Read on to learn how to set up a system for your property management accounting. Having separate checking and savings accounts for your business makes connecting them seamlessly to your accounting software or platform real estate bookkeeping easier. Doing so can relieve an extra step or manual work for you and your accountant. Although fairly basic, your duties might require using standard office supplies, equipment, and other administrative tools.

• However, you typically track rental income in the period that it is received.
• Having a bookkeeping process in place removes having to total up all your expenses at the end of the year or when it’s time to complete your tax forms.
• Making this decision at the time of the transaction gives confidence and clarity to your bookkeeping, prevents confusion, and saves you time.
• While the threat of data corruption exists, most landlords elect digital bookkeeping for its ease and convenience.
• I tried my hand at it and realized I much prefer to focus on my accounting business than on being a landlord.
• They have good accessibility, with a cloud-based, desktop, mobile app version and good customization settings.

By establishing rental accounting systems early on, you’ll be able to put yourself in the best financial position moving forward. Jeff has over 25 years of experience in all segments of the real estate industry including investing, brokerage, residential, commercial, and property management. While his real estate business runs on autopilot, he writes articles to help other investors grow and manage their real estate portfolios.

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A notable property management software, such as DoorLoop, can help you with much more than you may expect. Property managers and landlords have unique accounting needs, particularly when managing the financials of their properties. Schedule a demo with DoorLoop today and learn about the #1 property management software.

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Doing so will make rental property bookkeeping a lot easier and more accurate. For example, W-9 and 1099 forms are required from every employee and non-employees that do any work for your business. A W-9 form documents a contractor’s tax ID number and their type of business. A 1099 form will be additionally required for non-employees who made over $600 from your real estate business within a calendar year. There are so many tools out there that can help you be better at rental property accounting. Some are designed specifically for real estate accounting, some are not.