I Need a Bookkeeping Solution!!!
I've been trying to figure out a bookkeeping solution for years now, and I just can't seem to find one. I own 5 properties (8 units), but would like a system that could easily scale up when we purchase more properties. I have two property managers (one locally, one out of state), so I don't need an all-in-one system that tracks vacancies etc. I just want a simple bookkeeping solution that is easy to use and can be real estate specific.
What I've tried in the past: Excel was fine for the first few properties, but then it got too cumbersome and I'd like a more elegant solution. I then tried QuickBooks and just hated it. I don't want to do double-entry accounting, and it was annoying setting it up with classes, jobs, etc to try to get it to fit real estate. I then tried a local bookkeeper but she was quite expensive and it still required me to do a lot of work myself. The following year I outsourced the bookkeeping to someone in New Jersey for only $100/month, but the results were very poor; he just lumped everything together and didn't even separate the properties income/expenses/etc. It also seemed like I was still doing too much work.
One thing I learned from trying to outsource my bookkeeping is that I have to understand how to do it before I try to hand it off to someone else. I want to hand the books off after I find a solution and can do it myself (since bookkeeping is my least favorite part of this business), but there has to be a simple system for someone like me.
So here's my wishlist, does anyone know if anything out there comes close?
- Cloud based (ideal but not necessary)
- Easy to use
- Separate expense/income tracking for individual properties
- Generate reports for all properties as well as individual properties
- Import from bank accounts, although I would need to manually separate those transactions. For example, I get paid a couple of lump sums from my property managers every month, and one $5000 payment might represent 4 rent payments and 9 different expenses
- Separate mortgage payments into principal/interest/escrow transactions
- Track escrow payments from mortgage companies and escrow balance (ideal but not necessary)
I'm looking at freshbooks, Xero, and Wave, but if anyone has experience with this let me know! I don't need an all-in-one solution, just a way to track what my property manager sends me!