Can I stop somebody messaging residents without stopping them reading messages?
Yes — set Messaging to View only. They can read the threads they are part of and cannot send anything.
From the guide Team Permissions.
What permissions are not
- They are not the same as which properties somebody is assigned to. A staff member assigned to three buildings sees those three; permissions decide which parts of those three they can open.
- They do not stop obligations. Rent receipts, leases awaiting signature, payment failures and security alerts reach the people who need them whichever switches are set.
- They do not apply to your own record. Anybody on the roster can always clock themselves in, see their own hours and manage their own sign-in security, whatever their payroll access says.
- They are not a hiding preference. Hiding a tile in Arrange is something a person does for themselves and can undo; a permission is your decision and they cannot.
Read the whole guide: Team Permissions