1. Decide what should move
A migration should not begin with an assumption that every field and every year of history belongs in the new system. Determine what the business needs for operations, accounting, reporting, compliance and reference.
Separate active operating data from information that can remain in a secure archive.
- Properties and units
- Current residents and leases
- Vendor and owner records
- Open work orders and operational items
- Accounting balances and required history
- Documents that need to remain accessible
2. Clean the source before mapping
Conversion logic cannot compensate for inconsistent source data indefinitely. Standardize naming, coding, statuses and key identifiers before the final migration cycle.
Data cleanup should be measured and assigned, not treated as an informal pre-launch task.
- Remove or resolve duplicates
- Normalize property and unit identifiers
- Review vendor records
- Resolve incomplete lease information
- Standardize status values
- Document known exceptions
3. Build a mapping specification
A mapping document should explain how source data becomes AppFolio data, including transformations, defaults and exceptions. This becomes the reference point for testing and troubleshooting.
Mapping decisions should include business owners, not only technical resources.
- Source field and target field
- Transformation rule
- Required default values
- Record ownership
- Validation method
- Known exclusions
4. Reconcile accounting independently
Financial migration needs its own validation path. Reconcile balances before and after conversion and document how open items, resident balances and historical transactions are handled.
Do not rely on record counts alone to validate accounting accuracy.
- Property balances
- Resident receivables
- Security deposits
- Vendor payables
- Bank balances where applicable
- Opening balances and conversion entries
5. Test multiple migration cycles
A rehearsal migration gives the team time to find mapping errors, missing data and operational problems before the final cutover. The last test should look as much like the final conversion as possible.
Business users should validate the records they rely on every day.
- Record counts
- Key field accuracy
- Lease dates and charges
- Accounting balances
- Documents and notes
- Reporting outputs
6. Protect the cutover
Define the last day of source-system activity, who can make changes, how late transactions are handled and who approves the final conversion. A controlled cutover reduces uncertainty and duplicate work.
After launch, maintain a formal issue log until data and workflows stabilize.
- Freeze window
- Final extraction
- Validation owners
- Communication plan
- Go-live criteria
- Post-launch reconciliation
Where Real Ops fits
Real Ops manages AppFolio migrations with a focus on data quality, reconciliation and operational continuity, not simply moving records from one database to another.