Selecting Property Administration Accounting Software program

Any job will get simpler when you’ve bought the correct instruments, and property administration accounting is not any completely different . However, do you really want accounting software program that’s particular to property administration to maintain your books so as, or will generic choices work simply as nicely?

On this no-fluff information, we’ll stroll you thru methods to determine one of the best accounting answer for your corporation—no matter price range and measurement. Let’s dive proper in.

Earlier than you get began…

Earlier than we get within the weeds right here, there are a number of foundational matters try to be acquainted with like  structuring your financial institution accounts and understanding the accounting cycle. Should you’re beginning out, or simply want a refresh, take a peek at our definitive information to property administration accounting to rise up to hurry.

Why accounting software program for property administration is non-negotiable

Chances are you’ll be tempted to work off of a spreadsheet, and it might have labored as much as a sure level. However, for many property managers, spreadsheets merely don’t scale. Money coming out and in of a number of properties must be usually up to date, and ensuring the info is appropriate generally is a painstaking course of.

There are particularities to property administration accounting that generic accounting software program options can’t resolve for. Property administration software program automates the redundant duties that eat up most of your time, whereas preserving your books correct, too.

Earlier than you store: how massive is your corporation?

On the finish of the day, your corporation challenges actually rely upon the particular measurement of your corporation. What number of doorways do you handle? And how much properties are in your portfolio? Are they largely HOAs, single-family, or multifamily models?

Should you’re a smaller operation, it’s possible you’ll search for a easy answer with a number of options which can be fast and straightforward to arrange. Bigger companies carry extra advanced and different challenges that require appreciable sources to implement. You’ll need further assist to make sure you could observe many transactions on any given day. Your workers may additionally want coaching to maximise software program worth.

Property Administration Accounting Software program: Generic vs Goal-Constructed

A purpose-built property administration accounting software program serves the particular accounting capabilities that include property administration—together with hire funds, property charges, and completely different proprietor and belief accounts—and infrequently may be built-in with software program for different kinds of property administration operation. Whereas generic accounting software program could also be a fast and efficient solution to fill a selected want (final minute prep for tax season, for instance), a purpose-built one can truly transfer your corporation ahead and make it extra worthwhile.

Begin with numbers you possibly can belief

Should you can’t belief your personal numbers, you possibly can’t reliably broaden your corporation. For instance, your monetary data ought to at all times match your financial institution’s. One particular person can’t maintain observe of each hire cost, overdue payment, and upkeep expense.

As an alternative of manually triple checking each transaction in a spreadsheet, leaving your self liable to human error, automate reconciliation with software program that dynamically updates each transaction in actual time. The info can feed into stability sheets, money move statements, revenue statements, and different monetary data which can be at all times up-to-date. Automated reconciliation is only one characteristic to search for. Let’s discover some others:

First up—your basic ledger

The accounting ledger is the first supply of information for monetary evaluation of your corporation, consisting of all of your accounts and their property, liabilities, fairness, revenue, and bills. It’s just too dangerous to depart it as much as human error, which is the place software program is available in. The simplest accounting software program precisely and rapidly data, updates, and categorizes your monetary transactions.

Breeze by means of tax season and eFile 1099s

Paying your contractors, brokers, and workers is already onerous sufficient. However come tax season, it will get extra sophisticated with varieties 1099-MISCs and 1099-NECs. If you’re automating your accounting, eFiling your taxes is fast and correct.

Discover an accounting answer that helps you get a head begin on tax season—one which allows you to entry the eFiling instrument earlier than submitting is open with the IRS so you possibly can confirm your tax numbers and lacking data forward of time. The perfect options mean you can create varieties on-line for each property homeowners and distributors, postmark and observe them in the identical day.

Cease lacking funds by automating them

How are you preserving observe of what you owe your organization, property homeowners, and distributors? Property management-specific accounting software program, as you possibly can maintain all of your accounts payable in a single easy to make use of dashboard. This cuts down the large chunks of time it takes to handle, change, and repay work orders, getting all these duties achieved with just some clicks. A complicated software program will mean you can arrange automated funds and notify you each time a cost is due.

Figuring out areas for development

The perfect accounting software program is one which not solely saves you time, however one additionally supplies a pathway for development. Property administration accounting software program that provides you quick access and visibility into crucial stats to your corporation like income, turnover, resident suggestions, and extra helps you make extra knowledgeable selections. These property management-specific insights will assist you to focus your time and vitality on the correct issues on the proper time, whereas generic accounting instruments can’t.

Safety throughout probably the most essential occasions

As a property supervisor, you’re consistently dealing with funds and different worthwhile property from a number of homeowners and renters directly. Minimizing the dangers this creates begins with dependable accounting safety. Search for accounting software program you possibly can belief to maintain your books year-round, not simply when you’re able to file your taxes. Instruments that each safe and simplify accounting for the staff assist you to keep away from any pricey errors, particularly throughout usually anxious occasions like tax season.

Integrations along with your present (and future) know-how

One drawback that largely goes undetected is boxing your self into restricted software program as your corporation scales. As you tackle extra doorways and spend money on new instruments, you’ll both find yourself with a set of various software program that doesn’t “play nicely” collectively or one easy-to-operate system that truly takes work off your plate, as an alternative of piling extra on.

Let’s say you have already got a web site answer, name heart software program, or portal for residents. You’ll want an accounting answer that plugs proper into these instruments so that you received’t should manually share knowledge between them, practice your staff to make use of every, and run every system independently. A disjointed tech stack will solely trigger extra complications, and be extra pricey than you assume.

Integrations are essential to enhancing your workflow relatively than making it extra sophisticated. indicator is seeing in case your accounting software program has an open API and a publicly out there market that lists out their integration companions. These options make it simpler to attach property administration accounting software program to new know-how as it’s essential to.

No shady enterprise: clear pricing

Some accounting software program might present a flat payment. Others can be on a sliding scale based mostly on the scale of your corporation. Some might even cover the value totally. Select an answer that gives clear pricing and tells you particularly what options you’ll get, at what capability, and at what further value (if any).

Some software program supplies a free trial or product demo so you will get a great appear and feel for the product earlier than pulling the set off. This generally is a worthwhile perk to check if the software program that you simply’re contemplating actually suits your particular wants.

Chances are you’ll be within the place the place generic accounting software program looks like a great match to your present wants, and, usually it very nicely may be. However a phrase of warning: if your corporation expands, you’ll inevitably outgrow the capabilities of most traditional accounting software program. As an alternative of coping with the complications of implementing new methods, select an answer with product tiers that scale with the scale of your corporation.

The #1 characteristic tenants search for

In response to our 2026 Property Administration Business Report, on-line funds is the highest know-how renters are on the lookout for of their expertise as residents. Since hire assortment is your main income, automating this course of reduces the complications for each you and your tenants. Let know-how chase down your residents, and allow them to arrange automated funds.

An efficient on-line hire cost characteristic robotically notifies tenants when hire is due, retains observe of cost historical past, permits bank card and ACH funds, and finally updates your monetary data.

So, what’s one of the best accounting software program for property administration?

At Buildium, we offer complete property accounting options to maintain your bookkeeping full and correct. We perceive that no to property administration firms are alike, nevertheless, so we’ve put collectively this guidelines of options it is best to search for. Maintain it useful and we’re positive you’ll make the correct selection in accounting software program for your corporation.

• Automated reconciliation
• Common ledger bookkeeping
• On-line, early-access 1099 e-filing
• One dashboard for all accounts
• Means to seize KPIs and essential enterprise knowledge
• Constructed-in security measures
• Integration with different know-how (bonus factors for an open API)
• Clear pricing
• Linked to on-line cost methods

Learn extra on Accounting & Reporting