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Rental Property Bookkeeping Software: Stessa, REI Hub, Baselane or QuickBooks
Stessa, REI Hub, Baselane and QuickBooks Online are 4 ways to keep rental books yourself, and the useful comparison is what each one lets those books show.
We compare on what the books must show, because that is what we work from. Every feature fact is linked to the vendor's own page, read on Oct 24, 2026. Where a vendor's pages did not say, the page tells you to check with the vendor.
The examples use a sample company, Demo Rentals LLC, with Property 1 at 275 Demo St, Davis and Property 2 at 1640 Test Way, Vacaville. Every number is invented data.
Choosing between a rental program and general accounting software starts one level up. Our guide to real estate bookkeeping software sorts them by strategy.
What should rental software let your books show?
4 things: a profit and loss for each property, a balance sheet with each loan on it, separate books for each LLC, and accounts you can reconcile to the bank. Compare on those first, then on price.
- A profit and loss for each property: its rent, its costs and its loan interest, month by month.
- A balance sheet: each loan, each escrow balance and each property at its recorded cost.
- Separate books for each LLC, with money between them recorded on both sides.
- Reconciliation: every bank and card account agreeing with its statement at month end.
A program that does all 4 for your portfolio is a fit, whatever its price. A program that misses one leaves that record to you.
How do Stessa, REI Hub, Baselane and QuickBooks compare?
All 4 track income and costs by property and can import bank transactions. They differ on which plan has a balance sheet, on how a second LLC is kept apart, and on what each vendor states about its ledger.
"Not stated" means the vendor's pages read for this comparison did not say, not that the feature is missing. Plans and features change, so check each one on the day you choose.
Each of the 3 rental programs listed a free plan in October 2026: Essentials as listed on Stessa's pricing page, Free as listed on REI Hub's pricing page and Core as listed on Baselane's pricing page. Prices change. The rows above say which plan includes what, where the vendor states it.
What does each rental bookkeeping program do well?
Stessa reports by property with a general ledger on every plan. REI Hub states it is double-entry and reports by property. Baselane joins banking to bookkeeping. QuickBooks Online is accounting software for small business in general.
Stessa
Stessa assigns transactions to properties, and its reports can cover all properties, a portfolio or a single property. Its report list shows a general ledger on every plan, a balance sheet on Pro only and a Schedule E report on Manage and Pro. A Schedule E report sorts the figures. What goes on the return is your CPA's decision. Stessa also says it is a financial technology company and not an FDIC-insured bank.
Setting it up for books by property takes 3 steps:
- 1Link each bank and card account, so that transactions are imported and categorized automatically.
- 2Where an account serves one property only, assign the property directly to the account.
- 3Each month, run the reports for one property at a time and check them against the statements.
REI Hub
REI Hub says its double-entry accounting comes pre-configured with property by property reporting. It can produce your portfolio's balance sheet and Schedule E. A portfolio generally corresponds to a legal entity, several portfolios sit under one login, and each portfolio carries its own subscription.
Its home page now leans toward short-term rental and mixed portfolio operators. TurboTenant acquired REI Hub, and REI Hub powers TurboTenant's accounting.
Baselane
Baselane joins banking and bookkeeping for multi-property owners. Its banking is provided by Thread Bank, Member FDIC, and Baselane says it is not a bank itself. It offers property-level income and expense tracking on Core and balance sheet reports on Smart.
QuickBooks Online
Intuit sells QuickBooks Online as accounting software for small business. Properties become classes on Plus and Advanced, and each LLC is its own company file and subscription.
We walk through the class setup, the mortgage split and a refinance in QuickBooks for rental properties.
What should you check with the vendor before choosing?
Anything the vendor's own pages do not state: whether the ledger is double-entry, which plan includes entity reports, how bank reconciliation works, and what the free plan leaves out. Ask before you move your books.
- Stessa: whether its ledger is double-entry, and whether a portfolio can hold one LLC’s separate books.
- Baselane: whether its ledger is double-entry, and which plan includes entity reports and outside account sync.
- REI Hub: what the Free plan leaves out, and whether it has a general ledger report by that name.
- QuickBooks Online: what the "(40)" next to classes and locations on the Plus plan counts.
- All 4: how bank reconciliation works, step by step.
Ask each question in writing, and keep the vendor's answer with your setup notes.
How do you test a rental program before you move your books?
Enter one real month for one property, then check 3 things: its profit, the loan balance against the lender's statement, and money between your LLCs on both sides. Your own numbers answer more than a feature list.
- 1Pick one property and one real month you already have statements for.
- 2Enter the property manager's statement at its gross figures: rent, the fee and each repair.
- 3Enter the mortgage payment in its parts: principal, interest and escrow.
- 4Run the property's profit and loss and compare it with the figure you expect.
- 5Check that the loan balance matches the lender's statement after the principal.
- 6If you own more than one LLC, record one transfer between them and check that both sides show it.
Here is a test month with its expected answers: Property 1 in October 2026.
| Enter this | Amount | The software should show |
|---|---|---|
| Rent collected by Sample Property Management | $2,900.00 | Income of Property 1 |
| Management fee, 8% of rent | -$232.00 | A cost of Property 1 |
| Repair: fix a leaking kitchen faucet, Sample Plumbing LLC | -$185.00 | A cost of Property 1 |
| Net deposit from the manager, Oct 10, 2026 | $2,483.00 | Matches the bank deposit to the cent |
| Mortgage principal | $236.40 | The loan balance goes down. Not a cost. |
| Mortgage interest | $1,214.60 | A cost of Property 1 |
| Escrow | $623.00 | Money the lender holds. Not a cost. |
| Total mortgage payment, Oct 1, 2026 | $2,074.00 | Matches the bank withdrawal |
| Profit, Property 1, October 2026 | $1,268.40 | The figure the report should show |
Demo Rentals LLC is a sample company.
A second test is a refinance. Property 2's refinance on Oct 22, 2026 left $55,200 of cash out, and $41,380 went back to Demo Flips LLC the next day. Neither one is income, and the software should show both on the balance sheet, not in profit.
The test should end in a rental property P&L for each property, with the portfolio view above it.
When does free rental software stop being enough?
When the records outgrow the time you give them, not at a set number of doors. Several LLCs, money moving between them, a refinance, net deposits from a manager and flips mixed in each add work every month.
Whatever program holds the records, ask who does the work: entering the manager's gross figures, splitting each mortgage payment, recording each refinance as a loan, matching every account to its statement each month.
For 1 or 2 doors, a spreadsheet can be enough. Start with a rental property income and expense spreadsheet laid out by property and month.
We weigh your own time against a bookkeeper's fee in DIY vs outsourced bookkeeping.
Your company's performance, one deal at a time.
Flipper Bookkeeping can do all of this for you, whatever software you use, or none at all. You always own your books, in a format your CPA or your software can read.
For your rentals, Flipper Bookkeeping keeps the books and sends you, every month, a profit and loss for each property and each rehab, with cash against profit. See rental property bookkeeping services.
Want to talk it through for your own deals? Book a free call.