Stessa 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
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Stessa is the landlord software many small rental owners use to track property income and expenses, collect rent, screen tenants and get ready for tax time (Stessa). Because the account can hold bank connections and financial records, a password alone is thin protection. Stessa lets you add two-factor authentication (2FA) with a mobile authenticator app. It's optional: Stessa describes it as something users can turn on, not a requirement (Stessa).
There's one method, and it's an authenticator app. Stessa's help doesn't mention text-message codes, backup codes or a self-service recovery option, so the part of this guide that matters most is what happens if you lose the phone. The steps use Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone, but any authenticator app works the same way. Stessa's own article names Google Authenticator, Duo Mobile and Authy as examples.
How we checked this guide: the Stessa steps come from Stessa's own help center and website, linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. The main help article shows it was last updated on August 31, 2026. We haven't tested the steps on a Stessa account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.
Which accounts this covers
Stessa's login article is written for landlord accounts. Residents and applicants have a separate sign-in, and the 2FA steps below don't describe it (Stessa).
Landlords can sign in with an email address and password, or with Google, Facebook, BiggerPockets or Apple. Stessa's help doesn't say whether its 2FA prompt also appears when you use one of those social sign-in options. If you sign in with Google or Apple, that provider's own two-step settings protect the sign-in itself.
Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app
Stessa's help article gives these steps (Stessa):
- Sign in to Stessa in a web browser at app.stessa.com, using Landlord Log In.
- Go to Settings > Security.
- Turn on the Two-Factor Authentication toggle. A pop-up opens with a QR code.
- In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at the code. If Stessa is open on the same iPhone, take a screenshot first, then tap + and Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- Type the six-digit code that Novaz shows into the pop-up to finish.
Stessa's article doesn't mention a text key you can type instead of scanning. If the pop-up offers one, you can add it in Novaz with +, then Enter key manually, filling in Service, Account (optional) and Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key? Scanning is the simpler route, since the help only describes the QR code.
When Stessa asks for a code
After setup, Stessa asks for a current six-digit code from your app each time you log in (Stessa). The help doesn't describe a "remember this device" option. It also doesn't say how the code step works in the Stessa mobile app, which offers Face ID and fingerprint sign-in.
No backup codes are documented
Stessa's help article doesn't mention backup or recovery codes, and it doesn't describe a second 2FA method. If the setup pop-up does give you recovery codes, save them away from your phone. See 2FA backup codes.
This matters with Novaz: unless you've turned on iCloud backup or exported a backup file, its keys exist only on your iPhone. If that phone is lost with no Novaz backup and no codes saved, your way back into Stessa is its support team.
If Stessa rejects your code
Stessa's article treats codes that stop working as a support case: you contact support, verify your identity, and Stessa resets your 2FA settings (Stessa). Before you do that, check the simple causes.
- Make sure you're reading the Stessa entry in Novaz, and type the code before it changes.
- Check your iPhone's clock: Settings > General > Date & Time > Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off.
More causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Changing phones
Stessa groups a changed phone together with lost access: its help says to contact support to regain access (Stessa). It doesn't describe moving 2FA to a new phone yourself.
With a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, you can restore your accounts on the new iPhone and keep using the same Stessa codes. Without one, you'll set Stessa up again on the new phone. Keep the old phone working until that's done, and ask Stessa support how to proceed if the settings page doesn't let you start over. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
Contact Stessa support, either through the messenger on its site or by email at support@stessa.com (Stessa). Support will ask you to complete an identity verification before it resets your 2FA settings. The article doesn't say what proof that takes or how long it lasts, so write from the email address on your Stessa account.
Once support has reset 2FA, sign in and turn it on again with your new phone. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Turning 2FA off
Stessa's help doesn't describe turning 2FA off. The setting lives under Settings > Security, where you turned it on. If you can't sign in, support is the documented route.
