Setting Up Categories | Chart of Accounts

Rentec Direct makes it easy to manage a real estate portfolio with full accounting options. 

The most common account types used in property management are available by default, with the option to add more as needed. 

This article reviews:

• How to Create a New Category
• Editing Categories
• Organizing and creating sub categories
• Adding, Archiving, Deleting, and Reactivating Linked Assets

Pro Tip: Check with your CPA or accountant to verify which accounts may be most beneficial.

Learn more about Rentec Direct's Full Accounting Options | Assets, Liabilities, and Equity with a True Balance Sheet.

Create a New Category

In your Rentec Direct account: 

1. Click on Settings 
2. Under Financial click on Chart of Accounts
3. Click on +Add Account
4. Enter a Description 
5. Choose a transaction type from: 
   1. Income (Rental Income, HOA Dues, and Application Fees etc.)
   2. Expense (Repairs, Landscaping, Management Fees etc.)
   3. Asset (Properties, Vehicles, Equipment etc.)
   4. Liability (Obligations owed; Mortgages, Loans, Credit Cards etc.)
   5. Equity (Shareholders' stake in the company; Opening Balances, Owner Contributions, Retained Earnings)
   6. Other (Transactions that do not affect income/expense reports; balance transfers)
6. Select a Class for further clarification of a type. On balance sheets and other reports transactions will be broken down by class.
   1. Income
      1. Standard
      2. Management Fees
   2. Expense
      1. Standard
      2. Management Fees (expense): Any categories related to the flow of management fees, placement fees, or commissions to your firm.
      3. Owner Distributions
   3. Asset
      1. Current Assets
      2. Fixed Assets

      3. Real Estate

         
         

         Pro Tip: When adding or editing properties, select Linked Asset Account to automatically create a linked account. Easily unlink an Asset Account by deleting the chart of account

   4. Liability
      1. Current Liability
      2. Long Term Liability
      3. Security Deposits
      4. Prepaid Rents
   5. Equity
      1. Standard
   6. Other
      1. Standard
7. Indicate a Reference Number or allow the system to AutoNumber them for you (you can edit these numbers at any time).

8. Check the box if this category should influence your Schedule E.

   
   

   Important Note: We recommend you speak to your accountant to discuss your specific tax requirements. 

9. Click on Save New Account 

Editing Categories

You can edit categories for your unique business needs quickly and easily. 

In your Rentec Direct account:

1. Click on Settings
2. Under Financial, click on Chart of Accounts 
3. Click on the paper/pencil icon to edit
4. Make needed changes and Click on Save Changes

Organizing Categories (creating sub-categories)

There are many reasons you may wish to reorganize your categories. For instance, you may get a request from your accountant to use specific categories to meet your business needs. To accomplish this, simply use the instruction above to edit.  

Tips: 

• The system doesn't use sub-categories per se. Instead, categories are organized by a reference number which can be edited in a subcategory fashion. 
• To help with this process, the system will allow you to use decimal points. This can be very handy when pulling category ledger reports which allow you to pull by one single category or multiple categories at once. 

Adding, Archiving, and Deleting Linked Asset Accounts

You can quickly Add Linked Asset Accounts in your Rentec Direct account by following the steps below.

If a property is sold or no longer active in your account, you have the option of:

1. Archiving the Linked Asset Account which will hide it from any new transactions and prevents edits to existing transactions with that category. The existing transactions will still appear on relevant reports.
2. Transfer existing transactions to another account and permanently delete the account

Adding Linked Asset Accounts

Linked Assets can easily be created when adding or editing a property

In your Rentec Direct account:

1. Click on Properties
2. Right-click on a property and select Edit Property
3. Under Financial, check the box next to Linked Asset Account and enter the Opening Balance
4. Click on Update Property

___________

Archive or Delete a Linked Asset Account

Archiving a linked asset account will hide it from any new transactions and save existing transactions with that category. The existing transactions will still appear on relevant reports.

In your Rentec Direct account:

1. Click on Banking
2. Click on Chart of Accounts

3. Click on the archive file icon to the right of the balance

   The following option will be displayed

   

4. Click on Archive Account to archive or Click on the "clicking here" link to Delete

   the following prompt will display allowing you to transfer the transactions to another category and Delete the Linked Asset