Santa Barbara-based real estate software developer Yardi Systems just purchased RentGrow, a Massachusetts-based company that offers Web-based resident screening for multifamily property managers.

Yardi said it acquired the company so it could offer the screening service as part of its Yardi Multifamily Suite, a program that includes payment processing and utility billing.

“Yardi acquired RentGrow to meet a growing demand among multifamily housing providers to incorporate credit checks, rental payments, rental payment history searches, background checks and other applicant screening functions into their core property management system,” Anant Yardi, president of Yardi Systems, said in a release. RentGrow’s customers control about 700,000 units nationwide.

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