House accounting software is any computer software that provides you with information about your company’s finances and other aspects of running a business. It can range from simple programs that are geared towards very small companies, to more complex programs meant for medium-sized firms and large corporations. Many of the packages also include features that help with things like managing employees’ time sheets, sales receipts, customer service issues and sales forecasts.”
In this guide, we review the aspects of House Accounting Software, home bookkeeping, free accounting software for landlords, and rental house accounting software.
House Accounting Software
There are many different kinds of house accounting software on the market today. There are cloud-based platforms that can be accessed anywhere, and there are also on premise platforms that you’ll need to install on your own servers. Some house accounting software is designed for small businesses with very specific needs, while other programs are meant for medium sized or large companies. Some programs focus specifically on one area of business (such as inventory management) while others aim to provide a complete solution for all aspects of running your company from finances to HR issues.”
Different Types of House Accounting Software
House accounting software can operate in two ways: on-premise and cloud-based.
On-premise means that the software is installed on a computer at your house, and it sits there just waiting for someone to log in and use it. This is a great option if you have an IT person or someone with technical skills who can help set up the software and keep it running smoothly. If not, this could lead to problems like lost data or even hardware failure that results in downtime. However, if you’re comfortable working around these issues, having an on-premise setup might be worth considering because of its low cost and flexibility.
Cloud-based solutions are much more affordable than buying software outright since they’re subscription services rather than purchases; however, they have their own set of pros and cons that may make them more suitable for some businesses than others:
The best house accounting software should provide accurate, up to date financial statements.
So it’s time for you to find the best house accounting software. You’re going to want a program that provides accurate, up to date financial statements. The program should be easy to navigate and understand, so you can easily generate reports and share them with your clients or colleagues.
Cloud-based vs. on premise house accounting software
The first thing you need to decide is whether you want a cloud-based or on premise solution.
A cloud-based solution offers many benefits, including:
- It’s easy to get started. You can sign up and begin using the software right away without having to install anything on your computer or website.
- It doesn’t require an IT team. Because it’s hosted in the cloud, there are no servers for you to maintain or security patches for IT professionals to install — everything is taken care of by the service provider at no cost to you!
On premise solutions offer some distinct advantages over cloud-based options as well:
- They’re easier on your budget because they don’t incur high licensing fees like their counterparts do (although this may change if more companies move towards subscription models).
Main Features of House Accounting Software
- General Ledger Management
General ledger management is the most important aspect of house accounting software. It handles all your accounts and transactions. The program should be able to easily create, update and close accounts, post transactions and perform various operations on them such as posting journal entries or adjusting balances. It should also provide you with reports on your financial position at any given time in history (yesterday’s balance sheet), which can be exported in CSV format for use with other programs like Excel.
- Financial Reporting
Financial reporting is essential for keeping track of where your money goes and what you are spending it on. Reporting features allow users to generate reports from their database that show how much money they have made or lost over a period of time (monthly profit & loss statement), what debts need to be paid off soon if any liabilities exist along with their balances currently outstanding (balance sheet) etc…
General ledger management
The general ledger is the heart of any accounting system. It is a summary of all transactions that affect your business, and it contains the accounts and balances for those transactions. The general ledger can be used to generate reports, track cash flow, manage accounts receivable and accounts payable, perform account reconciliations and more.
Financial reporting
The ability to produce financial reports is one of the key features of house accounting software. Financial reporting is a vital component in any business, as it allows you to make informed decisions, plan your future growth and see how well you’re performing compared to your competitors.
Financial reporting provides a snapshot of the financial health and performance of your business by analysing historical data. It can be used by owners to predict future cash flow as well as identify areas that need improvement.
Accounts receivable and accounts payable
Accounts receivable (AR) and accounts payable (AP) are two of the most important elements in your business’s financials. Your AR is the money owed to you by customers, which has not yet been paid to your company. The AP refers to all of the money that you owe to vendors, suppliers and other outside parties for goods or services rendered.
Budgeting and forecasting
The budgeting and forecasting features are designed to help you make decisions about how much money you can spend in future periods. If your business is seasonal, this feature will be very useful when planning to make sure that you don’t spend too much money while your business is in between seasons.
The first step is to set up a budget by choosing an accounting period and then entering the expected income or cost for each period of time (for example, monthly or quarterly). To do this, click on “Budget” from the left menu bar and select “Create Budget”. In the next window enter all of your expected incomes and expenses for each period of time selected. This can include fixed costs such as rent or electricity bills as well as variable costs such as raw materials used in production.
Once all budgets have been created they can be compared against actual results by clicking on “Forecasts & Reports” from the left menu bar then selecting “Compare Actuals with Forecast”. The resulting report will show any differences between what was actually earned/spent with what was forecasted for each month/quarter during which budgets were created.
Inventory management
House accounting software can help you manage your inventory. This will allow you to track inventory and make better decisions about what to buy and what not to buy. You can also see how much money is being wasted on items that are about to expire or have already expired, allowing for more efficient purchasing practices.
Purchase order management
Purchase order management is the process of creating purchase orders, receiving goods, and issuing invoices. If you don’t have a good system for managing your purchase orders then it can be very time-consuming and inefficient to manage. This is especially true if you are an online business because you will need to keep up with the latest trends in fashion or technology that might change from day to day.
In fact, some companies make it their mission statement to provide great customer service by making sure that their customers get what they need when they need it – even if that means delivering items late at night!
User management and access control
User management and access control is a critical aspect of house accounting software. It’s important that you have complete control over who has access to your accounts and financial data. You don’t want just anyone seeing your financial information or being able to change the status of an invoice.
In house accountancy software, user access control can be implemented in a few different ways:
- Role-based access
- Permission-based access
Data backup, recovery, integrity and security
Data backup, recovery, integrity and security:
Data backup and recovery software is a software solution that helps you back up your data in case of any mishap such as hardware failure or human errors. It also helps in restoring the data from the backups.
Data security software is used to protect your system from being attacked by hackers with viruses and other harmful programs. It also monitors every activity happening on your computer so that you can take appropriate actions if something wrong happens.
Data integrity refers to how well information conforms or agrees with other information about it (such as whether two databases have consistent data). This can be ensured by running checksum algorithms over all files in an application and comparing them to detect any changes made after they were created or last backed up.
There are many different kinds of house accounting software on the market today.
There are many different kinds of house accounting software on the market today, and it is important to be familiar with them so that you can make an informed decision about which ones will best meet your needs.
There are many different kinds of house accounting software on the market today, and it is important to be familiar with them so that you can make an informed decision about which ones will best meet your needs.
home bookkeeping
Keeping record of personal finances is important… and easy!
Home Bookkeeping is used to keep record of home finances and is a complex solution for keeping financial records both on a personal computer and on Android and iOS mobile devices with a built-in data synchronization system.
With Home Bookkeeping, you can keep record of not only personal finances but also your entire family’s finances, or you can use it for accounting purposes in a small company. Home Bookkeeping is easy to use and does not require any accounting knowledge. Despite the fact that it is easy to use, Home Bookkeeping is a powerful and flexible tool with a lot of features for keeping financial records.
Home Bookkeeping Features
Home accounting for the entire family
Keep your personal financial records and those of all your family members. To ensure privacy, every user’s records can be protected with a password.
Keep record of all your expenses and incomes
Add all your incomes and expenses to Home Bookkeeping to keep your finances under full control. Make your financial plans and draw up your budget.
Add money that you borrow and loan to Home Bookkeeping
Full control over borrowed and loaned money including control over its return with payment plan calculation features and notifications.
Use Home Bookkeeping to keep your accounts in any currency of the world
The list of currencies in Home Bookkeeping contains all currencies of the world. Choose the currencies that you use.
Use Home Bookkeeping on all kinds of devices
The synchronization feature makes it possible to exchange data with Home Bookkeeping installed on another computer or on an Android mobile device, IPhone, iPad.
Visual reports and charts – a simple and convenient tool for analysis
Home Bookkeeping will help you analyze your finances with the help of all kinds of reports and visual charts.
Import and export data
Import your bank statements into Home Bookkeeping. If you ever need to send data from Home Bookkeeping somewhere, the export feature will help you with that.
Your data under reliable protection
With the reliable backup system, rest assured that your data is always safe and secure and there is no way you ever lose it.
Home Bookkeeping has been already downloaded more than 4 000 000 times
Feedback about Home Bookkeeping
Hundreds of thousands of people constantly use Home Bookkeeping. Read some feedback from our users.
The app’s just great. I’ve been using it 7 years already. Quite satisfied!
Convenient! I’ve been using it several years now. Happy about it! Thanks!
Great! Recommended to everyone! Perfect program! Everything’s simple and clear! Thanks to the author!
Great! The best software for counting money among those available!
Great application! Great features, intuitive interface, synchronization. To make it short – just what the doctor ordered!
Having used the software for several months already, I like everything about it.
Great application! Really like it!
Thank you for the great program!
Our Awards
PC Magazine, the leading computer magazine for experts, announced the results of their survey “Software: Harvest of 2015”. Our Home Bookkeeping application took its place among winners.
5 stars is the highest rate given to Home Bookkeeping by the largest software portal Softodrom
free accounting software for landlords
Rental property accounting software has come a long way since QuickBooks.
Nowadays, property managers and landlords need a more customized solution to handle the increasing demands of managing properties at scale.
The good news is, there are dedicated solutions available now that don’t just offer the unique tools you need to manage your rental property accounting but also to optimize, streamline, and even automate many other tasks.
But before we get into that, let’s talk about what those unique accounting features are that property managers and landlords need.
How do you do bookkeeping for a rental property?
Property managers and landlords have unique accounting needs, particularly when managing the financials of their properties.
Some of those unique bookkeeping practices include:
A notable property management software can help you with much more than you may expect.
Is QuickBooks a good rental property accounting software?
You might notice that we don’t include QuickBooks or any other dedicated accounting software on this list.
That’s not because you can’t use QuickBooks for property management accounting.
In fact, if you only have a few properties and you’re just beginning, either as a property manager or owner/investor, QuickBooks is a good place to start.
The problem is that, as you grow, you’ll quickly notice that QuickBooks isn’t designed for managing rental properties.
Sure, you can find large property management companies that use QuickBooks. After all, strictly in terms of an accounting solution, QuickBooks is the most robust.
But QuickBooks has its limitations when it comes to the unique needs of property management, many of which require workarounds that are inconvenient and time-consuming.
That’s why in 2023, QuickBooks isn’t necessarily the best option for your rental property management or even just accounting anymore.
It’s been years since the birth of the digital space and accounting software in general. In that time, software as a whole has developed at a rapid pace, while QuickBooks hasn’t– specifically for property managers.
That brings up an important point: those developments haven’t just been in the accounting arena.
Nowadays, rental property accounting software like DoorLoop offers much more than just the accounting features you need to manage rental properties.
They offer features such as a tenant portal which allows you to communicate with your tenants in real-time about maintenance requests, marketing tools to list your properties and units, automation tools like automatic rent payments, and way more.
It’s not just accounting that you get, but an entire suite of features to help you manage your rental properties from A to Z.
So, to answer the question: yes, you can use QuickBooks for rental property accounting.
However, it’s not an ideal option unless you’re just starting and testing the industry.
Features and benefits
So far, we’ve touched on a few of the features and benefits you get from rental property accounting software.
Now, let’s break down everything you can expect when using a dedicated rental property management tool.
Keep in mind that which of these features you have access to will depend on the software and what they offer, this is just a general list:
And this is just scratching the surface.
Considering all discussed, good rental property software can do a lot for your business, including:
So, let’s talk about some of the best rental property accounting software options out there.
The 10 Best Rental Property Accounting Software of 2023
There are a lot of different types of property management software out there, from standard all-encompassing property management software to:
That’s why, when choosing which is the right property management software for your business, you need to look for a solution that specializes in rental property management.
Each of the tools below specializes in rental property management or has a robust set of features ideal for managing rentals.
1. DoorLoop
DoorLoop is a dedicated, full-service rental property management software tool that offers everything you need to streamline and optimize your rental property management or investing business.
Designed to be highly intuitive and easy to use, DoorLoop includes a full suite of features designed by property managers for property managers.
Save yourself time and hassle by centralizing your processes with easy documentation, automation, work order management, and robust accounting features.
DoorLoop Pricing
DoorLoop’s full-service rental property accounting software is 50% off your first two months. Plus, there are no training or support fees whatsoever. Prices start as low as $49/month for your first 20 units.
2. Rent Manager
Rent Manager is a dedicated rental property management software with a robust set of features. They have good accessibility, with a cloud-based, desktop, mobile app version and good customization settings.
Their feature set makes them a good fit for beginners and more advanced users, but they gate certain features behind higher pay tiers and don’t offer transparent pricing plans.
Rent Manager Pricing
Rent Manager offers pricing options for each version of its software, including a cloud-based and desktop version based on per-unit pricing.
However, they don’t list their pricing publicly, so you’ll need to contact Rent Manager to get more information.
3. Hemlane
Hemlane is designed for rental property management and offers unique features such as being able to match you with local agents. If you’re uniquely concerned with placement, Hemlane is worth considering for its leasing tools.
However, it’s one of the most expensive options on this list, so you’re paying more for those extra features.
Hemlane pricing
Hemlane’s pricing starts somewhat affordable but quickly escalates at a $2 per unit pricing model.
Their Basic plan starts at $30 per month with $2 per unit additional after the first. That means if you manage even 20 units, Hemlane will be $70 per month.
Their premium-tier Complete plan starts at $60 per month but costs $32 per property after the first.
Hemlane’s enterprise pricing model comes partly due to its unique on-location support features, which other rental property software solutions don’t offer.
Chances are, these might not be useful to you. However, to those that find such local support invaluable or necessary, Hemlane is worth considering.
Hemlane offers a 30-day free trial, so you can try it out for free.
4. TenantCloud
TenantCloud is one of the most affordable tools on this list, partly because it offers a 100% free plan up to a surprising 75 units.
However, depending on what features you’re looking for, you’ll find TenantCloud lacking many useful features that come standard in other tools unless you move up to one of their premium plans.
TenantCloud Pricing
TenantCloud is unique in that it offers a 100% free basic tier plan for up to 75 units.
The number of units included is impressive, though the plan lacks several essential features that make it a difficult fit for anymore with more than just a few properties.
Their lowest-level paid tier includes up to 150 units at $9 per month, and their premium tier includes up to 500 units at $35 per month, as well as their entire suite of features.
5. Rentec Direct
Rentec Direct is a long-time player with all-around solid features, a mobile app, and multi-user access.
Its feature list is one the most robust of any tool on this list, but it’s also less intuitive, and the interface feels a bit dated and hard to navigate.
Rentec Direct pricing
Rentec Direct has competitive pricing, with their basic Rentec PRO plan starting at $35 per month, though it only covers ten units.
Additional units won’t cost you much, though, with 50 units costing just $55 per month up to 500 units at $450 per month.
In addition to their basic pricing tier, Rentec offers a tenant screening add-on for between $7 per month with their Basic Screening Package up to $15 for the Premium Screening Package.
6. Buildium
Buildium has a good balance of features, ease of use, and affordable pricing, making it a great all-around pick. They also have great training and online support.
The only caveat to their pricing is that they’re designed for portfolios of 50 or more units. So, if you have less than that, you might be overpaying.
Buildium pricing
Buildium’s Essential tier is per unit and starts at $50 per month up to 20 units. Additional units will cost you up to 150 units for $235 per month.
Larger portfolios can opt for the Growth plan starting at $160 per month minimum or Premium at $460.
Buildium offers a 14-day free trial, so you can try it out for free.
7. Propertyware
Propertyware is a complete property management software with powerful accounting features such as custom reporting, custom field options, and automatic payment reminders.
Its reporting is notable, as it offers some of the most detailed and comprehensive reporting features on this list.
rental house accounting software
Whether we like it or not, landlords need to have their finances in order to run an effective business. Keeping a shoebox full of receipts is no longer needed nor practical in today’s digital world. There are so many accounting software apps for landlords that can help automate and manage every financial aspect of your business.
Expenses, income, deductions, and other key real estate investing metrics can all be digitized through the use of key accounting apps. Today we are going to give an overview of the more popular accounting software apps for landlords.
Stessa
Stessa is a digital platform for property investors to manage, monitor, and communicate the performance of real estate assets. Created by real estate investors, Stessa allows users to easily keep track of property performance, finances, and the paper trail that comes with real estate investing—in one central place.
Stessa will track income, expenses, and provide investors with dozens of critical investing metrics and tax-ready documentation.
Beyond the fact that it’s free, Stessa also offers a number of innovative solutions for landlords who want a tool that moves beyond simple accounting inputs and outputs. For instance, Stessa recently added real-time receipt scanning with automatic tax-ready real estate categorization to the Stessa mobile apps for iOS and Android. Simplify your rental property reportingLearn More All receipts and invoices that are scanned with the Stessa app are also available on the online platform and vice-versa, so you always have a complete picture of your property expenses. Stessa’s machine learning and OCR technologies parse all the details and then organizes the information. All transaction details are stored in the cloud with the industry’s best security, so everything is always accessible and available during tax time or for audit purposes.
Simplify your rental property reporting
Further, Stessa has a document storage feature that allows landlords and investors to capture all of their critical financial and accounting documents in one centralized database.
Other cool features from the Stessa accounting software app includes rental reports and a mortgage portal for those looking to explore their financing options.
Quickbooks
Quickbooks is accounting software used by businesses in all industries. It is a powerful accounting tool designed for businesses of all types to track and manage income and expenses.
As such, many landlords have turned to this platform to manage their rentals. Quickbooks can easily allow you to receive and track rent payments, pay contractors and property managers, and track fees and track property maintenance.
That said, because Quickbooks is a more general accounting software suite, it lacks many of the industry-specific features that landlords may require like investing metrics.
Appfolio
Appfolio, and Buildium below, are both full suite property management software. Appfolio is therefore a powerful tool for landlords and property managers to keep track of tenants, properties, payments, word orders, and more.
Appfolio does have accounting features, such as deposits, online payments, automated late fees, and more.
Buildium
Buildium is similar to Appfolio, in that it is more of a full-fledged property management platform than one specifically designed for accounting. Buildium does offer some accounting features such as company financials, payment tracking, accounts payable, and more. And, you get all these accounting tools with Buildium’s core membership, it’s not an upgrade.
Buildium also includes some in-app calculators and an e-filing tool when it comes to tax time. To compare both Appfolio and Buildium, here is a comprehensive analysis of both software suites.
Other accounting software apps for landlords
ZenLordPro: A free accounting tool for landlords that allows them to collect rent and late fees automatically, keep track of bookkeeping, and manage work orders.
Quicken Rental Property Manager: Help you track all financial aspects of your rental business including property value, bank accounts, loans, documents, tenant lists, income, and expenses. You can also keep track of tenant contact information, rental agreements, move-ins and outs, and security deposits.
Google Sheets: Using Google Sheets to automatically track and calculate specific investing and accounting metrics is a great way to start as a landlording. Understanding how these important aspects of your business are tracked and calculated is invaluable. There will come a time when you will need to upgrade to an easy-to-use and hopefully free platform as you scale, but Google Sheets is a great start.
Excel: The same reasoning as with Google Sheets, just using a different product. Excel is a highly powerful tool that sits on your hard drive so you can use it offline. It can be used to track a myriad of financial and accounting metrics.
Final thoughts
All landlords need accounting software apps. The idea is to choose the best one for you and your business. Do you just have 1 property or are thinking of buying your first? Try out Google Sheets or Excel to get your hands dirty and learn the various metrics and accounting mechanisms you should be tracking.
If you have one or a few rental units you’ll need to start thinking about some sort of software that can automatically track these metrics for you. We would suggest finding one that’s free. Once you’ve built up a substantial rent portfolio and are looking to scale, even more, you can then look to pay for a more comprehensive and robust property management platform.