Are you looking for property management accounting software for your real estate rental portfolio?

If so, you will need a good software that can solve all kinds of problems.

From basic accounting tasks like:

• Recording rent payments
• Tracking deposits
• And doing payroll

To even things like:

• Managing work orders
• Tenant management and screening
• Automated rent collection
• And portals for both tenants and owners to more efficiently manage dozens of tasks

It can be hard navigating the plethora of options out there. There are well-known general accounting options (like QuickBooks) to more dedicated property management software solutions.

That’s the purpose of this guide.

And, because we know you likely have questions, we’ll be answering those too. Including:

• How is property management software different from accounting software like QuickBooks?
• Why should property managers and landlords use property management software?
• How much does property accounting software typically cost?

So, let’s get started.

13 Best Property Management Accounting Software for 2023

Below, we’ve organized the 13 best property management accounting programs on the market for property managers and landlords.

Some are general accounting solutions, though many are more dedicated property management tools.

Under each option, we’ll cover:

• A quick summary with notes on where that software excels
• A list of notable features
• And the pricing model

With that said, we still suggest you do your homework and review the product and pricing pages of the respective options yourself before making any decision.

1. DoorLoop

DoorLoop is a full-service rental property management software tool that includes a suite of features. DoorLoop is designed to be highly intuitive and easy to use with features that allow you to manage every aspect of your rental business with greater ease. Any property manager or landlord that manages real estate rentals from 1-20,000 units can use it.

Features include:

• Built-in CRM and tenant portal that allows you to automate rent collection, tenant screening, tenant management, and more
• Fully responsive mobile app for any device
• Owner portal that gives easy access to reports and enables you to print checks in real time
• Marketing features such as scheduling showings and listing rental properties
• A full range of accounting features designed to replace QuickBooks, including custom reports, a complete chart of accounts, a variety of payment options including ACH, credit cards, and more
• Easy interface to manage work orders, from scheduling maintenance requests to tracking progress on work orders and even communicating with tenants on maintenance tasks

DoorLoop Pricing

Right now, DoorLoop’s plans start as low as $59 per month for your first 20 units with DoorLoop’s Standard plan.

2. QuickBooks

While not a dedicated property accounting system, QuickBooks’ popularity makes it a common choice for landlords or property managers, especially when starting out.

QuickBooks is excellent as a complete accounting tool. In terms of accounting features, you’ll have everything you need.

Including:

• Robust financial reporting
• Payroll
• Online payments
• Chart of accounts
• And more

Property managers and landlords often find out very quickly the limitations of QuickBooks.

For example, you don’t have access to non-accounting features such as a tenant portal, marketing tools, and work order features. Trust accounting is not easy. You also have to use workarounds to input your properties and tenants as customers since QuickBooks isn’t designed for property management.

QuickBooks can be a great place to start for those with just a few rental properties.

The issue with using QuickBooks for property accounting

If you're just setting up your accounting, QuickBooks is a great place to start.

But, if you manage dozens of properties yourself or are part of a property management team that manages large numbers of properties, you'll quickly notice the limitations and realize that QB is not a property management software.

With QuickBooks, it's hard to work using multiple accounts, such as property management, business management, and deposits.

And both properties and tenants have to be imputed as customers, which requires a workaround to get everything to show up correctly.

QuickBooks Pricing

The QuickBooks Small Business version’s most basic plan, Simple Start, is $20 per month. However, for essential features such as managing and paying bills, you’ll need to get the Advanced plan for $200 per month.

3. Buildium

Buildium is one of several reliable all-around options for the property management industry, particularly for residential properties, as it has a robust set of features and competitive pricing.

It’s not as affordable as other options unless you have at least 50 units, but other than that, it delivers on ease of use, the number of features, and price.

Features include:

• Payment tracking
• Financial reporting
• Automated monthly bank reconciliation
• Expense tracking
• Mobile app
• Wide-variety of integrations with sites like Apartments.com and Zillow

Buildium pricing

The Buildium basic Essential plan starts at $52 per month up to 20 units.

Larger portfolios can move up to the Growth plan at $166 per month or Premium at $470 per month.

4. Appfolio

Appfolio is a strong overall option, with great features for both residential and commercial property management.

It has an up-to-date interface and robust set of features, though it’s on the pricey side, and certain features can come off as a bit complex or hard to use. With that said, it has good training resources for getting started.

Features include:

• Smart bill entry
• Robust reporting
• Automated late fees
• Utility management
• Security deposit account holding

Appfolio pricing

Appfolio has a $400 onboarding fee for getting started. Monthly pricing comes in between $1.40 and $3 per unit, depending on the property type, with a minimum $250 monthly payment.

The one benefit is that while it’s pricey compared to the typical property management accounting software, there are very few gated features. All customers have access to the majority of the features Appfolio offers.

5. Hemlane

Hemlane is a dedicated tool that offers unique features that help you connect with local agents and leasing tools. Similarly, Hemlane’s strong points are its marketing and tenant placement features.

However, it’s designed for smaller-scale property managers as its pricing is more expensive than other options, so it’s not great for large-scale operations.

Includes:

• Real estate marketing and leasing tools
• Maintenance coordination to handle repairs and other requests
• Local support features
• Tenant screening

Hemlane pricing

Hemlane’s Basic plan starts at $30 per month and $2 per unit after the first, with its premium Complete plan starting at $60 and $32 per additional property. All plans come with a 30-day free trial.

Hemlane is considerably more expensive than other apps, particularly if you have a large portfolio. This might be justified by their unique local support features, such as on-the-ground leasing agents.

6. TenantCloud

TenantCloud offers fewer and less robust features than most dedicated tools on this list.

However, it makes up for it with the most affordable pricing plan. It also offers the only 100% free plan available on this list.

Includes:

• Financial reporting
• Insurance reminders
• Maintenance request management
• Vendor payments
• Cloud based

TenantCloud pricing

The Basic plan is 100% free, up to 75 units. While lacking in many areas, it offers several useful features such as maintenance request management, online rent payments, and some basic accounting tools.

Their most basic Standard paid tier ups the threshold to 150 units and included e-signature and unlimited notice templates, among other features. The Advanced plan covers up to 500 units and includes administrative accounts and premium customer support (though not necessarily in real time).

7. Rentec Direct

Another all-around pick, Rentec Direct offers a diverse range of features.

It is known for feeling a bit dated and less intuitive than many of the newer options on this list, but it manages to deliver one of the more impressive lists of features as well.

Features:

• Robust financial reports
• Owner portal with reporting and owner payments
• Work order management system where you can manage maintenance requests and vendor payments
• Tenant screening and advanced real estate lead tracking
• Built-in email and SMS service for tenant communications
• Cloud based

Rentec Direct pricing

The basic Rentec PRO plan costs $45 per month, covering 10 units. Additional units increase the monthly cost on a tiered scale.

For example:
50 units = $65 / Month
100 units = $110 / Month
250 units = $270 / Month
500 units = $550 / Month

Also, tenant screening will incur an additional cost, with $10 for the Basic Screening Package, $13 for the Enhanced Screening Package with nationwide eviction search, and $18 for the Premium Screening Package with Transunion credit report and FICO score.

8. MRI Commercial Suite

MRI is a strong option for those working with commercial properties, though it has separate offerings for residential and public/affordable housing.

It offers good leasing tools and a generally robust set of features customized to your type of real estate property management.

MRI’s user interface is dated; however, its pricing is high and less transparent (you have to contact MRI for a quote).

Features include:

• Financial reports
• Automated accounts payable
• Maintenance requests
• Lease templates
• Owner portal

MRI pricing

MRI doesn’t list pricing directly on its website, so you need to contact them directly to determine how much MRI will cost you based on your number of rental properties and feature needs.

9. Condo Control

Condo Control is a rental property management software designed specifically for condos and homeowner associations. The software has a somewhat unique set of features. It’s not only based on helping property managers run their business but also handling the unique needs of condo and similar property owners.

Features included:

• Architectural change requests
• Community features for members such as events calendar, bulletin board, and voting
• Track violations
• Online payments
• Security and concierge features such as visitor parking and package tracking

Condo Control pricing

Condo Control offers both a Core and Premium plan with a variety of features. However, the cost isn’t very transparent as you’re required to contact Condo Control directly to find out your price.

10. Propertyware

Propertyware is a full-featured system with a robust set of features and other unique paid add-ons for the property management industry.

It stands out as having some of the best reporting features, including custom fields options, as well as automatic notifications options for both owners and tenants.

However, their pricing structure means it’s not a good fit for those with less than 250 rental properties in their real estate portfolio.

Features:

• Robust and custom reporting
• Owner portal
• Maintenance request management
• Email notifications for tenants and owners
• Cloud based

Propertyware pricing

Propertyware’s Basic plan doesn’t have a flat fee but rather a minimum. A $250 monthly minimum is required, with $1 per unit. That means Propertyware isn’t a great fit unless you have at least 250 rental properties in your portfolio.

The Basic plan also has an onboarding fee equal to 2x the monthly subscription fee.

If you have 300 rental properties, your monthly subscription price would be $300. So, you’d pay a one-time $600 onboarding fee.

Also, Propertyware offers several attractive additional paid features such as 24/7 call center assistance for a $300 one-time setup fee and $1.10 additional per unit.

11. Property Matrix

A strong overall option, Property Matrix is a fully customizable solution that boasts particularly robust real estate features and an intuitive interface.

Features:

• App access
• Online payments via ACH, CC, and check scanning
• Customizable financial reports
• Enterprise-level features
• Built-in document signing
• Owner statements

Property Matrix pricing

Property Matrix is definitely on the enterprise end of things, with its most basic Standard pricing plan starting at $450 per month for up to 250 units. Additional units are $1.75 per unit.

In addition, their most premium Enterprise plan runs at $1,400 per month for up to 800 units.

12. Yardi Breeze

Similar to Yardi, it’s big brother, Yardi Breeze is uniquely suited to new and smaller-scale property managers.

It doesn’t offer an app, but the cloud-based software gives you access to training materials to help get you started easily, in addition to a simple and intuitive interface.

Features include:

• Owner reports
• Tenant communications
• Maintenance request management
• Various features such as one-click import, invoicing, and QuickBooks integration
• Cloud based

Yardi Breeze pricing

Yardi Breeze’s pricing structure is a bit complex as it separates based on the property type. However, it balances that with one of the simplest pricing structures on this list.

For example, their basic residential Breeze plan has a $100 monthly minimum at $1 per unit. There are no additional fees such as onboarding or support fees. The premium Breeze Premium has a $400 minimum at $2 per unit, the same price as their basic commercial property plan.

13. Rent Manager

Rent Manager is one of the most feature-rich options on the list, as it offers a good balance of features, including a cloud-based, desktop, and app-version of the software that’s a fit for both beginners and more advanced large-scale operations.

Features include:

• Vendor and owner payments
• Automatic bank reconciliation
• Reporting
• Countless integrations
• Custom training and data migration
• Cloud based

Rent Manager pricing

Rent Manager doesn’t offer their pricing model on their website; rather, you need to sign up for a free demo to get information from a sales representative.

Pricing options exist for each version of the software, whether the cloud-based or desktop version, as well as a more traditional per-unit pricing model.

Part II: Your Property Accounting Software Questions: Answered

Managing a property management business of any size is difficult, and accounting is just the beginning.

There’s marketing the properties, managing work orders, other tenant requests, and communicating with and paying your client owners (among other things).

The great part about good rental property management software is that it handles all of that and more.

But if you’re new to these tools, or you’re not convinced whether your business needs it or has another question; the answers below might help.

What is property management software?

Property management software is designed specifically to help you manage properties with ease and efficiency and help you save time.

It allows you to do everything you would do with a typical accounting system, such as:

• Manage accounts
• Reporting
• Accept payments
• Issue receipts
• Do payroll

Plus, you can do countless other tasks not directly related to accounting, including:

• Marketing and managing listings
• Offer a tenant portal for tenants to pay rent and check on maintenance requests
• An owner portal where owners can see reports and payment info
• Manage work orders from one convenient place
• And more

Property management software can be used by landlords, property managers, and small businesses with a single unit to a real estate portfolio of thousands, helping you save time and money by pulling dozens of tasks into one central location.

How is property management software different from accounting software like QuickBooks?

With QuickBooks, you can handle every accounting task your property management company could ever need.

That includes:

• Collecting rent payments
• Managing your real estate chart of accounts
• Running reports
• Etc.

Property management accounting software offers all of these basic accounting features plus many other non-accounting features, such as:

• Tenant portal and screening
• Work order management
• Automatic listings and marketing
• Owner portal
• And more

QuickBooks is a more robust accounting solution than the average rental property management software.

So, make sure to find out before committing to a tool without vital features for your business.

It’s important to note that many of these features are designed for purposes that aren’t always relevant to property management.

In other words, more features don’t necessarily mean more useful to you.

To summarize:

• QuickBooks: Robust accounting-only software
• Property management software: All-in-one software designed specifically for property management, including everything from accounting to marketing.

Built for property managers and landlords

The purpose of rental property management software is to make your life as a property manager or landlord easier.

Handling everything from maintenance requests to rent payments, putting up listings, marketing, and managing deposits and accounts is a pain when you have to manage them separately.

With the right program, you can bring all of those things together in one central location.

Instead of bouncing from spreadsheet to spreadsheet, or spreadsheet to QuickBooks, trying to manage everything separately, with property management software (PMS), you can simplify your job down to a single dashboard.

That not only makes things simpler and easier, but it also saves you a real, quantifiable amount of time and money.

And the less you have to manage everything, the more you can focus on other high-level tasks.

A few years ago, features like web portals for tenants and owners were reserved for high-end, expensive software solutions.

Now, affordable options exist for property managers and landlords with real estate rental portfolios of all sizes, whether one or one thousand.

Here are just a few of the benefits you can reap by using a PMS:

• Simplify communication by allowing tenants to communicate through a dashboard on maintenance requests and other issues
• Reduce the time it takes to list available units and market them, further reducing the amount of time those units are vacant
• Centralize business reporting and data to make clearer and more streamlined decisions
• Obtain mobile access to all your real estate property data
• Automate tasks such as collecting rent payments, saving you time and hassle
• And avoid forgetting something important with custom alerts such as due dates on work orders

What does your business need from property management software?

One of the most important questions to answer when considering what kind of property management accounting system and features you need is:

What does your business need from property management software?

Or, said another way, what is of value to you that property management software can offer?

A shiny list of features sounds nice, but it’s important to consider which of those features are actually of value to you.

You might be hesitant to give up the robust accounting features of QuickBooks, only to realize on further inspection that you really only need a few cornerstone features.

If your accounting situation is more complex, those same features might be vital time savers.

That’s what’s so special about property management-dedicated software. Its features are designed to be exactly what you need to thrive as a property manager or landlord managing your properties.

In the same way, however, certain features in a dedicated property management software might be worth their weight in gold, while others won’t provide any value at all to you. It all depends on your situation.

The most important things to consider then are both:

• What do you need from property management software? And
• Which solution provides the most value to you?

Pricing

Like a general accounting system, property accounting software varies in what features it has depending on who offers it. For that reason, the price varies somewhat as well.

Some basic accounting software offers a free trial along with a low monthly payment. Still, you only get the most basic features and none of the other valuable features that the best property management accounting software offers.

Other accounting-only software offers a perma-free version with limited features (and a paid premium version).

True property management software typically uses a per-unit model. For example, one solution might charge a $50 flat monthly fee plus $1.50 additional per unit. So, if you have 75 units, you’d pay $162.50.

Other solutions can charge larger flat monthly fees as well as a charge for onboarding.

For example, a $500 onboarding fee and a monthly fee ranging from $200-$2,000 depending on the size of your business. This is particularly the case for more robust general accounting software and not typically for dedicated property management software.

Try a free demo of DoorLoop

There are countless property management accounting software options out there that can help deliver the tools and features your real estate business needs to maximize productivity, reduce hassle, optimize revenue.

Some, like accounting-specific software such as QuickBooks, only handle the accounting. They’re robust, though, and deliver features that dedicated property management software might not offer.

DoorLoop not only offers all the accounting features necessary to manage your rental portfolio, it offers a plethora of additional features that help you run your entire business– not just accounting.

Whichever you choose, remember that property management software should make your life easier, not more complicated.

The best property accounting software is the one that works for you.

If you don’t feel like your software solution is doing everything it can for your real estate business, consider your other options, and find one that truly helps streamline your business processes, saving you time and money.

Part II: Your Property Accounting Software Questions: Answered

Do property managers do accounting?

A property manager's essential role is to manage a property's expenses and income for the owner. To do this, property managers do have to conduct accounting duties.

What are the property management accounting categories?

Revenues, assets, expenses, owner's equity, and liabilities are some of the main categories of a rental property chart of accounts.

Can QuickBooks be used for property management?

Although many use QuickBooks for their rental property accounting, this is all it will do. If you manage dozens of properties yourself or are part of a property management team that manages large numbers of properties, you'll quickly notice the limitations and realize that QB is not a property management software.