5 Best Real Estate Accounting Software in 2021

The U.S. real estate market is expected to reach $15 trillion by 2021, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).

This is a list of the 5 best real estate accounting software in 2021. The article will give you a brief introduction to each app, as well as how they compare to one another.

The best five accounting software for real estate enterprises, such as property management companies, real estate brokers, and landlords, have been recognized. We chose them based on criteria designed exclusively for real estate firms, which prioritizes features such as property-level income/loss monitoring, automated monthly e-payments, and real estate-specific management tools.

Accounting Software for Real Estate

• For real estate enterprises, property managers, and real estate agencies, QuickBooks Online is a software program that allows you to is the best option (4.18 of 5 points)
• Buildium has the best features for property management. (3.63 out of a possible 5)
• Quicken is the best option for those who own a few rental homes (3.54 of 5 points)
• Wave: The best free real estate accounting software for companies prepared to forego monitoring profits and losses per property (3.03 of 5 points)
• Realtyzam is the most user-friendly accounting software for real estate professionals (2.73 of 5 points)

Real Estate Accounting Software Features to Look For

Accounting software is required by real estate organizations in order to monitor the costs and profitability of specific buildings or units. As a result, the ability to allocate revenue and costs to a certain class, location, or other identifier is a must-have feature for real estate accounting software.

How Do We Assess Accounting Software for Real Estate?

Pricing, features, simplicity of use and our own expert opinion were used to assess a variety of products. We looked at real estate-specific accounting systems as well as real estate-specific applications featuring a bookkeeping component. We assess software based on aspects that are particularly valuable to real estate firms, such as the ability to measure profit and loss by property. Following the identification of traits, we assign a greater weight to those that are significant to real estate businesses and a lower (or no) weight to those that are not.

20% of the overall score

The monthly cost of the program is the most essential component in our price assessment. However, any restrictions on transactions, suppliers, or consumers are taken into account. Finally, we give programs with a month-to-month option a better grade than those with an annual license.

20% of the overall score

The ease-of-use score includes the availability of customer assistance via phone or direct message, in addition to a subjective review by our accounting expert. Other factors to consider are whether online payments need third-party integration and the chance of obtaining third-party accountants who are acquainted with the software and willing to help.

20% of the overall score

Accounting characteristics featured in current bookkeeping software, such as online payments, smartphone applications, and receipt capturing, are among the general functions. We also look to see whether the software is a double-entry system, which means it keeps account of both assets and liabilities, as well as revenue and expenses. Bookkeeping is done using double-entry systems, which offer checks and balances to assure correctness.

20% of the overall score

The capacity to measure profit and loss by the property is the most essential real estate attribute assessed. The ability to monitor automotive mileage, automated monthly e-payments, tenant portals, and maintenance management are among the other advantages.

20% of the overall score

Our professional study of the software’s features, mobile app, and reports is a subjective assessment. It also covers the provision of third-party accounting services.

QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online is the best real estate accounting software on the market.

PROS

• General bookkeeping characteristics that are outstanding
• Keep track of your earnings and spending by class and region.
• Allows you to set automatic monthly e-payments using QuickBooks Payments.
• Great smartphone app for monitoring miles and capturing receipts.

CONS

• There is no customer support phone number.
• There are no connected property management options available.
• For self-employed and independent agents, it is too expensive.

Total Points

4.18 OUT OF 5

Expert Recommendation

QuickBooks Online is full-featured accounting software that, despite its strong features and reports, is quite simple to use. Using the class and location tracking functionality, it is simply adaptable to real estate firms. For each of your real estate segments, you may set classifications, and then locations for each property. The great majority of its reports may be tailored to contain just the classes and locations you choose. So, you might look at a building’s profitability by running a report that only shows those units, or locations, inside the structure.

QuickBooks can easily handle your finances, but it’s not meant to assist you to manage leases, maintenance requests, rental applications, or showings.

Pricing

• $25 a month for one user is a good place to start.
• $50 per month for three users is the bare minimum.
• Plus: $80 per month for five users (needed for class and location monitoring).

New members may choose between a 30-day free trial with no credit card required or a three-month 50% discount.

Buildium

PROS

• Exceptional property management
• Expenses for communal areas are automatically allocated to properties.
• For businesses with less than 20 units, this is a low-cost option.

CONS

• Accounting features are not included in the mobile app.
• Common accounting tools such as mileage tracking and receipt capturing are missing.
• It’s not simple to use.

Total Points3.63 OUT OF 5

Expert Recommendation

Buildium is a property management program that also includes accounting features. Rental ads, tenant screenings, and online payments are all handled by it. It also has resident and owner portals for creating and tracking messages. You can collect rent, handle bills, and categorize transactions moved from your bank account using the accounting functions. For more experienced accountants, there is also a capability to record general diary entries. Buildium offers basic financial statements such as a balance sheet, income statement, and statement of cash flows, as well as a variety of reports that break down your activities per property.

When it comes to accounting, there are benefits and drawbacks to employing management software. It may reduce the need to input the same data in numerous systems if done appropriately. When the program is not the primary focus, however, accounting becomes more complicated. It’s not always clear how or if a certain management software input impacts your financial accounts.

Pricing

• $50 per month for 20 units to $235 per month for 141 units (maximum of 15 units) is required (recommended).
  • A one-time cost of $99 is required to set up each connected bank account.
  • eLeases are $5 each.
• Growth: From $160 per month for 50 units to $5,400 per month for 5,000 units; bespoke pricing for more than 5,000 units is available.
  • The first five bank accounts are free, after which each account costs $99 one-time.
  • There are no limits to how many eLeases you can have.

The Essential membership will cover all of the needs of most small property management organizations. If you have more than 150 units, though, you must upgrade to the Growth package, even if you don’t want the additional features. Buildium provides a 14-day free trial to new users without requiring a credit card.

Quicken

Quicken is best for those who own a few rental properties.

PROS

• Affordably priced
• Keep track of your earnings and loss by property.
• Lease periods, rental prices, security deposits, and upkeep are all within your control.
• Maintain a record of your personal money, retirement funds, and self-employed earnings.

CONS

• It can’t print a balance sheet because it doesn’t keep track of assets and liabilities.
• There can’t be more than one user.

Total Points 3.54 OUT OF 5

Expert Recommendation

Quicken is primarily designed to manage your personal finances, but the Home & Business edition can also be used to manage a few rental properties. It offers a mobile app with receipt capture, accepts online payments, manages overdue bills, and tracks revenue and spending per rental unit, all of which are generally available in more costly accounting software. It also includes basic property management features such as a property dashboard, rental agreements, and an income and loss report that is formatted to match the Schedule E required on your individual tax return.

Because Quicken does not monitor assets and liabilities, it is not a double-entry accounting system and is not suitable for a corporation, partnership, or limited liability business (LLC). While the mobile app uses the cloud to sync with your desktop computer, the software is not cloud-based and must be installed locally.

Increase the speed of pricing

• $35.99 per year as a starter
• $51.99 per year for Deluxe
• $77.99 per year for Premier
• $103.99 per year for Home & Business (needed for rental property).

All plans have a single user limit. Although you must pay to download the program, Quicken gives a 30-day money-back guarantee if you are not happy.

Wave

Wave: The Best Free Accounting Software for Companies Willing to Give Up Property Reporting

PROS

• Unlimited users, transactions, and customers.
• To import transactions, connect your bank account.
• Set up recurring e-payments on a monthly basis.

CONS

• It’s impossible to keep track of profit and loss by property.
• Limited features for property management.

Total Points 3.03 OUT OF 5

Expert Recommendation

Wave is a free bookkeeping system that allows you to connect to a bank account and classify and reconcile transactions. It also has a decent income statement and balance sheet. Wave Payments is simple to integrate into your account, allowing you to accept online payments and even set up regular payments. There is a fee for the payments service, like with all of the products featured here.

Wave is best for most businesses, but it lacks the option to create distinct classes or locations, so you won’t be able to categorize revenue and costs by property. Wave, too, lacks a full app. It does feature a billing app as well as a receipt-capturing app. However, to finish your accounting, you’ll need to check on their website.

Pricing

Wave is completely free.

Realtyzam

Realtyzam: The Most User-Friendly Accounting Software for Realtors

PROS

• Even part-time agents can afford it.
• Simple to use
• Excellent mobile app
• Keeps track of your car’s mileage.

CONS

• Customer support is unavailable to talk with or chat with.
• It can’t compile a balance sheet since it doesn’t keep track of assets and liabilities.
• You are unable to reconcile your bank account.

Total Points 2.73 OUT OF 5

Expert Recommendation

Realtyzam didn’t do well in our rubric since it was created for a very particular purpose. RealtyZam is an excellent tool for real estate agents to keep track of their commission revenue and costs. It lacks accounting features that real estate agents want, such as invoicing, online payments, inventory, and time tracking. As a consequence, the program is very user-friendly. In the program, you set up each of your listings and allocate expenditures and miles as they occur. When the listing sells, you get an immediate confirmation of your commission and a breakdown of your profit and loss. Of course, when tax time rolls around, you may print a year-end profit and loss statement.

While RealtyZam is simple to use, it falls short on our Ease of Use scale due to the absence of human customer service. You must submit your query and wait for a response by email. Unfortunately, there is no method to reconcile your bank account with RealtyZam. The only way to be sure you’ve caught all of an account’s activity is to do a monthly reconciliation. Because it does not maintain assets and obligations, RealtyZam is exclusively for self-employed people, not companies, partnerships, or LLCs.

Pricing

• $12.40 per month or $119.40 annually

RealtyZam provides a 30-day free trial that does not need a credit card.

Conclusion

We’ve reviewed five different types of real estate accounting software and analyzed how each may benefit different types of real estate enterprises. QuickBooks Online is an excellent alternative if you want to manage your profit and loss by property and simply produce financial statements. Buildium, on the other hand, is a good option if you also need assistance managing your properties. Finally, real estate agents have very particular requirements that RealtyZam can provide on a budget.

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