Expenses

What an expense is

An expense is any cost of operating your rentals: a plumber's invoice, the hydro bill, landscaping, supplies, property management costs. Recording expenses in TenantBuddy does two things. It tells you what each property actually costs to run, and it categorizes spending so your reports and tax filing come together with far less effort at year end.

Line items, categories & taxes

Like an invoice, an expense is built from line items. Each line carries:

• A category — the income & expense category it belongs to (repairs, utilities, insurance, and so on), which drives where it lands on your reports.
• An amount — the cost of that line.
• Taxes — GST/HST or provincial tax applied per line where it applies, so totals and input tax credits are accurate.

You can also attach the receipt or vendor invoice to the expense, keeping the paper trail in the same place as the record, exactly what you'll want if you're ever asked to substantiate a claim.

Recording an expense

Record costs from Accounting → Expenses :

1. Start a new expense. Choose Record Expense and select the vendor if there is one.
2. Set the property and date. Tie the expense to the property (and unit) it relates to.
3. Add line items. Enter each line with its category, amount, and any tax.
4. Attach the receipt. Upload the vendor's invoice or receipt for your records.
5. Save. The expense posts to your books and appears on your expense reports.

Distributing an expense across units

Some costs cover more than one unit: a shared utility, a roof repair on a multi-unit building, a building-wide service contract. Distributing (allocating) an expense splits the cost across the relevant units or contracts so each one carries its fair share. To distribute:

1. Open the expense and choose Distribute.
2. Select the units or contracts the cost should be shared among.
3. Set how it's split: evenly, by percentage, or by specific amounts.
4. Save the distribution. Each unit now reflects its portion of the cost in your reports.

Paying vendors

Recording an expense captures what you owe; recording the payment captures that you've paid it. Pay vendors from Accounting → Expense Payments , where you apply a payment against one or more outstanding expenses, the mirror image of how invoice payments work on the income side. This keeps your accounts payable accurate and your vendor history complete.

Fees & their distributions

Management fees, like a percentage you take on collected rent, are handled under Accounting → Fees . Like expenses, fees can be distributed so the cost is allocated correctly across the properties or owners they relate to, keeping owner statements and reports accurate.