It lets you track income and expenses by property, categorize deductions for tax time, and gives you a clear view of your cash flow (positive or otherwise).

Compliance tracking?

Not Tracking Expenses by PropertyMany investors track expenses in one big pool.

I’m making short videos mainly to hold myself accountable, track what I’m learning, and hopefully get feedback from people who have already gone through the process.The goal for me is to buy my first deal within the next 6 to12 months, but I want to make sure I’m doing it the right way and not rushing into a bad investment.So far I’ve narrowed my search down to a few markets:• Lehigh Valley (Allentown / Bethlehem / Easton)• Philadelphia and the Metro AreaMy rough strategy right now is either:• A small multifamily (duplex/triplex/Quadplex)• A house hack opportunity• Or a rental that cash flows conservativelyMy next step is to start building teams in these markets (agents, lenders, contractors, property managers, etc.) and begin analyzing deals consistently so I can really understand the numbers and neighborhoods.Right now I’m trying to analyze multiple deals every week just to build the skill set.One question I had for more experienced investors:For deal analysis I’ve been using 10% of rent for maintenance and capital expenditures combined.For example if rent is $2,000/month I’m setting aside $200/month for maintenance/CapEx.Does that seem like a reasonable estimate?

A lot of investors don’t realize this about short-term rentals:Your personal use can make or break your deductions.Here’s the big rule to know:If you use your STR personally for more than 14 days or more than 10% of the days it’s rented, the IRS may treat it as a mixed-use property.And once it’s mixed-use, your losses and deductions can become limited — or in some cases not deductible the way you expected.This is where STR tax plans quietly fall apart.Not because the investor did anything “wrong”… but because they didn’t track the days.The key is simple:- Track rental days- Track personal use days- Know where you stand before year-endIt’s not just about income and expenses — it’s about usage.STR owners — do you track your personal vs rental days consistently, or do you estimate it later at tax time?

Hard money shops are tightening rates and criteria, and traditional private lenders got burned in 2022-2023 when deals went sideways.What's actually working: Local REI meetups where people know your track record.

For example:- tracking each tenant per room - rent payments (especially if they’re not all on the same schedule) - vacancies when a room opens up - general organization across multiple propertiesAre you using property management software like Buildium/AppFolio, spreadsheets, or something else?

QuickBooks handles your LLC bookkeeping, flip project tracking, and construction budgets while Stessa plugs in nicely for rental property performance tracking.

Tracked every invoice, every change order, every material receipt across all my projects.

Experienced borrowers with solid track records are still seeing 7-10 day closes at 85-95% LTV.