Property management accounting and bookkeeping services
Clean books. Clear owner statements.
Property management accounting and bookkeeping support from a working property manager: rent and ledger reconciliation, bank and trust account reconciliation, owner statements and distributions, payables and month-end close, done inside AppFolio, Buildium or the software you already use.
What do property management accounting services include?
Reconciling rent, tenant ledgers, bank and trust accounts, paying vendor bills, preparing owner statements and distributions, tracking security deposits and closing the books each month. We are not a CPA firm and do not give tax or legal advice.
A good fit if
- Month-end close or owner statements often run late
- Your AppFolio or Buildium books are behind or do not balance
- Trust account reconciliations take more time than you have
- You want a bookkeeper who understands property management
Probably not a fit if you need tax returns, audits or tax advice. Those come from your CPA.
Book a Free Strategy CallProperty management accounting, from ledger to owner statement.
Pick one service or hand us the whole monthly cycle. We work inside your property management software, using your chart of accounts and approval rules.
Rent and ledger reconciliation
- Tenant ledgers matched to deposits
- Unapplied payments and prepaid rent resolved
- Charges, credits and concessions checked
- Ledger errors flagged for your approval
Bank and trust account reconciliation
- Monthly bank reconciliation for every operating and trust account
- Three-way trust reconciliation: bank, book and owner ledgers
- Uncleared items followed up
- Reconciliation reports saved for your records
Owner statements and distributions
- Monthly owner statements prepared and reviewed
- Owner distributions calculated for your approval
- Reserves and owner contributions tracked
- Owner questions on their statement answered
Vendor bills and payables
- Vendor invoices entered and coded to the right property
- Bills matched to work orders and approval limits
- Payment runs prepared for your approval
- Vendor W-9s and insurance certificates tracked
Security deposits
- Deposits recorded and tracked by unit
- Move-out deductions itemized from inspection notes
- Deposit return deadlines tracked by state
- Disposition letters drafted from your templates
Utility billbacks
- Utility billbacks (RUBS) calculated and charged
- Water, sewer and trash split by your lease method
- Billback charges posted to resident ledgers
- Backup kept for every charge
Delinquency and late fees
- Late fees posted according to your lease rules
- Delinquency reports by property
- Payment plans tracked
- Accounts ready for your collections or legal process
Month-end close
- Close checklist completed every month
- Management fees and owner charges posted
- Owner and portfolio reports produced
- Open items list for your review
A monthly close your owners can trust.
A sample schedule. We agree the exact dates with you, around your owner payout date.
Day 1 to 5: reconcile
Deposits and tenant ledgers matched, bank and trust accounts reconciled, and differences flagged.
Day 5 to 10: review
Payables entered, management fees posted, and owner statements prepared for your approval.
Day 10 to 15: distribute and report
Owner distributions released after your sign-off, reports sent, and the open items list shared.
What stays with you
Approving payments and owner distributions, moving money, and any tax, legal or audit advice. We are not a CPA firm: we prepare the books and records, and your CPA or attorney advises on tax and compliance.
Books that are behind or do not balance?
Cleanup projects for AppFolio, Buildium and other property management software, quoted after a short review of your account.
AppFolio accounting cleanup
Unapplied cash, duplicate charges, wrong GL accounts and out-of-balance owner ledgers found and fixed in AppFolio, with a written list of every change.
Buildium accounting cleanup
Bank feeds, undeposited funds, tenant ledgers and owner balances brought back into balance in Buildium.
Catch-up bookkeeping
Months behind? We work back through deposits, bills and reconciliations until your books are current.
New portfolio setup
Properties, owners, bank accounts, opening balances and recurring charges set up correctly from day one.
Owner statement fixes
Statements that do not match the bank, missing reserves or wrong management fees traced and corrected.
Reporting you can read
Simple monthly reports and property management dashboards so you can see rent, expenses and cash at a glance.
Property management accounting: common questions
Short, direct answers. Ask us anything else on a strategy call.
What does property management accounting include?
Recording rent and other income, reconciling tenant ledgers and bank and trust accounts, paying vendor bills, preparing owner statements and distributions, tracking security deposits, and closing the books each month with reports for owners.
What is a three-way trust account reconciliation?
A monthly check that three numbers agree: the trust account bank balance, your book balance and the total of all owner and tenant ledgers. Many states require property managers to keep these records, so we prepare them every month for your review.
Are you a CPA firm? Do you file taxes?
No. We provide property management bookkeeping and accounting support. We do not give tax or legal advice or file returns. We keep clean, reconciled books that your CPA can work from.
Can you fix our AppFolio or Buildium accounting?
Yes. We review your account, list what is out of balance, agree a fix plan with you and correct it, keeping a written record of every change.
Do you move money or release owner distributions?
No. Payments and distributions are prepared for your approval, and your team releases them in your software or bank.
Do you handle utility billbacks?
Yes. We calculate utility billbacks (RUBS) from your bills and the method in your leases, post the charges to resident ledgers and keep the backup for every charge. Questions about how a lease should be read go to you or your attorney.
Your Business Doesn't Need More Busywork. It Needs Better Systems.
Tell us where your week goes. On a free call with a working property manager, we will show you what to automate, what to hand off and what to fix first.