Property looks simple on paper: rent in, costs out, profit left over.
In reality, it’s rent rolls, arrears, service charges, maintenance, compliance, and (if you’re developing) a tangle of invoices and stage payments, all while rates and regulations keep shifting. That’s why more landlords, agents, and small developers are handing the numbers to specialists and getting back to growing their portfolios.
The pressure points in property finance
- Rent and arrears management: Keeping the rent roll tight, spotting slippage early, and turning “late” into “paid” without burning relationships.
- Service charges and reconciliations: Clear apportionment, yearend packs, and auditready records for blocks and mixeduse sites.
- VAT complexity: Residential rents (exempt), optedtotax commercial units, mixed portfolios, capital works, and reverse charge in the construction supply chain.
- Shortterm cashflow swings: Voids, refurbs, insurance excesses, and one slowpaying commercial tenant can derail the month.
- MTD readiness: Digital records and clean, consistent data so quarterly submissions aren’t a scramble when timelines kick in.
What an outsourced bookkeeper actually does for property
Think of us as your offsite finance team, tuned for landlords, agents, and small developers.
- Rent roll and arrears:
- Automated rent schedules tied to tenancies and reviews.
- Proactive credit control with courteous, consistent chasing and clear escalation paths.
- Bad payer protection for commercial tenants through credit checks, monitoring, and options like credit insurance and Debtor Watch.
- Service charge accounting:
- Budget setup and tracking by building/schedule.
- Supplier management with purchase order matching and retention of warranties/certificates.
- Yearend packs that make accountant and auditor queries painless.
- Project and refurb tracking:
- Jobbyjob cost codes for refurbs and developments.
- Drawdown readiness for lenders with uptodate spend summaries and evidence packs.
- Margin visibility so you know when to pause, push, or pivot.
- VAT and compliance:
- Option to tax support and partial exemption awareness.
- Domestic reverse charge handled correctly on contractor invoices where applicable.
- Clean digital records aligned to MTD requirements.
- Reporting you’ll actually use:
- Unitlevel P&L and portfolio rollups.
- Cashflow forecasts keyed to rent cycles, debt service, and planned works.
- KPIs that matter: occupancy, arrears days, service charge recovery, and capex burn.
- Systems that fit you:
- Xero, QuickBooks, Sage setup and training.
- Property integrations and practical workflows your team (or agent network) will stick to.
Who we help in the property world
- Individual landlords and portfolio owners: BTL, HMO, serviced accommodation, and mixed portfolios.
- Letting and managing agents: Client money reconciliations, landlord statements, fee handling, and service charge packs.
- Small developers and SPVs: Build/refurb cost control, supplier due diligence, staged invoicing, and lenderfriendly reporting.
- Commercial property owners: Leaselinked billing, indexation, service charge trueups, and debtor watch on business tenants.
Why clients make the switch
- Cash in faster: Structured credit control turns awkward chasing into predictable collections.
- Cost control without the drama: Realtime spend vs. budget prevents nasty yearend surprises.
- Less risk, more resilience: Early warning on arrears, credible forecasts for lenders, and better audit trails.
- Time back: You (or the person helping in the evenings) get headspace, with a whole team behind you when issues pop up.
The quick next step
If you want tighter arrears, clearer cashflow, and clean compliance, without living in spreadsheets — outsourcing the books is the simplest win you can make this quarter.