AppFolio Install & Auth

Overview

Configure AppFolio Stack API authentication. AppFolio uses HTTP Basic Auth with a client ID and client secret, provided through their Stack partner program. No public npm SDK exists — use direct REST API calls.

Prerequisites

• AppFolio Stack partner account (appfolio.com/stack)
• Client ID and Client Secret from AppFolio
• Node.js 18+ or Python 3.10+

Instructions

Step 1: Obtain API Credentials

bash
# AppFolio Stack API credentials come from the partner program
# 1. Apply at appfolio.com/stack/become-a-partner
# 2. Complete integration review
# 3. Receive client_id and client_secret

cat > .env << 'ENVFILE'
APPFOLIO_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
APPFOLIO_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret
APPFOLIO_BASE_URL=https://your-company.appfolio.com/api/v1
ENVFILE

chmod 600 .env
echo ".env" >> .gitignore

Step 2: Create API Client

typescript
// src/appfolio-client.ts
import axios, { AxiosInstance } from 'axios';

class AppFolioClient {
  private api: AxiosInstance;

  constructor() {
    this.api = axios.create({
      baseURL: process.env.APPFOLIO_BASE_URL,
      auth: {
        username: process.env.APPFOLIO_CLIENT_ID!,
        password: process.env.APPFOLIO_CLIENT_SECRET!,
      },
      headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
      timeout: 30000,
    });
  }

  async verifyConnection(): Promise<boolean> {
    try {
      const response = await this.api.get('/properties');
      console.log(`Connected! Found ${response.data.length} properties`);
      return true;
    } catch (error: any) {
      console.error(`Connection failed: ${error.response?.status} ${error.message}`);
      return false;
    }
  }

  get http(): AxiosInstance { return this.api; }
}

export { AppFolioClient };

Step 3: Verify Connection

bash
# Quick curl test
curl -u "${APPFOLIO_CLIENT_ID}:${APPFOLIO_CLIENT_SECRET}" \
  "${APPFOLIO_BASE_URL}/properties" | jq '.[0]'

API Endpoints

| Resource | Endpoint | Methods | |----------|----------|---------| | Properties | /api/v1/properties | GET | | Units | /api/v1/units | GET | | Tenants | /api/v1/tenants | GET | | Leases | /api/v1/leases | GET, POST | | Bills | /api/v1/bills | GET, POST | | Vendors | /api/v1/vendors | GET | | Owners | /api/v1/owners | GET | | Reports | /api/v1/reports | GET |

Output

• API credentials configured in .env
• TypeScript REST client with Basic Auth
• Verified connectivity to AppFolio API

Error Handling

| Error | Cause | Solution | |-------|-------|----------| | 401 Unauthorized | Invalid credentials | Verify client_id/secret from AppFolio | | 403 Forbidden | Not a Stack partner | Complete partner application | | 404 Not Found | Wrong base URL | Use your-company.appfolio.com format | | Timeout | Network issue | Check firewall allows HTTPS to appfolio.com |

Resources

• AppFolio Stack APIs
• AppFolio Partner Program
• AppFolio Engineering Blog

Next Steps

Proceed to appfolio-hello-world for your first property query.