Property managers once relied on text messaging as the quickest way to keep tenants informed about renewals, maintenance and emergencies. Over the past year, though, those texts have begun to disappear. Residents fail to respond, claiming they never received a notice. The culprit isn’t a sudden wave of apathy; it’s a seismic change in how mobile carriers handle business texting.

Carriers Are Cracking Down on Unregistered Texting

Traditionally, businesses used standard 10‑digit phone numbers to send bulk text messages. These long codes weren’t intended for high‑volume application‑to‑person (A2P) traffic, but they were cheap and easy to set up. Unfortunately, they were also exploited by spammers and scammers. To address the issue, U.S. carriers introduced 10‑digit long code (10DLC) registration. Under this system, companies must register their numbers, identify the type of messages they send and adhere to strict guidelines governing consent and opt‑out.

As a result, carriers now filter unregistered business traffic aggressively. When a property management company sends hundreds of renewal notices or maintenance alerts from an unregistered number, the carrier treats those messages as potential spam. Delivery is throttled or blocked entirely, often without notifying the sender. Even legitimate transactional texts, like reminders about rent due dates or notifications about water shutoffs, can be delayed by hours or never delivered.

Why This Matters for Property Managers

Failing to reach tenants on time has real consequences. If a resident doesn’t receive a renewal notice, they might miss the renewal window and decide to move out. If an emergency alert about a gas leak or water shutoff is blocked, it could create safety risks and legal liability. When people see messages from unfamiliar numbers or messages that arrive late, they lose trust. This erodes response rates and undermines your marketing efforts: prospective tenants who inquire about a listing might never see your follow‑up text and assume you’ve ignored them.

Beyond operational issues, there are financial and legal risks. Carriers impose surcharges on unregistered messaging traffic, which can quietly inflate your communication costs. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and related state laws require businesses to obtain express consent before sending marketing texts, provide clear opt‑out instructions and maintain records of that consent. Violations can result in lawsuits and penalties that far exceed the cost of compliance. In 2023 and 2024, numerous class‑action suits targeted companies that used unregistered numbers or failed to obtain proper consent, with fines of $500 to $1,500 per message.

What 10DLC Registration Involves

10DLC registration is designed to separate legitimate business messaging from spam. The process requires businesses to submit basic information, including their legal name, employer identification number (EIN), address, and a description of the purpose of their messages. You also need to provide sample messages demonstrating the content you send and outline your consent and opt‑out processes. 

Carriers then classify each campaign as either “transactional” or “promotional.” Transactional texts include rent reminders, appointment confirmations and emergency alerts; promotional texts cover marketing offers, referral incentives and prospect nurturing.

Once registered, your number is approved for a specific throughput (messages per second) based on your business category, industry and messaging volume. High‑trust senders like banks and healthcare providers receive higher throughput than businesses with less clear consent practices. However, even basic registration dramatically improves deliverability compared with unregistered numbers. Carriers can clearly see who you are and that you have a legitimate reason to reach recipients. Texts are delivered consistently, often within seconds, regardless of volume.

Best Practices for Consent and Message Content

Compliance doesn’t end with registration. To stay on the right side of the law and maintain good standing with carriers, property managers should adopt the following best practices:

• Collect clear, documented consent. When a resident signs a lease or expresses interest in a listing, include a specific checkbox allowing them to opt in to text communications. Save a record of how and when they opted in.
• Differentiate transactional and marketing messages. You need a higher level of consent for promotional messages. Clearly label texts that contain special offers or referral incentives, and ensure recipients have opted in to marketing.
• Provide simple opt‑out options. Every marketing text should include an easy way to unsubscribe, such as “Reply STOP to unsubscribe” Transactional texts do not require opt‑out instructions, but you should honor any opt‑out request regardless of message type.
• Use consistent branding. Identify your property or management company at the start of each text. For example: “ABC Realty: The water will be off from 2–4 pm for repairs.” This builds trust and makes it less likely that recipients will mistake your message for spam.
• Keep messages short and relevant. Carriers still monitor content for potential spam patterns. Avoid excessive punctuation, all caps or generic sales language. For critical messages like emergency alerts, provide only the necessary information and direct recipients to check their email or portal for details.

The Broader Impact of 10DLC on Communication Strategy

Although 10DLC applies specifically to text messaging, it’s part of a larger trend toward privacy and consumer protection. Email spam laws like the CAN‑SPAM Act and regulations like the European Union’s GDPR have been in place for years. The rise of robocalls and fraudulent messaging triggered similar reforms in telecommunications. Carriers, regulators and consumers now expect businesses to follow stringent rules when contacting people via any direct channel.

For property managers, this underscores the need for a robust multi‑channel communication strategy. Relying solely on SMS, even when registered, can leave you vulnerable if residents change numbers or block texts. Combining texts with email, push notifications through a resident portal and even automated phone calls provides redundancy. Many property management platforms now integrate messaging, email and app notifications into a single dashboard, allowing you to track whether residents have received and opened your communications.

Action Plan: Expanding Your Communication Playbook

To ensure your messages reach residents reliably and legally, take the following steps:

1. Inventory your current communication channels. List all phone numbers you use for texting and verify which, if any, are registered for 10DLC and identify any third‑party texting services or apps your team may be using unofficially.
2. Map your communication workflows. Document how your company currently handles renewals, maintenance notices, prospect follow‑ups and emergency alerts. Note where texts are sent automatically by your property management software and where staff send manual messages.
3. Review your consent records. Make sure you have documented opt‑in from residents and prospects. If your leasing application or website doesn’t include clear consent language, update it immediately.
4. Register for 10DLC. Work with your property management software provider or messaging platform to register your business and each messaging campaign. Provide detailed sample messages and clarify whether messages are transactional or promotional.
5. Develop message templates. Create standardized templates for common scenarios - rent reminders, maintenance updates, renewal offers, marketing promotions and emergencies. Build in your brand name and opt‑out wording where appropriate.
6. Implement a monitoring and analytics system. Use your messaging platform’s analytics to track delivery rates, response rates and opt‑outs. Pay attention to carriers’ feedback about potential issues with content or volume.
7. Train your team. Educate leasing agents, maintenance staff and customer service representatives on 10DLC rules, consent requirements and how to handle opt‑outs. Ensure they know to send marketing content only to those who have opted in.
8. Diversify your channels. Add email and push notifications through your resident portal or mobile app to complement texting. Encourage residents to keep their contact information up to date and let them choose their preferred communication methods.
9. Stay informed about regulatory changes. Keep an eye on updates from carriers and regulators. The rules around digital communication continue to evolve. Being proactive will save you costly remediation later.

Get Ahead of the Problem Before It Costs You More

If your texts are going missing, don't wait until complaints start stacking up or renewal deadlines have already been missed. The longer unregistered messaging stays in place, the more likely you are to lose responses, create frustration for residents and put pressure on your team to chase people manually.

Now is the time to review how your business is sending texts, check whether your numbers are properly registered and make sure your consent process is doing its job. Getting this right means more than ticking a compliance box. It gives you a more reliable way to communicate with residents, more confidence in your renewal and maintenance messaging and fewer nasty surprises when urgent messages need to go out quickly.

If your current setup is inconsistent, unclear or spread across different systems, start there. Tighten it up, register your messaging properly and put a process in place that your team can actually rely on. The businesses that act early will be in a much stronger position than those that are still wondering why their messages are not landing.