Software is a tool that should last you for years and very little maintenance. Unfortunately, there are those rental property software companies out there that do not follow this ideal and will need updating several times a year, thus creating a lot of work for the user. If you rent your properties, you know how important it is to save as much as you can on each and every expense. It’s possible that sometimes having a fresh set of eyes can help you out with finding better alternatives that provide more bang for the buck. The purpose of this article is to guide you down the path of finding a great alternative to rental property accounting software.
BEST OVERALLAppFolio
Our choice for best overall, AppFolio, comes with basic and advanced features, making it accessible to landlords who do their own accounting and to beginner and advanced accountants and bookkeepers alike.Pros
- Pay only for the features you need and use
- Has all the advanced accounting features a landlord needs
- Includes a mobile app
Cons
- Has a minimum monthly fee
- Not fit for a small number of properties
- Limited live help after purchase
AppFolio has developed software with a suite of features a landlord would need to operate and grow their business remotely. It comes with Core and Plus plans to match the budget and complexity needs of varying users, earning our rating as the best overall accounting software for landlords.
If you fill out their online form, an AppFolio salesperson will guide you through a free demo so you can evaluate the features important to you. There is an onboarding fee of at least $400 and then a minimum $250- $1,500 monthly fee (depending on which plan you choose). They also have services you can choose to utilize for a fee. Fees increase based on how many units you have in a Core or Plus plan:
- Residential: $1.40 to $3 per unit monthly
- Commercial: $1.50 to $3 per unit monthly
- HOAs: $0.80 per unit monthly
AppFolio is a better fit for mid to large-sized property landlords with at least 200 units.
The Core tier comes with AppFolio’s customizable reports, online payments and maintenance, marketing tools, lease management, and communication functions. With the Plus tier, you also get a variety of strategic performance insights to scale your portfolio. You’ll also have access to services like website creation, lead generation, tenant screening, insurance, online payments, a maintenance call center, utility management, debt collections, and automated accounts payable. These will all be billed to your account after you have utilized the service. In addition to these native features, AppFolio has partnered with more than 80 internet listing service providers to enhance your reach with powerful marketing integrations.
The Plus tier stands out for accounting because the advanced performance insights and revenue management take the strong bookkeeping tools to the next level of business growth.
The software has very high-reliability ratings with a responsive customer support team. But there are a few customer complaints about wanting more access to a live person to talk through support issues.
BEST FOR MULTIPLE USERSRentec Direct
Not only has Rentec Direct created an easy way to add account users and set different permission levels, but they also allow you to add new user accounts for free, making it our top choice for rental property accounting software if you need multiple users.Pros
- Has mobile apps for integrated communication
- Premium features for property managers and landlords
- Multi-user access to one account with unique usernames and passwords
Cons
- A limited number of integrations
Best for multiple users, Rentec Direct allows the primary account holder to create and control multi-user accounts that others can access with a unique username, password, and permission level at no additional cost.
Another major advantage of Rentec Direct is that there is a free package with the basic features available for up to 10 properties. More advanced packages cost $35 to $40 per month, with the pricing based on the number of units you’re managing. Additional features are available as add-ons, ranging from $7 to $15 per service.
Rentec Direct comes with features that include general ledger accounting and financial reporting with QuickBooks synchronization. This streamlines the whole tenant rent payment process to one step that takes around 30 seconds. Users also get an automated process for tracking work orders, ACH, and credit card payment processing.
In addition to the accounting features, Rentec Direct also includes other property management features like online portals for tenants and owners, a free custom website and hosting to promote your company and properties online, online rental applications, electronic signatures with DocuSign, electronic 1099 filing, syndication of vacancy listings, utility billing integration, and tenant background screening for credit, criminal, and eviction records.
It currently integrates with QuickBooks Online Advanced and DocuSign.
The support staff has excellent reviews from customers on third-party review sites like Software Advice.
BEST FOR LARGE PROPERTY PORTFOLIOSBuildium
Buildium’s Growth and Premium plans support up to 5,000 properties, earning the top spot for users with large property portfolios.Pros
- Built by property managers for property managers
- Automatic rent collection through a tenant portal
- Online ticket support
- A lot of training materials offered
Cons
- Expensive pricing plans
- Some customer support complaints
- Not a fit for single property managers
Buildium, our review’s best property management accounting software for large property portfolios, has expansive accounting features supporting up to 5,000 units in their Growth and Premium plans.
Buildium offers three plans; Essential, Growth, and Premium. The cost of each plan depends on the number of units you manage. Essential starts at $50 a month and offers features for up to 150 units. Growth offers more features, the ability to service up to 5,000 units, and starts at $160 a month. Premium also allows you to have up to 5,000 units and offers features like Business Analytics and Insights and Buildium Rewards. Premium starts at $460 per month. Buildium also offers a 10% discount for anyone who signs up for annual billing.
In the cloud, users can record and view all fees, payments, deposits, and refunds, manage accounts payable through built-in calculators that show how much you owe to companies and vendors, reconcile bank accounts automatically, generate a variety of financial reports, and automatically generate and e-file a Form 1099.
Besides the accounting features, Buildium also offers a lot of advanced features with easy-to-understand tutorials.
Buildium integrates with several outside software platforms, including TransUnion, RevSpring, MSI, Nelco, Happy Inspector, PayNearMe, and more. This solid list of integrations, the recognition it has received from G2 and Capterra, and its active updates to resolve issues make it a reliable platform.
Buildium has a high rating across different review websites, serving as a testament to the reliable service they provide.
BEST FOR EXPERIENCED ACCOUNTANTSProperty Matrix
Property Matrix comes packed with all the advanced features professional accountants would need, with the ability to customize everything, making this the best software for experienced accountants.Pros
- Fully customizable features
- Has a mobile app
- Designed for all levels of accounting experience
Cons
- Fit for landlords with over 250 units
- More expensive than other accounting software
Designed for users of all levels of accounting experience, Property Matrix is a website-based software equipped with powerful and advanced features that have automation capabilities for expert users. Furthermore, all features are fully customizable, allowing experienced users to pick the top-of-the-line accounting features they need to improve their reporting efficiency.
There are three pricing plans: Standard, Property Matrix Pro, and Enterprise:
- Standard: $400 per month for up to 250 units: $1.50 for additional units. Key features include enterprise accounting, maintenance, marketing, portals, custom reports, unlimited phone support.
- Property Matrix Pro: $475 per month for up to 250 units: $1.50 for additional units. Includes all Standard features, plus tools for commercial properties, budgets, and CAM (common area maintenance) charges.
- Enterprise: $1,200 per month for up to 800 units: $1.35 for additional units and all Property Matrix Pro features.
Property Matrix surpasses other software programs due to its advanced features and customization muscle. It’s capable of managing complex accounting processes, minimizing workload, and eliminating the need for third-party accounting software.
Property Matrix users can:
- Organize and track transactions
- Manage multiple companies
- Create recurring invoices and bills for vendors and tenants
- Set triggers and automate routine actions
- Track information efficiently through custom fields
- Manage documents from one single system
- Create custom forms
- Collect electronic signatures
- Organize communications through one single Communications Hub
- Get a professionally designed website
Users can customize the features they use, making it suitable for any experience level. However, enterprise-level landlords and their accountants will benefit more than small and medium-sized landlords due to the robust accounting software.
Property Matrix serves accountants, investors, and property managers through its numerous affiliates, such as the National Apartment Association and the American Apartment Owners Association. User reviews are very complimentary on Capterra and Software Advice.
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.
Conclusion
Software for rental property accounting is going to help anyone with a large portfolio of rental properties. After doing your research, you probably know that QuickBooks is the heavyweight champ in accounting software. In fact, there are some companies that use QuickBooks as their only accounting software. It’s certainly not incorrect to do so, as it will do a lot more than account for your rental properties. However, the benefit of QuickBooks is it’s simplicity. If you have a simple rental property portfolio or a few properties on which you want to track everything from repairs to any cost associated with a renter, then perhaps QuickBooks is going to be too complex for your needs.