APPFOLIO INC
For the period ended Mar 31, 2025. Filed Apr 24, 2025.
View on SEC.govAbout this filing
A company's report for each of its first three quarters. The financial statements are not audited. It shows how the business has moved since the last annual report, and what management says changed.
Mar 31, 2025 · Filed Apr 24, 2025
APPF$230.74-1.1%Stored close · as of Nov 6, 2026
What changed in Management’s Discussion and Analysis?
Read the current filingPrevious report: 10-Q
Period ended 2024-09-30; filed 2024-10-25.
0001433195-24-000127
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsCurrent report: 10-Q
Period ended 2025-03-31; filed 2025-04-24.
0001433195-25-000055
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsThe baseline is this issuer’s latest earlier reporting period of the same form that was filed before the current report. A previous 10-Q is a different quarter, not a year-over-year comparison. Amendments are excluded.
Compared 66 previous paragraphs and 64 current paragraphs.
31 unchanged; 25 reworded; 8 added; 10 removed; 0 previous and 0 current paragraphs rearranged.
Tables are not compared: 9 previous and 9 current tables excluded. Dates, whitespace, punctuation and numbering changes are ignored; changes to financial figures remain significant.
A changed paragraph is not evidence that risk increased or decreased. An unchanged paragraph does not establish that risk stayed the same.
Added paragraphs (8)
Current report
Cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) for the three months ended March 31, 2025 increased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $12.9 million increase in third-party service provider costs, driven by greater adoption and utilization of our Value Added Services.
Current report
Sales and marketing expense for the three months ended March 31, 2025 increased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $4.1 million increase in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation, necessary to support growth in the business, and a $0.7 million increase in advertising costs due to increased targeted go-to-market investment.
Current report
Research and product development expense increased for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $3.7 million increase in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation, net of capitalized software development costs. The increase in personnel-related costs was primarily due to headcount growth within our research and product development organization.
Current report
General and administrative expense increased for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $2.8 million increase in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation, primarily due to headcount growth.
Current report
Depreciation and amortization expense for the three months ended March 31, 2025 increased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to amortization of the intangible assets recognized from the acquisition of Move EZ, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Current report
Provision (benefit from) for income taxes
Current report
We have in the past entered into, and may in the future enter into, arrangements to acquire or invest in new technologies or markets. We may, as a result of those arrangements or the general expansion of our business, be required to seek additional equity or debt financing, which may not be available on terms favorable to us or at all, impacting our ability to compete successfully, which would harm our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
Current report
During the first quarter of 2025, we substantially exhausted the shares remaining available for purchase under the 2019 Stock Repurchase Program. On April 23, 2025, our Board authorized the repurchase of up to $300.0 million of shares of our Class A common stock from time to time pursuant to the 2025 Stock Repurchase Program. For more information regarding our repurchases under the 2019 Stock Repurchase Program and the terms of the 2025 Stock Repurchase Program, refer to Note 7, Share Repurchase Program, of our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and Part 2, Item 2, "Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds" of this Quarterly Report.
Removed paragraphs (10)
Previous report
We rely heavily on our talented team of employees to execute our growth plans and achieve our long-term strategic objectives. We believe our people are at the heart of our success and our customers' success, and we have worked hard not only to attract and retain talented individuals, but also to provide a challenging and rewarding work environment to motivate and develop our valuable human capital. As we navigate the challenges of increased competition for talent, we continue to evolve our compensation and employee reward practices.
Previous report
Other Income (Loss), Net. Other income (loss), net includes gains and losses associated with the sale of businesses and property and equipment.
Previous report
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, the cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) increased, primarily due to higher expenditures related to third-party service providers for delivering our Value Added Services, which increased by $10.4 million and $30.6 million, respectively, compared to the same period in the prior year. The increases in expenditures related to third-party service providers were (1) driven by greater adoption and utilization of our Value Added Services and (2) partially offset by decreases of $2.5 million and $2.8 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, respectively, in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. The decreases included $2.4 million in severance and related personnel costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023.
Previous report
Sales and marketing expense for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 decreased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to reductions of $3.7 million and $7.2 million, respectively, in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. The reductions were driven by reduced headcount and $3.8 million in severance and related personnel costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023.
Previous report
Research and product development expense decreased slightly for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $1.5M reduction in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. This included $3.4 million in severance and related personnel costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023.
Previous report
Research and product development expense increased for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $3.2 million increase in allocated shared and other costs, driven by higher technology costs. This increase in allocated shared and other costs was partially offset by a $1.6 million reduction in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. This reduction included $3.4 million in severance and related personnel costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023.
Previous report
General and administrative expense decreased for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $3.4 million reduction in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. The reduction included $2.5 million in severance and related personnel costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023.
Previous report
General and administrative expense decreased for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to a $18.8 million reduction in personnel-related costs, including stock-based and performance-based compensation. which was partially offset by a $6.9 million increase in allocated shared and other costs, The decrease in personnel-related costs was primarily due to severance costs associated with our former Chief Executive Officer's separation in the first quarter of 2023 and the severance related costs we incurred from the workforce reduction in the third quarter of 2023. The increase in allocated shared and other costs was primarily due to a $4.3 million decrease in gains related to lease modifications recognized in the nine months ended September 30, 2023, and an increase in allocated shared and other costs of $2.6 million, driven by expenses to support our growth.
Previous report
Depreciation and amortization expense for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 decreased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to decreased amortization expense associated with capitalized software development and intangible balances.
Previous report
Provision for (benefit from) Income Taxes
Reworded paragraphs (25)
Previous wording
We are a technology leader powering the future of the real estate industry. Our solutions are designed to enable our property manager customers to digitally transform their businesses, address critical business operations and deliver a better customer experience. Our products assist our customers with an interconnected and growing network of stakeholders in their business ecosystems, including property owners, real estate investment managers, rental prospects, residents, and service providers, and provide key functionality related to critical transactions across the real estate lifecycle, including screening potential tenants, sending and receiving payments and risk mitigation services. AppFolio’s intuitive interface, coupled with streamlined and automated workflows, make it easier for our customers to eliminate redundant and manual processes so they can deliver a great experience for their network of stakeholders while improving financial and operational performance.
Current wording
We are a technology leader powering the future of the real estate industry. We provide a cloud-based platform on which our customers operate their businesses. We help our customers navigate an increasingly interconnected and growing network of stakeholders in their business ecosystems, including property managers, property investors, potential residents, residents, and vendors. We also provide key functionality related to critical transactions across the real estate lifecycle, including screening potential residents, sending and receiving payments, and providing insurance-related risk mitigation services. Our services enable our customers to connect communities, increase operational efficiency, deliver exceptional customer experiences, and improve financial and operational performance.
Previous wording
Property management units under management. We believe that our ability to increase our number of property management units under management is an indicator of our market penetration, growth, and potential future business opportunities. We define property management units under management as active or committed units under management at the period end date. We had 8.5 million and 7.8 million property management units under management as of September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Current wording
Property management units under management. We believe that our ability to increase our number of property management units under management is an indicator of our market penetration, growth, and potential future business opportunities. We define property management units under management as active or committed units under management at the period end date. We had 8.8 million and 8.3 million property management units under management as of March 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively.
Previous wording
Our core solutions and certain of our Value Added Services are offered on a subscription basis. Our core solutions subscription fees vary by property type and are designed to scale with the size of our customers’ businesses. We recognize revenue for subscription-based services on a straight-line basis over the contract term beginning on the date that our service is made available. We generally invoice monthly or, to a lesser extent, annually in advance of the subscription period.
Current wording
Our core solutions and certain of our Value Added Services are offered on a subscription basis. The subscription fees for our core solutions vary by property type and are designed to scale with the size of our customers’ businesses. We recognize revenue for subscription-based services on a straight-line basis over the contract term beginning on the date that our service is made available. We generally invoice monthly or, to a lesser extent, annually in advance of a subscription period.
Previous wording
We also offer certain Value Added Services, which are not covered by our subscription fees, on a per-use basis. Usage-based fees are charged either as a percentage of the transaction amount (e.g., for certain of our payment services) or on a flat fee per transaction basis with no minimum usage commitments (e.g., for our tenant screening and risk mitigation services). We recognize revenue for usage-based services in the period the service is rendered. Our payments services fees are recorded gross of the interchange and payment processing related fees. We generally invoice our usage-based services on a monthly basis or collect the fee at the time of service. A significant majority of our Value Added Services revenue comes from the use of our payment services, tenant screening services, and risk mitigation services.
Current wording
We also offer certain Value Added Services, which are not covered by our subscription fees, on a per-use basis. Usage-based fees are charged either as a percentage of the transaction amount (e.g., for certain of our electronic payment services) or on a flat fee per transaction basis generally with no minimum usage commitments (e.g., for our tenant screening and risk mitigation services). We recognize revenue for usage-based services in the period the service is rendered. Our payments services fees are recorded gross of any interchange and payment processing related fees. We generally invoice our usage-based services on a monthly basis or collect the fee at the time of service. A significant majority of our Value Added Services revenue comes from the use of our electronic payment services, tenant screening services, and risk mitigation services.
Previous wording
In addition, we charge our customers for assistance onboarding onto our core solutions and for certain other non-recurring services. We generally invoice for these other services in advance of the services being completed and recognize revenue in the period the service is rendered. We generate revenue from the legacy customers of previously acquired businesses by providing services outside of our property management core solution platform. Revenue derived from these services is recorded in Other revenue. As of September 30, 2024 and 2023, we had 20,403 and 19,418 property management customers, respectively.
Current wording
In addition, we charge our customers for assistance onboarding onto our core solutions and for certain other non-recurring services. We generally invoice for these other services in advance of the services being completed and recognize revenue in the period the service is rendered. We also generate revenue from the legacy customers of businesses we acquire that provide standalone services outside of our platform. Revenue derived from these services is recorded in Other revenue. As of March 31, 2025 and 2024, we had 21,105 and 19,941 property management customers, respectively.
Previous wording
Cost of Revenue (Exclusive of Depreciation and Amortization). Many of our Value Added Services are facilitated by third-party service providers. Cost of revenue paid to these third-party service providers includes the cost of electronic interchange and payment processing-related services to support our payments services, the cost of credit reporting services for our tenant screening services, and various costs associated with our risk mitigation service providers. These third-party costs vary both in amount and as a percent of revenue for each Value Added Service offering. Cost of revenue also includes personnel-related costs for our employees focused on customer service and the support of our operations (including salaries, performance-based compensation, benefits, and stock-based compensation), platform infrastructure costs (such as data center operations and hosting-related costs), and allocated shared and other costs. Cost of revenue excludes depreciation of property and equipment, amortization of capitalized software development costs and amortization of intangible assets.
Current wording
Cost of Revenue (Exclusive of Depreciation and Amortization). Many of our Value Added Services are facilitated by third-party service providers. Cost of revenue paid to these third-party service providers includes, without limitation, the cost of electronic interchange and payment processing-related services to support our payments services, the cost of credit reporting services for our tenant screening services, and various costs associated with our risk mitigation service providers. These third-party costs vary both in amount and as a percentage of revenue for each Value Added Service offering. Cost of revenue also includes personnel-related costs for our employees focused on customer service and the support of our operations (including salaries, cash bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation), platform infrastructure costs (such as data center operations and hosting-related costs), and allocated shared and other costs. Cost of revenue excludes depreciation of property and equipment, amortization of capitalized software development costs and amortization of intangible assets.
Previous wording
Sales and Marketing. Sales and marketing expense consists of personnel-related costs for our employees focused on sales and marketing (including salaries, sales commissions, performance-based compensation, benefits, and stock-based compensation), costs associated with sales and marketing activities, and allocated shared and other costs. Marketing activities include advertising, online lead generation, lead nurturing, customer and industry events, and the creation of industry-related content and collateral. We focus our sales and marketing efforts on generating awareness of our software solutions, creating sales leads, establishing and promoting our brands, and cultivating an educated community of successful and vocal customers.
Current wording
Sales and Marketing. Sales and marketing expense consists of personnel-related costs for our employees focused on sales and marketing (including salaries, sales commissions, cash bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation), costs associated with sales and marketing activities, and allocated shared and other costs. Marketing activities include advertising, online lead generation, lead nurturing, customer and industry events, and the creation of industry-related content and collateral. We focus our sales and marketing efforts on generating awareness of our software solutions, creating sales leads, establishing and promoting our brands, and cultivating an educated community of successful and vocal customers.
Previous wording
Research and Product Development. Research and product development expense consists of personnel-related costs for our employees focused on research and product development (including salaries, performance-based compensation, benefits, and stock-based compensation), fees for third-party development resources, and allocated shared and other costs. Our research and product development efforts are focused on expanding functionality and the ease of use of our existing software solutions by adding new core functionality, Value Added Services and other improvements, as well as developing new products and services. We capitalize our software development costs that meet the criteria for capitalization. Amortization of capitalized software development costs is included in depreciation and amortization expense.
Current wording
Research and Product Development. Research and product development expense consists of personnel-related costs for our employees focused on research and product development (including salaries, cash bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation), fees for third-party development resources, and allocated shared and other costs. Our research and product development efforts are focused on expanding functionality and the ease of use of our existing software solutions by adding new core functionality, Value Added Services and other improvements, as well as developing new products and services. We capitalize our software development costs that meet the criteria for capitalization. Amortization of capitalized software development costs is included in depreciation and amortization expense.
Previous wording
General and Administrative. General and administrative expense consists of personnel-related costs for employees in our executive, finance, information technology, human resources, legal, compliance, and administrative organizations (including salaries, performance-based compensation, benefits, and stock-based compensation). In addition, general and administrative expense includes fees for third-party professional services (including audit, legal, compliance, and tax services), regulatory fees, other corporate expenses, impairment of long-lived assets, gains on lease modifications, and allocated shared and other costs.
Current wording
General and Administrative. General and administrative expense consists of personnel-related costs for employees in our executive, finance, information technology, human resources, legal, compliance, and administrative organizations (including salaries, cash bonuses, benefits, and stock-based compensation). In addition, general and administrative expense includes fees for third-party professional services (including audit, legal, compliance, and tax services), regulatory fees, other corporate expenses, impairment of long-lived assets, gains on lease modifications, and allocated shared and other costs.
Previous wording
Provision for (benefit from) income taxes. Provision for (benefit from) income taxes consists of federal and state income taxes in the United States.
Current wording
Provision (benefit from) for income taxes. Provision (benefit from) for income taxes consists of federal and state income taxes in the United States.
Previous wording
The increase in revenue for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily attributable to an increase in the usage of our payments, tenant screening, and risk mitigation services. During the three and nine- month periods ended September 30, 2024, we also experienced growth of 9% in the number of property management units under management compared to the same periods in the prior year, which drove growth in users of our subscription and usage-based services.
Current wording
The increase in revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily attributable to an increase in the usage of our payments, tenant screening, and risk mitigation services. During the three month periods ended March 31, 2025, we also experienced growth of 6% in the number of property management units under management compared to the same period in the prior year, which drove growth in users of our subscription and usage-based services.
Previous wording
We expect total revenue for the year ending December 31, 2024 to increase compared to the year ended December 31, 2023 as we continue to add new customers and property management units under management, along with increased adoption and utilization of our Value Added Services.
Current wording
We expect total revenue for the year ending December 31, 2025 to increase compared to the year ended December 31, 2024 as we continue to add new customers and property management units under management, along with increased adoption and usage of our Value Added Services.
Previous wording
We expect cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) for the year ending December 31, 2024, to decrease as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, primarily due to increased revenue from eCheck transaction fees, product mix, and continued leverage from headcount efficiencies.
Current wording
We expect cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) for the year ending December 31, 2025, to stay relatively flat as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2024.
Previous wording
We expect sales and marketing expense for the year ending December 31, 2024 to decrease as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, as we continue to leverage headcount efficiencies.
Current wording
We expect sales and marketing expense for the year ending December 31, 2025 to increase as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2024, as we seek to increase brand awareness and presence through targeted go-to-market investment.
Previous wording
We expect depreciation and amortization expenses for the year ending December 31, 2024 to decrease as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2023 due to a decrease in amortization of accumulated capitalized software development costs and intangible assets balances.
Current wording
We expect depreciation and amortization expenses for the year ending December 31, 2025 to increase as a percentage of revenue compared to the year ended December 31, 2024 due to amortization of the intangible assets recognized from the acquisition of Move EZ, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Previous wording
Interest income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 increased, compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to higher interest rates and purchases of available-for-sale investment securities.
Current wording
Interest income for the three months ended March 31, 2025 was relatively flat, compared to the same period in the prior year.
Previous wording
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, our effective tax rate differed from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% primarily due to a change in valuation allowance against deferred tax assets, state income taxes and non-deductible officers' compensation partially offset by excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, our effective tax rate differed from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% primarily due to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Our effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 differed from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% primarily due to the change in valuation allowance against deferred tax assets, non-deductible officers' compensation and state income taxes, partially offset by tax benefits from stock-based compensation research and development tax credits.
Current wording
For the three months ended March 31, 2025, we recorded income tax expense of $5.4 million, representing an effective tax rate of 14.7%. Our effective tax rate differs from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% primarily due to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation and research & development tax credits, partially offset by state income taxes and non-deductible officers' compensation. For the three months ended March 31, 2024, our effective tax rate as compared to the U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% differs primarily due to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation, partially offset by change in valuation allowance against deferred tax assets, state income taxes and non-deductible officers' compensation.
Previous wording
Our effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, as compared to the same periods in 2023, are significantly different primarily due to the substantial increase in our pre-tax income in the current year and changes in discrete tax benefits year over year.
Current wording
Our effective tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2025, as compared to the same period in 2024, is significantly higher primarily due to the substantial decrease in excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation and changes in valuation allowance.
Previous wording
Our principal sources of liquidity continue to be cash, cash equivalents, and investment securities totaling $331.4 million, as well as cash flows generated from our operations. We have financed our operations primarily through cash generated from operations. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents, investment securities, and cash generated from operating activities will be sufficient to meet our working capital and capital expenditure requirements for at least the next twelve months.
Current wording
Our principal sources of liquidity continue to be cash, cash equivalents, and investment securities totaling $210.8 million, as well as cash flows generated from our operations. We have financed our operations primarily through cash generated from operations. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents, investment securities, and cash generated from operating activities will be sufficient to meet our working capital and capital expenditure requirements for at least the next twelve months.
Previous wording
Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including continued market acceptance of our software solutions, changes in the number of our customers, adoption and utilization of our Value Added Services by new and existing customers, the timing and extent of the introduction of new core functionality, products and Value Added Services, and the timing and extent of our investments across our organization. In addition, we have in the past entered into, and may in the future enter into, arrangements to acquire or invest in new technologies or markets adjacent to those we serve today. Furthermore, our Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $100.0 million of shares of our Class A common stock from time to time. To date, we have repurchased $4.2 million of our Class A common stock under the share repurchase program.
Current wording
Our future capital requirements depend on many factors, including continued market acceptance of our software solutions; changes in the number of our customers and adoption and utilization of our Value Added Services by new and existing customers; the timing and extent of the introduction of new core functionality, products and Value Added Services; and the timing and extent of our investments across our organization.
Previous wording
The net increase in cash provided by operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to an increase in cash collections from customers.
Current wording
The net decrease in cash provided by operating activities for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to a higher increase in operating expenditures related to personnel-related costs.
Previous wording
Cash used in investing activities is generally composed of purchases of investment securities, maturities of investment securities, purchases of property and equipment, and additions to capitalized software development.
Current wording
Cash provided by (used in) investing activities is generally composed of the cash paid in purchases of investment securities, maturities and sales of investment securities, purchases of property and equipment, business acquisition, net of cash acquired, and additions to capitalized software development.
Previous wording
The net increase in cash used in investing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to higher purchases of available-for-sale investment securities.
Current wording
The net increase in cash provided by (used in) investing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to higher sales and maturities of available-for-sale investment securities.
Previous wording
Cash used in financing activities is generally composed of net share settlements for employee tax withholdings associated with the vesting of equity awards offset by proceeds from the exercise of stock options.
Current wording
Cash used in financing activities is generally composed of net share settlements for employee tax withholdings associated with the vesting of equity awards and repurchases of our Class A common stock offset by proceeds from the exercise of stock options.
Previous wording
The net increase in cash used in financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to an increase in net share settlements for employee tax withholdings associated with the vesting of equity awards.
Current wording
The net increase in cash used in financing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2025, compared to the same period in the prior year, was primarily due to repurchases of our Class A common stock.