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Best Rental Property Accounting Software

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Last editedMar 20232 min read

Managing rental properties requires a high volume of daily bookkeeping tasks. You need to keep records that are compliant with Australian Tax Office (ATO) standards, generating financial reports across each property. It’s also important to track rent receipts from tenants along with any expenses for property repairs and maintenance. All of this can be quite cumbersome and time-consuming when entered manually into a spreadsheet. Fortunately, there are plentiful options on the market when it comes to rental property accounting software.

Why should you use rental property management accounting software?

Accounting software helps you save time and reduce manual error when keeping track of rental payments across your real estate portfolio. Property managers must perform numerous admin tasks when it comes to managing their finances. With the best rental property accounting software, you’ll be able to:

Set up accounts for each client or property
Collect and track rent payments
Track rent in arrears
Track income and expenses
Generate financial reports

The best accounting software for rental properties

Rental property management accounting software comes in many formats. Some of the best software caters specifically to property managers, while others offer a more comprehensive accounting platform. Here’s our pick of the top options:

Xero

We’ll start with one of the best all-rounders, Xero. Xero rental property accounting software includes an app to manage bookings and finance on the go. You can work together with your team and accountant using the app, recording notes about any client interactions. Managers also have access to pertinent contact details from a central dashboard. Xero includes payroll software to keep you on top of Australia’s Single Touch Payroll reporting requirements. This includes automated tax and super calculations as well. Clients can pay rent straight from online invoices via third-party integrations like GoCardless.

How to collect Direct Debit payments with GoCardless

1.

Create your free GoCardless account, access your user-friendly payments dashboard & connect your accounting software (if you use one).

2.

Easily set up & schedule Direct Debit payments via payment pages on your website checkout or secure payment links.

3.

From now on you'll get paid on time, every time, as GoCardless automatically collects payment on the scheduled date. Simple.

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AppFolio

An international real estate management app, AppFolio offers a selection of basic and advanced features. This makes it equally suitable to medium and larger firms serving a wide portfolio of properties. Fees are determined by number of units, but at the basic Core level you’ll have access to online payments, marketing tools, customisable reports, and lease management.

DoorLoop

Although it’s based in Miami, DoorLoop boasts teams around the world which means it can support property management in any country or currency – including Australia. This full-service software is designed to be intuitive and user-friendly, both for property managers and tenants. It includes all the features you need for accounting, including the ability to accept a variety of payment methods and custom report generation. Owners have their own portal with access to financial reports.

PropertyMe

Standard accounting features of this Australia-based property management software include live bank feeds, reconciliation, disbursements, and sales trust accounting. It also automates fees, helps with audit reporting, and lets you directly import transactions. PropertyMe includes portals for both you and your tenants, who can access data online in real-time from any location. You can set task lists to manage property maintenance, while signing tenants up for automatic bill paying to reduce late payments.

How to choose the best accounting software for rental properties

The best option will depend on your portfolio, location, and budget. As you compare software, look at features like work order management, tenant portals, and marketing tools as added bonuses to the core accounting features.

No matter which software you choose for the accounting end of your property management, GoCardless can help when the time comes to collect payment. Property managers can collect rent payments directly from customer bank accounts, making it easy and cost effective. It can be used for both recurring and one-off payments, integrating seamlessly with major partners like Xero.

We can help

GoCardless helps you automate payment collection, cutting down on the amount of admin your team needs to deal with when chasing invoices. Find out how GoCardless can help you with ad hoc payments or recurring payments.