How do you verify your PM net deposit matches the statement each month?

Question

For owners who use a property manager, how are you checking that the net deposit that hits the bank actually matches the owner statement?

I am curious whether people reconcile the rent, PM fee, repairs, reserves, and owner draw line by line, or only look at the final payout.

The mismatches I watch for are usually quiet ones: a repair with no invoice, a reserve top up that absorbs a short deposit, or a fee that lands in the wrong month.

What is the biggest mismatch you have caught, and how did you catch it?

Adam Bartomeo · Answer

It is always recommended that you are checking all of the income and expenses on your properties every month. Even the most honest companies make mistakes. Checking all of your numbers and asking questions should always be welcomed by the PMC.

Eduardo Cavasotti · Answer

Jimmy, the wrong property charge is exactly why I like checking past the net deposit. The deposit can match and the books can still be wrong if the line landed on the wrong house.

Jimmy Lieu · Answer

Welcome to BP, Eduardo! I usually reconcile line by line instead of just checking the final deposit. It only takes a few extra minutes each month and makes it much easier to catch small issues before they become expensive habits. I compare the owner statement against the bank deposit, rent collected, management fees, repair invoices, and any reserve adjustments. The biggest mismatch I ever found was a maintenance charge that had been assigned to the wrong property, which threw off the owner's payout. It wasn't intentional, but it would have gone unnoticed if I had only looked at the deposit amount. If you own multiple rentals, a simple spreadsheet can make the monthly review pretty painless. One thing I've also noticed in Midwest markets like Columbus is that many property managers have solid owner portals with downloadable statements and invoices, which makes reconciliation much easier. Happy to connect and answer any questions you have!

Richard F. · Answer

I would love to see some of these reports that have everyone so obsessed over, because the comments do not make sense based on the reports companies that I worked for provided over nearly 30 years. The only number on the PM report to "reconcile" with your own bank account is the NET Rental proceeds. Period.

Everything else is internal accounting, which should be providing common, clear, income and expense reports featuring numbers for the reporting month and for year to date,  along with a General Ledger of transactions for the period, Copies of invoices paid during the reporting month, and for multi-units, a rent roll showing a snapshot of the rent payment status at the time it was printed.

Anything under "owner approval" threshold simply shows up, with the paid invoice that should provide adequate details. Anything over "owner approval" threshold was reviewed, accepted, and signed by the owner before starting work except actual emergent issues such as a fire, major plumbing issue, or Mother Nature.

I would also be interested to know if the person/company providing the reports is duly licensed if required for your State, and if licensed, are the not also Bonded since they are handling your money? And utilizing a separate, Client Trust Account to hold your funds prior to disbursement?

Eduardo Cavasotti · Answer

Richard, fair pushback on reconciling only the net for a fully bonded PMC that already ties every dollar to invoices and a client trust account. My worry is the PMs that don't run that way, where a reserve top up quietly absorbs a short net and the deposit still ties out even though something underneath it doesn't. The licensing and bonding question is the right one to lead with. I'd rather confirm that before I ever compare a single number.

Theresa Harris · Answer

I get a monthly statement and another email with the amount that was deposited into my account.

Jim Johnson · Answer

I usually start with the net deposit, but I don't stop there.

If something looks off, I'll work backward through the owner statement to see how the final number was calculated. Most months everything lines up, but every so often there's a reserve adjustment, repair charge, or timing difference that explains it.

What I've found most helpful is comparing:

• Rent collected
• Management fees
• Maintenance charges
• Reserve balances
• Owner distributions

against the supporting invoices and receipts when they're available.

I don't necessarily reconcile every line item every month, but I do spot-check regularly. It's easier to catch a small discrepancy early than try to untangle several months of statements later.

I also appreciate PMs who provide clear documentation upfront. When invoices, photos, and statements all line up, there's a lot less back-and-forth and much more confidence in the reporting.

Drew Sygit · Answer

These are two different problems.

1) Confirming deposit matches Statement - should be pretty easy unless Statement is a crazy format.

2) Confirming you understand all the numbers on the Statement - should only take 5-10 minutes per property/unit once you understand the basics.
- NOTE: most common issue we see in our market is PMC not alerting owner to maintenance done under Owner Approval Threshold! Owner doesn't find out until they see it on their monthly Statement and then has major challenge getting supporting data from PMC.

Eduardo Cavasotti · Answer

Aaron, monthly is the key. I treat an itemized statement as table stakes. The stronger control is source docs plus the approval trail, because if the PM cannot show what was approved and why, the owner is reconciling a story instead of books.

Eduardo Cavasotti · Answer

Right, Drew. The deposit tie out is the easy check, but the approval threshold repairs are where the owner loses control because the charge shows up after the decision was already made. I like separating those two questions every month: did the money match, and did every charge have the approval trail it was supposed to have?

How do you verify your PM net deposit matches the statement each month?

How do you verify your PM net deposit matches the statement each month?

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