Tracking SFR income/expense - open a business account?

[Nate Baylor]

New investor, just collected my first rental check on a single family home in London Ontario. Looking to open a separate account to start tracking income and expenses, and was wondering if I should open a personal checking account, or register a business and open a business account. I am looking to scale and purchase more property in the future, but the home is under my name, so I'm not sure how a business account could reduce my liability or provide tax advantages. Picking a cool business name however, could stroke my ego a little. How would you structure this? Thanks for any insight you guys have!

[Huong Luu]

@Nate Baylor Congrads on the 1st cheque! After 20 years and having 16 doors, here is my recommendation. Open a separate free chequing account (ie Simply). It doesn't have to be a business account. As @Ross Kalmbach mentioned it will keep everything easy once you get more doors and tax time makes it easier to file. I have a business account and it is a waste of money. They charge tons of fees per deposit and withdrawal and monthly maintenance. I have a separate free chequing account for the rental and at the end of the year just make sure the accounts balance. The accountant/bookkeeper can give you some advice on this. I also use a spreadsheet to track all the in/out and do analysis on each property. This way you can see when the expenses increases and calculate %. 

The other thing I would suggest is set time each month for bookkeeping and set up a good electronic filing system. If you want more info, just message me. Good luck.