RENT Magazine Q4 '21

In today’s world, people may expect to be able to pay the rent in the same convenient ways they use to pay for many other expenses and purchases. Online payment methods are one way to make life easier for your tenants and help maintain a great relationship with them. And happy tenants may well become stable, long-term tenants! You can streamline your rent collection by offering online payment methods, including ACH debits. Not only can ACH debit help make your cash flow more reliable, but it can also make the monthly chore of paying rent much less of a hassle for your tenants. Check out this guide for more information on how you can streamline rent collection. 3. USE TECHNOLOGY TO AUTOMATE ROUTINE TASKS AND CONSOLIDATE IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO A SINGLE SOURCE Imagine having all your tenants’ information in one place instead of duplicating details in different places or systems for different purposes. There are options beyond complicated spreadsheets to keep track of different expenses, tenants and properties! Finding the right tools and technology to help you consolidate information to a single source and automate routine tasks can not only help you reduce manual admin, it can also help free up time to focus on the things that you feel matter most to your property business, such as increasing profitability and efficiency, or simply gaining the flexibility you’ve always wanted. Even better, if you work with apps that are fully integrated to your accounting software, you can avoid double data entry.

For example, property management apps that integrate with accounting software like Xero help you see tenant data and financial accounts through a flow of information between platforms. Services such as Hubdoc, which comes as part and parcel of Xero, help to streamline expense management. You may also benefit from automatic feeds of transactions from your bank into your accounting software and automated bank reconciliation. Xero is designed to match transactions for you so all you need to do is quickly review and accept them. It makes it easy to see what rent is due, what bills need to be paid, and to get any reports you might need so you can more easily stay on top of your cash flow. 4. GET HELP A qualified accountant or bookkeeper can be a valuable asset for any property business and can keep the owner informed of any and all tax savings. But they can also assist with much more than just your tax returns! They can help you more efficiently and effectively manage your finances, analyze your investments and profitability, or give advice about growing your portfolio and using connected apps. The Xero advisor directory can help you find an accountant or bookkeeper to suit your needs. As you can see, getting on top of your finances and establishing good accounting practices doesn’t have to be hard! Just one step at a time, with help from an accountant or bookkeeper when needed, can make your life as a rental property owner simpler and more carefree.

JORDAN COOPER Director of Verticals Xero

Jordan Cooper’s early career as an accountant specializing in property management and real estate instilled him with a passion and commitment to drive efficiency through technology. In his current role as Director of Verticals at Xero, Cooper works to identify new and innovative ways to better serve the accounting needs of customers within specific industries, including real estate and rental property management. Xero is a global provider of accounting software whose products and solutions can help rental property owners and managers to digitally track moving parts of their businesses.

Disclaimer: Xero is an accounting software provider, not a professional services firm. We believe the information given here could be useful in running a small business, but this should not be seen as a substitute for professional advice.

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