Suggested accounting software to track income & expenses for STR
Member since 2019 · 29 posts · 33 votes
Suggested accounting software to track income & expenses for STR
Most Popular Reply
John UnderwoodPro Member
Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votesExcel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
23 Replies
- Rental Property Investor · Sacramento, CA · Member since 2020 · 20 posts · 11 votes4y
Merry Christmas,
I use Quickbooks Online to manage the finances and not the most professional but Apple reminders for the maintenance tasks.
- 4yJohn UnderwoodPro MemberInvestor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
- 4yLuke CarlPro MemberRental Property Investor · Tennessee Florida · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 5k+ votes
Originally posted by @Wes Mccullar:
Merry Christmas BP!!
My wife and I just recently closed on our first STR in Destin Florida and are now in the process of getting all of our systems set up. One of the main systems we need feedback on the most is setting up our accounting.
What all do you all use or recommend as the best method or software to track income, Expenses, and P&L for your vacation rentals?
Thanks
QuickBooks and hire a bookkeeper
- Investor · San Jose, CA · Member since 2014 · 28 posts · 17 votes4y
Originally posted by @John Underwood:
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
I agree. I use and like excel
- 4yKerry BairdPro MemberRental Property Investor · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2011 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
I have started to use Stessa this year.
- Real Estate Broker · Naples, FL · Member since 2013 · 9k+ posts · 6k+ votes4y
I like and use Quickbooks.
- Rental Property Investor · MD · Member since 2021 · 15 posts · 21 votes4y
@Wes Mccullar Excel does it for me.
- Member since 2020 · 984 posts · 1k+ votes4y
Originally posted by @Wes Mccullar:
Merry Christmas BP!!
My wife and I just recently closed on our first STR in Destin Florida and are now in the process of getting all of our systems set up. One of the main systems we need feedback on the most is setting up our accounting.
What all do you all use or recommend as the best method or software to track income, Expenses, and P&L for your vacation rentals?
Thanks
Go to youtube, type in blprei accounting and I give away free software I develop for real estate accounting and for all sorts of other facets of real estate investing. My software is 100% free, can be customized, is accurate, there is no setup and you can learn to use it in less than a few minutes. I hate Quickbooks with a passion and find that every person I've seen using Quickbooks has many accounting errors and when someone tells you that Quickbooks is accurate and idiot-proof that is because those people can't find the mistakes. Also, search blprei real estate and blprei multi-unit. The reason I use those search terms is because BP will not allow me to put direct links and that is understandable, but very counter-productive in regards to trying to explain everything. If you try the software and it doesn't work for some reason contract me because a few weeks ago I found that updated versions of Windows 10 was causing problems and I made corrections to one app, but did not make corrections to others. It tool me 20 hours to find out how to make the corrections, but the next time I find a problem it should take less than 5 minutes to make the changes.
- 4yDaniel HymanBusiness MemberCPA · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
Our clients have had success on Quickbooks, Stessa, & REI Hub.
My Online Accountant572 Reviews - Rental Property Investor · Boston, MA · Member since 2019 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes4y
Appfolio or Cozy
- Member since 2020 · 984 posts · 1k+ votes4y
Originally posted by @Daniel Hyman:
Our clients have had success on Quickbooks, Stessa, & REI Hub.
While what I say does not sound true it really is. When the first personal computers were invented I wanted to go with the IBM version format that is Microsoft, today, but a friend talked me into going with a Commodore computer that ran its own version of software. I had already purchased an Atari 800 computer for $2500, then a Commodore for about $10,000 with an external hard drive and a Compaq portable computer for about $3500 that weighed about 35 pounds and was the size of a sewing machine in entirely covered with a plastic case. I paid more than $20,000 trying to find software I liked for my business. In those days, most people like myself purchased software and had to be software developers and we had to create our own applications. Some of the software I purchased was almost $10,000 and it had so many flaws and bugs the software would not work properly and had to be scrapped. That is why I consider myself to be a fairly good software developed today and can do very well with MS Access even though I should be only a real estate developer and plumbing, heating and construction contractor.
Later, I purchased the IBM, or Microsoft version and did fairly well for several years with Intuit's Quicken. To do my payroll with Quicken I had to pay $99 every year for tax tables that were uploaded to the computer. Then, Intuit increased the price to $125 per year and then Intuit stopped selling the tables and forced everyone to switch to Quickbooks.
I had no problem with trying to switch to Quickbooks and I purchased the full version three times for about $500 each time and literally threw the software in the trash because it asked too many questions during the setup, was cumbersome and difficult to use, was so complicated it left room for making too many errors, had too many whistles and bells to deal with and there three things that make me hate Quickbooks with a passion and they are:
1) it is web based and super slow when changing screens,
2) the software has so many screens to enter information on it is difficult to know whether or not information you enter goes to where it was supposed to go e.g. you may accidentally type in a wrong number, or you may enter data as a debint when it should be a credit and
3) Intuit is greedy and found that they could charge $109 per month for the software and the tax tables and that comes out to $1308.00 every year, or $13,080 every 10 years compared to the $99 or $990 every 10 years I was paying for Quicken that was simple to setup and use, but it still had some file storage problems that were fairly frustrating to deal with.
I had a major IRS audit about 10 years ago and it was the first major audit I dealt with for several real estate properties in California, Idaho, Las Vegas and Colorado. I did the accounting and bookkeeping for California and Las Vegas and my older son did the bookkeeping for Colorado and Idaho. I moved all the books from my son's records and my CPA's records to software I created with MS Access 2003. My software does not require any setup and every person can be trained to use it in less than 5 minutes. My son always argued with me and said Quickbooks was better, but when I compiled my records from my son and CPA I found that My CPA had made several mistakes with Quickbooks and was about $60,000 off and my son made less mistakes but if I remember correctly I think he was $30,000 off (can't remember). The records with my software were accurate-to-the-penny and I never ever found a mistake (not a lie) and I can prove and back up what I say. The reason my software is so accurate is because I created it with a system that matches with the exact total on all my bank statements and it is impossible to make a mistake when you only need to match the totals with the front page of every bank statement before sending paper records and Excel files to a CPA.
I hate software that tries to integrate too many features into it. I don't like software that integrates multiple properties and multiple checking accounts at the same time. The nice thing about my software is it is free and takes less than one minute to create a copy. Then, I use a separate software application for each property I own and when I send my CPA my records for each property I don't have to worry about my CPA's ability to do what he needs to do to separate my tax records. My ex-wife was a 10% partner for some of my properties and when I bought her out in 2020 there were some serious tax issues that had to be resolved and it was difficult to come up with the price I paid her plus monthly payments for the rest of her life, but having separate software applications for each of the properties she was a partner for made sending her attorney records simple, accurate, organized and fast.
You can see how my software works and get free copies by going to youtube and searceh blprei checking account and for other software search blprei real estate, or blprei multi-unit. For people interested in trading stocks and options I made a training software about 20 years ago that teaches about 49 or 52 stock and option trading strategies, but if you dig into the software and read all the explanations for trading you should realize that everyone who touts trading stock and/or options should be shot and you should stay totally away from both the stock and option markets with the exception that I keep about a million dollars in a trading account and if you look at the history of the stock market we have what I call a Crisis Day an average of every 2 years. In March 2020, when COVID hit I purchased $10 stocks with a good value of $10 for $2.00 and made about 400% on my money in less than 1 year and that is the only way I would trade stocks and that is what Warren Buffet does. Otherwise, my money sits on the sideline in my trading account and if I find a property to purchase I have the money available, plus I have a large line of credit that costs me only $85 per year if I don't use any of the available funds, just like a credit card.
Originally posted by @Account Closed:
Originally posted by @Daniel Hyman:
Our clients have had success on Quickbooks, Stessa, & REI Hub.
While what I say does not sound true it really is. When the first personal computers were invented I wanted to go with the IBM version format that is Microsoft, today, but a friend talked me into going with a Commodore computer that ran its own version of software. I had already purchased an Atari 800 computer for $2500, then a Commodore for about $10,000 with an external hard drive and a Compaq portable computer for about $3500 that weighed about 35 pounds and was the size of a sewing machine in entirely covered with a plastic case. I paid more than $20,000 trying to find software I liked for my business. In those days, most people like myself purchased software and had to be software developers and we had to create our own applications. Some of the software I purchased was almost $10,000 and it had so many flaws and bugs the software would not work properly and had to be scrapped. That is why I consider myself to be a fairly good software developed today and can do very well with MS Access even though I should be only a real estate developer and plumbing, heating and construction contractor.
Later, I purchased the IBM, or Microsoft version and did fairly well for several years with Intuit's Quicken. To do my payroll with Quicken I had to pay $99 every year for tax tables that were uploaded to the computer. Then, Intuit increased the price to $125 per year and then Intuit stopped selling the tables and forced everyone to switch to Quickbooks.
I had no problem with trying to switch to Quickbooks and I purchased the full version three times for about $500 each time and literally threw the software in the trash because it asked too many questions during the setup, was cumbersome and difficult to use, was so complicated it left room for making too many errors, had too many whistles and bells to deal with and there three things that make me hate Quickbooks with a passion and they are:
1) it is web based and super slow when changing screens,
2) the software has so many screens to enter information on it is difficult to know whether or not information you enter goes to where it was supposed to go e.g. you may accidentally type in a wrong number, or you may enter data as a debint when it should be a credit and
3) Intuit is greedy and found that they could charge $109 per month for the software and the tax tables and that comes out to $1308.00 every year, or $13,080 every 10 years compared to the $99 or $990 every 10 years I was paying for Quicken that was simple to setup and use, but it still had some file storage problems that were fairly frustrating to deal with.
I had a major IRS audit about 10 years ago and it was the first major audit I dealt with for several real estate properties in California, Idaho, Las Vegas and Colorado. I did the accounting and bookkeeping for California and Las Vegas and my older son did the bookkeeping for Colorado and Idaho. I moved all the books from my son's records and my CPA's records to software I created with MS Access 2003. My software does not require any setup and every person can be trained to use it in less than 5 minutes. My son always argued with me and said Quickbooks was better, but when I compiled my records from my son and CPA I found that My CPA had made several mistakes with Quickbooks and was about $60,000 off and my son made less mistakes but if I remember correctly I think he was $30,000 off (can't remember). The records with my software were accurate-to-the-penny and I never ever found a mistake (not a lie) and I can prove and back up what I say. The reason my software is so accurate is because I created it with a system that matches with the exact total on all my bank statements and it is impossible to make a mistake when you only need to match the totals with the front page of every bank statement before sending paper records and Excel files to a CPA.
I hate software that tries to integrate too many features into it. I don't like software that integrates multiple properties and multiple checking accounts at the same time. The nice thing about my software is it is free and takes less than one minute to create a copy. Then, I use a separate software application for each property I own and when I send my CPA my records for each property I don't have to worry about my CPA's ability to do what he needs to do to separate my tax records. My ex-wife was a 10% partner for some of my properties and when I bought her out in 2020 there were some serious tax issues that had to be resolved and it was difficult to come up with the price I paid her plus monthly payments for the rest of her life, but having separate software applications for each of the properties she was a partner for made sending her attorney records simple, accurate, organized and fast.
You can see how my software works and get free copies by going to youtube and searceh blprei checking account and for other software search blprei real estate, or blprei multi-unit. For people interested in trading stocks and options I made a training software about 20 years ago that teaches about 49 or 52 stock and option trading strategies, but if you dig into the software and read all the explanations for trading you should realize that everyone who touts trading stock and/or options should be shot and you should stay totally away from both the stock and option markets with the exception that I keep about a million dollars in a trading account and if you look at the history of the stock market we have what I call a Crisis Day an average of every 2 years. In March 2020, when COVID hit I purchased $10 stocks with a good value of $10 for $2.00 and made about 400% on my money in less than 1 year and that is the only way I would trade stocks and that is what Warren Buffet does. Otherwise, my money sits on the sideline in my trading account and if I find a property to purchase I have the money available, plus I have a large line of credit that costs me only $85 per year if I don't use any of the available funds, just like a credit card.
Uhhh Oooooook.
Sounds like you tried to use QB 15 years ago lol. Try it today. It's incredibly easy and fast. Who is this guy?
- Member since 2020 · 984 posts · 1k+ votes4y
Originally posted by @Scott K.:
Originally posted by @Account Closed:
Originally posted by @Daniel Hyman:
Our clients have had success on Quickbooks, Stessa, & REI Hub.
While what I say does not sound true it really is. When the first personal computers were invented I wanted to go with the IBM version format that is Microsoft, today, but a friend talked me into going with a Commodore computer that ran its own version of software. I had already purchased an Atari 800 computer for $2500, then a Commodore for about $10,000 with an external hard drive and a Compaq portable computer for about $3500 that weighed about 35 pounds and was the size of a sewing machine in entirely covered with a plastic case. I paid more than $20,000 trying to find software I liked for my business. In those days, most people like myself purchased software and had to be software developers and we had to create our own applications. Some of the software I purchased was almost $10,000 and it had so many flaws and bugs the software would not work properly and had to be scrapped. That is why I consider myself to be a fairly good software developed today and can do very well with MS Access even though I should be only a real estate developer and plumbing, heating and construction contractor.
Later, I purchased the IBM, or Microsoft version and did fairly well for several years with Intuit's Quicken. To do my payroll with Quicken I had to pay $99 every year for tax tables that were uploaded to the computer. Then, Intuit increased the price to $125 per year and then Intuit stopped selling the tables and forced everyone to switch to Quickbooks.
I had no problem with trying to switch to Quickbooks and I purchased the full version three times for about $500 each time and literally threw the software in the trash because it asked too many questions during the setup, was cumbersome and difficult to use, was so complicated it left room for making too many errors, had too many whistles and bells to deal with and there three things that make me hate Quickbooks with a passion and they are:
1) it is web based and super slow when changing screens,
2) the software has so many screens to enter information on it is difficult to know whether or not information you enter goes to where it was supposed to go e.g. you may accidentally type in a wrong number, or you may enter data as a debint when it should be a credit and
3) Intuit is greedy and found that they could charge $109 per month for the software and the tax tables and that comes out to $1308.00 every year, or $13,080 every 10 years compared to the $99 or $990 every 10 years I was paying for Quicken that was simple to setup and use, but it still had some file storage problems that were fairly frustrating to deal with.
I had a major IRS audit about 10 years ago and it was the first major audit I dealt with for several real estate properties in California, Idaho, Las Vegas and Colorado. I did the accounting and bookkeeping for California and Las Vegas and my older son did the bookkeeping for Colorado and Idaho. I moved all the books from my son's records and my CPA's records to software I created with MS Access 2003. My software does not require any setup and every person can be trained to use it in less than 5 minutes. My son always argued with me and said Quickbooks was better, but when I compiled my records from my son and CPA I found that My CPA had made several mistakes with Quickbooks and was about $60,000 off and my son made less mistakes but if I remember correctly I think he was $30,000 off (can't remember). The records with my software were accurate-to-the-penny and I never ever found a mistake (not a lie) and I can prove and back up what I say. The reason my software is so accurate is because I created it with a system that matches with the exact total on all my bank statements and it is impossible to make a mistake when you only need to match the totals with the front page of every bank statement before sending paper records and Excel files to a CPA.
I hate software that tries to integrate too many features into it. I don't like software that integrates multiple properties and multiple checking accounts at the same time. The nice thing about my software is it is free and takes less than one minute to create a copy. Then, I use a separate software application for each property I own and when I send my CPA my records for each property I don't have to worry about my CPA's ability to do what he needs to do to separate my tax records. My ex-wife was a 10% partner for some of my properties and when I bought her out in 2020 there were some serious tax issues that had to be resolved and it was difficult to come up with the price I paid her plus monthly payments for the rest of her life, but having separate software applications for each of the properties she was a partner for made sending her attorney records simple, accurate, organized and fast.
You can see how my software works and get free copies by going to youtube and searceh blprei checking account and for other software search blprei real estate, or blprei multi-unit. For people interested in trading stocks and options I made a training software about 20 years ago that teaches about 49 or 52 stock and option trading strategies, but if you dig into the software and read all the explanations for trading you should realize that everyone who touts trading stock and/or options should be shot and you should stay totally away from both the stock and option markets with the exception that I keep about a million dollars in a trading account and if you look at the history of the stock market we have what I call a Crisis Day an average of every 2 years. In March 2020, when COVID hit I purchased $10 stocks with a good value of $10 for $2.00 and made about 400% on my money in less than 1 year and that is the only way I would trade stocks and that is what Warren Buffet does. Otherwise, my money sits on the sideline in my trading account and if I find a property to purchase I have the money available, plus I have a large line of credit that costs me only $85 per year if I don't use any of the available funds, just like a credit card.
Uhhh Oooooook.
Sounds like you tried to use QB 15 years ago lol. Try it today. It's incredibly easy and fast. Who is this guy?
Even if it is easy then why would someone want to pay $13,000 to Intuit every 10 years for payroll tax tables and web-based subscription services when you can get what you need for free. While I am not cheap and one of the most-generous people you will every meet, I strongly believe in being frugal and using the money I save for my family's lifestyle, to reduce stress and to invest to make even more money. If we (you) can save $13,000 every 10 years just from one software application, another $30,000 by shopping for groceries, another $30,000 by being smart with vehicles purchases, another $30,000 by being smart about investing and dealing with vendors, etc. then most people can save more money every 10 years than many people can bank in a lifetime. I learned many years ago that the more money people waste the more they are stressed. So, when I found my 3rd wife about 23 years ago and had two children with her we stopped wasting money on stupid things like extravagant birthday parties, senseless Christmas presents. People waste too much money and spending definitely does not make people happier.
I get the tax tables for free at http://www.payrollguru.net/Pay... and why would a sane person be willing to pay Intuit $13,000 for the same information. I love this free website better because as I stated, I don't like to integrate my accounting into one application like Quickbooks. I created a separate software application for my construction business and payroll because Quicken nor any other canned software will do what I need my software to do. In fact, if you use Quickbooks in California to process your payroll I am 100% positive that you are breaking serious laws in regards to giving your employees Weekly Wage Earning Statements because Quickbooks will not calculate all the information that is required by the laws, e.g. tracking available Paid Sick Days and the balance. Business people may think this lack of information on a Wage Earning Statement is not important until they get slapped with a civil lawsuit by an employee's attorney and find the lawsuit has a Cause of Action demanding $500,000 because this trivial information was not on the employee's Wage Earning statement and I am living proof because I was hit with 3 civil lawsuits within 3 years and each lawsuit was for a little more than $1.2 million and most of the Causes of Action were in regards to improper information on Wage Earning Statements.
While I was super stressed over 3 civil lawsuits that cost me about $200,000 out of my pocket, they were actually a blessing because I learned many things and made many changes for the better to protect my company for any future lawsuits and any employee who sues me is going to have a very difficult time proving I violated some sort of employment law and I sleep very well at night. I even learned to purchase EPLI insurance to protect myself so if I get a large ceivil lawsuit I pay about $6,000 per year for the policy and will have to pay a $25,000 fee to the insurance company if I get hit with a lawsuit, but I won't have to pay an attorney $20,000 every month like for my last civil lawsuit and I won't have to worry about selling my properties to pay for damages awarded by a court.
@Wes Mccullar for DIY accounting I use Stessa. Works great for LTRs & STRs alike. Whatever direction you decide on, the most important thing imo when starting is to keep good records so you need a system for that. We use iCloud and have folders based on Property/Year/Month. We keep a digital copy of all expenses and drop them in the appropriate folders. You also want dedicated bank accounts for all rental activity (income & expenses). Good luck!
- Investor · Clinton, NJ · Member since 2012 · 118 posts · 70 votes4y
Originally posted by @Wes Mccullar:
Merry Christmas BP!!
My wife and I just recently closed on our first STR in Destin Florida and are now in the process of getting all of our systems set up. One of the main systems we need feedback on the most is setting up our accounting.
What all do you all use or recommend as the best method or software to track income, Expenses, and P&L for your vacation rentals?
Thanks
Quickbooks
My accountant uses it to, so tax time is easier.
- Lender · Asheville NC · Member since 2016 · 470 posts · 317 votes4y
Possibly a thread for the books.
- 4yBasit SiddiqiBusiness MemberAccountant · New York, NY · Member since 2015 · 8k+ posts · 3k+ votes
@Wes Mccullar
Accounting Softwares - Quickkbooks(Desktop), Quickbooks(Online), Stessa, Xero.
Online Storage for Receipts - Dropbox, Google Drive or apple drive.
Basit Siddiqi CPA4.979 Reviews - 4yJohn McGonigalPro MemberRental Property Investor · Montgomery, AL · Member since 2018 · 80 posts · 51 votes
Since we only self-manage 5 properties, I still get great functionality out of Excel. I can pull the income/tax reports from Airbnb and VRBO and paste them into a workbook. From there I download expense CSVs from our banks and manipulate the data to get a real time assessment of our P/L.
- Investor · Rochester, NY · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 3 votes4y
Originally posted by @John Underwood:
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
John - I might have missed this, but do you use something like Tiller Money to pull your transactions into the spreadsheet and then categorize them or manually add everything? I used Tiller Money for personal budgeting and it's really great for people who like (and are good at customizing) Google Sheets/Excel.
- 4yJohn UnderwoodPro MemberInvestor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
Originally posted by @Matthew Scott:
Originally posted by @John Underwood:
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
John - I might have missed this, but do you use something like Tiller Money to pull your transactions into the spreadsheet and then categorize them or manually add everything? I used Tiller Money for personal budgeting and it's really great for people who like (and are good at customizing) Google Sheets/Excel.
I enter them in the spreadsheet.
- Harrisonburg, VA · Member since 2016 · 55 posts · 29 votes4y
Originally posted by @John Underwood:
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
John,
Is this something that you had to build out/have built, or is it something that comes with Excel or something different altogether? My day job uses something very similar to this for our budgeting/tracking, and I can manipulate a built sheet. However, for me to try to build that myself would likely take weeks, and even then it would probably be cumbersome and not friendly to use.
- 4yJohn UnderwoodPro MemberInvestor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
Originally posted by @Justin Knighten:
Originally posted by @John Underwood:
Excel
Very powerful and customizable.
I track over 20 properties. Tab for every property. Summary tab that pulls in key data for all properties.
John,
Is this something that you had to build out/have built, or is it something that comes with Excel or something different altogether? My day job uses something very similar to this for our budgeting/tracking, and I can manipulate a built sheet. However, for me to try to build that myself would likely take weeks, and even then it would probably be cumbersome and not friendly to use.
I created it for my personal needs. Not very difficult. Something that I have a lot of personal information in and can' t share. I bet you can google and find an example or template to start with.
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