alone. Write operations (creating work orders, updating tenant data, etc.) need the Database API tier (Plus + add-on, or Max). Work-order writes additionally need a one-time AppFolio admin approval — see the "Work orders" section below.

What this integration enables

Once connected, three workflows are automatically installed on your receptionist:

  • [AppFolio] Available Units — real-time list of vacant, rent-ready units. The AI uses it to answer "what's available?" calls.
  • [AppFolio] Unit Details — amenities, appliances, square footage, deposits, application fees, and the marketing description for a specific unit.
  • [AppFolio] Property Details — manager, owner, and location details for any property in your portfolio.

The AI calls these workflows live during conversations, so your callers always hear current information.

Step 1: Open the Integrations panel

  • Log into app.synovaconnect.ai.
  • Click Receptionist in the left sidebar.
  • Scroll to the Integrations section and expand it.
  • Click the AppFolio card.

Step 2: Review what gets enabled

A side panel opens showing the capabilities your AI receptionist will gain once connected, along with the AppFolio plan tier required. Take a moment to confirm:

  • Your AppFolio plan meets the requirement (Property Manager Max, or Plus + Database API add-on).
  • The three capabilities listed match what you want your receptionist to handle.

When ready, click Connect AppFolio.

Step 3: Generate your AppFolio API credentials

Before you can connect, you need a Client ID and Client Secret from AppFolio. Generate them from your AppFolio admin in under a minute.

You'll need admin access to your AppFolio instance. If you don't see the menu items below, ask your AppFolio admin to do this part.

  • In a new tab, log into your AppFolio Property Manager. Click your profile name in the top-right corner of the navbar, then choose General Settings from the dropdown.
  • On the General Settings page, find and click Manage API Settings in the first column of links.
  • On the API Settings page, find the Reports API section and click Generate New Credentials to create your Client ID and Client Secret. If you already have credentials shown here, you can reuse them.
  • Copy both the Client ID and Client Secret somewhere safe. You'll paste them into Synova in the next step.

Don't see Manage API Settings? Your AppFolio plan likely doesn't include the Database API. You need Property Manager Max, or AppFolio Plus with the Database API add-on. Contact your AppFolio account manager to enable it.

Step 4: Paste your credentials into Synova

Back in the Synova Connect to AppFolio dialog, fill in all three fields:

  • Subdomain — your AppFolio subdomain (everything before `.appfolio.com`). For example, if your AppFolio URL is `https://acmeproperties.appfolio.com`, enter `acmeproperties`.
  • Client ID — the Client ID you copied in Step 3.
  • Client Secret — the Client Secret you copied in Step 3. Synova stores this encrypted.

Click Connect when all three fields are filled.

Step 5: You're connected

When the connection succeeds, the panel updates to show:

  • A green Connected badge.
  • The subdomain you connected to (e.g. acmeproperties.appfolio.com).
  • Three workflow toggles, all switched On by default.

You can toggle individual workflows off if you want to disable a specific capability. Most customers leave all three on. The next call your receptionist takes will use live AppFolio data.

What Synova can do with AppFolio

Once connected, your AI receptionist can answer questions like:

  • "What one-bedrooms do you have available under $1,000?" — pulls vacant, rent-ready units from AppFolio in real time.
  • "What's the deposit on the place on Stoepel Street?" — looks up unit details (deposit, application fee, square footage, amenities).
  • "Who manages the building on Glenfield?" — pulls property details (manager, owner, location).
  • "Is the unit pet-friendly?" — reads amenity and policy data straight from the unit record.

The AI speaks naturally on the phone. It will not read addresses or ZIP codes verbatim, it groups options two at a time so callers don't get overwhelmed, and it offers to text follow-up details when relevant.

Work orders (optional)

The three default workflows ship out of the box on any plan with API access. Work orders are a separate capability with two layers of gating on top:

  • Reading work orders (looking up existing work orders, checking status, telling callers what's already scheduled) works on any plan with API access, including Plus alone. No extra approval needed.
  • Writing work orders (creating new work orders during a call, or updating existing ones) needs both write API access (Plus + Database API add-on or Property Manager Max) and a separate write-access approval from AppFolio for work orders specifically.

From the AppFolio integration panel in Synova, click Request work-order API access to open a pre-written email template you can send to AppFolio support. Once both are in place, the AI can open a work order live on the call when a tenant reports a maintenance issue.

Disconnecting

  • Go to Receptionist → Integrations → AppFolio.
  • Scroll to the bottom of the panel.
  • Click Disconnect.

This removes the three workflows from your receptionist and revokes Synova's access to your AppFolio data. You can reconnect at any time using the same flow.

Troubleshooting

  • "Invalid credentials" error when connecting — double check the subdomain (just the prefix, not the full URL: `acmeproperties`, not `https://acmeproperties.appfolio.com`). Confirm the Client ID and Client Secret were copied without extra spaces, and that your AppFolio plan includes the Database API.
  • "No units returned" during a test call — confirm you have at least one unit in AppFolio with `unit_status` set to Vacant-Unrented and `rent_ready` set to Yes. Other units are filtered out by design so callers only hear options they can actually rent.
  • Workflows are off after connecting — open the AppFolio panel and toggle them on. All three default to on, but they can be manually disabled.

If you get stuck, open the chat in your Synova Connect dashboard and say "I need help setting up my AppFolio integration." Our team will walk you through it.