For agencies collecting tenant fees that are not to appear on Owner Ledgers or Statements, there are two primary setup options. Each offers different levels of reporting, setup effort, and fee visibility. This article outlines both options to help you choose the best setup for your business needs.
Before proceeding, ensure you’re familiar with creating Owner Ledgers and using Chart of Accounts (COA) codes. Refer to the related guides at the bottom of this article for assistance.
Option 1 – Single Agency Ledger
Summary: A central ledger (not linked to any property) is used to collect all tenant fees directly under the agency's name.
Steps:
- Create a new Owner Ledger for the agency. This ledger should not be linked to a property.
- Link a contact set as an Owner Type that represents the agency (not an actual property owner).
- Add appropriate revenue codes to your Chart of Accounts (COA) to handle tenant fee income.
- Raise income invoices to tenants using the new revenue COA and the agency ledger.
- Disburse the funds as you would for an owner.
Example of an Income Invoice, using the agency ledger.
Reporting for this setup appears under standard owner reports such as the Owner Statement and Financial Summary but will not be included in fee-specific reports or dashboards.
Pros:
- Easy and quick to set up.
- Requires only a one-time setup—no repetition per property.
Cons:
- Fees are not included in fee-specific reporting such as Insights or Dashboards.
- Income is handled separately from other property fee structures, which may cause accounting fragmentation.
Option 2 – Fee Ledger per Property
Summary: A dedicated fee ledger is set up for each property, allowing you to manage tenant fees on a per-property basis.
Steps:
- Create revenue and expense codes in your COA for each specific fee type
- Set up a fee rule using “Money In/Out” with a 100% fee rate.
- Add the fee rule to the specific property/properties.
- Create a new ledger for each property.
- Set Generate Statement and Owner Disbursable to No.
- Link the agency contact (not the property owner) to the ledger.
- Assign the new fee ledger as the default for relevant fee revenue and expense codes.
- Raise tenant invoices using the assigned revenue codes.
- Payments will be received into the fee ledger, and fees will be automatically calculated and raised.
Pros:
- Fee income is tracked per property for better financial visibility.
- Fees can be disbursed alongside other property-related transactions.
- Improved audit trail and reporting clarity for accounting teams.
Cons:
- Must be configured individually for each property.
- Higher risk of setup errors—ensure agency contact is not listed as the property owner to avoid misreporting (particularly for GST/BAS).
Choosing Between the Options
| Use Case | Recommended Option |
|---|---|
| Quick setup, low volume of fee types | Option 1 – Single Agency Ledger |
| Per-property transparency and workflow integration | Option 2 – Fee Ledger per Property |
| Need for fee reporting via Insights or Dashboards | Option 2 – Fee Ledger per Property |
| Want to avoid setting up each property individually | Option 1 – Single Agency Ledger |