Let’s face it – success can be boring. Following the rules, learning new property management strategies, and ultimately building generational wealth sounds like a snooze fest. We’re dozing off just imagining the possibilities.
So, what can you do to bring yourself back to reality?
Sure, you could do something small like read the news – but why not go bigger and really shake things up by tanking your rental property accounting system? This very serious article will explain how you can ruin your landlording business, one bad decision at a time.
Mess Up Your Rental Property Accounting in Four Steps
Whether you simply enjoy chaos or want to cast off the shackles of success, ruining your rental property accounting is easier than you might think. We’ve broken down one of many processes you can follow:
1) Mix Your Professional and Personal Bank Accounts
Keeping separate professional and personal bank accounts is a major tenet of good rental property accounting, as explained by IRS Enrolled Agent Deltrease Hart-Anderson in our 10 Expensive Tax Mistakes to Avoid course. But if you mix your accounts, you won’t be able to tell what money belongs with which property or even which money is readily available to use without impacting your business’ viability. Plus, you’ll likely get to know your local IRS agents – and who couldn’t use more friends in this day and age?
To further spice things up, experts suggest that mixing your professional and personal bank accounts can have lasting impacts. According to Morgan Deane from Baader Helvea Group, “aside from the importance of legally separating your business finances from your personal wealth, it is important to create a culture in your mind of professional separation. Mixing bank accounts at the beginning can seem innocuous but it forms a series of habits that lead to a further blurring of lines later on. This can plague [you] when [your] business takes off.”
2) Stop Tracking Your Expenses
Numbers? Receipts? Yawn. Rather than worry about tracking your expenses and assessing your rental property management business’ health, you could just give up! Besides, keeping a close eye on your books can help you make more money, according to the Motley Fool: “One of the keys to building wealth is handling your money wisely. If you don’t have the best money-management skills, then even if you do eventually become rich, you likely won’t stay rich for long.”
But with wealth often comes stability… how dull. Instead, make your receipts and accounting notes into confetti. No one can rain on your parade!
Plus, not tracking your expenses means you’ll get all the closer with your IRS chums, particularly if you still try to claim rental property tax deductions. Perhaps they would even enjoy your homemade confetti.
3) Ignore Tools Built Specifically for Landlords
Technology has made it easier than ever to streamline your rental property accounting, but that doesn’t mean you have to partake.
Let’s consider REI Hub’s integration with TurboTenant, for example.
For years, landlords had to choose between two imperfect options: building their own spreadsheet by hand (good luck if you’re not computer-savvy) or trying to make the same software used by plumbers, food truck drivers, and streetside jugglers work for their rental property accounting. When TurboTenant partnered with REI Hub, we made it easier than ever to sync property information with landlord-specific accounting software.
But of course, the ease of use and the ability to generate tailored reports with a click might sound too easy – so easy that you might wish for the chaotic days when you couldn’t generate and download your Schedule E.
With each subscription, TurboTenant automatically sends property details and rent payments to REI Hub, so you could get started immediately if you wanted to take the chaos out of your rental property accounting.
Not that you’d care, of course. You wouldn’t want to improve your accounting processes and risk settling into success.
Want to test REI Hub out? Explore REI Hub’s accounting tool.
4) Overlook Educational Opportunities
Though we offer a plethora of free resources dedicated to streamline every aspect of your business, from solving common rent collection problems to handling evictions, those hoping to fail can simply ignore any articles or webinars that come their way. Learning requires effort and leads to confident business practices – the exact thing people looking to ruin their rental property management business want to avoid.
Even if thousands of landlords receive our weekly newsletter, you can let these industry insights pass you by. Forget about our library of on-demand webinars, which cover topics ranging from Section 8 housing to tenant screening. Shun our hundreds of blogs, including:
- Emotional Support Animal Laws for Rentals: What You Need to Know
- How Long Does a Landlord Have to Fix Something?
- 10 Easy Ways Renters Can Show Proof of Income for Rental Applications
And absolutely don’t think about TurboTenant Academy, our latest educational offerings for serious landlords only.
Conclusion
Chaos and the sweaty palms that accompany visits from the IRS are truly the spice of life. Don’t let yourself get too comfortable and boring in your success. Instead, throw yourself into the depths of failure by subverting your business-building efforts with our tips. Remember: when in doubt, ignore landlord-specific tools, educational opportunities, and best business practices – then you too can enjoy a dose of frenzied panic.
If you’re a square looking to boost your success instead, why not start with our easy-to-use property management accounting software, courtesy of REI Hub?