Bench.co for bookkeeping?

Question

Has anyone used Bench.co for bookkeeping for their fix and flip business?  If so, how is this working for you?  And does your CPA like it?  Seems like a perfect solution for those who don't enjoy keeping the books.

Brandon Hall · Answer

@Rachel Gill I have never heard of it but I will say that we like to see organized clients as it makes our lives easier and saves me time and you money. So you should be utilizing some sort of bookkeeping software or service.

I have no idea what type of RE business you are running, but it looks like Bench.co charges $135 per month which is a hefty price tag compares to quickbooks. If you only have a few properties, it probably doesn't make sense to purchase this service.

Gita Faust · Answer

My 2 cents - if bookkeeping is not your cup of tea then hire someone.

----- ASK yourself where am I making money? doing bookkeeping, fixing that property, make my next deal, networking, searching for answers how to use a software on the internet?

----- ASK yourself what is your hourly worth? Is it $500.00 an hour? Whatever it may be, if you spend 5 hours getting frustrated and doing bookkeeping, you just spend $2500. NOW if you hire someone even for $60 an hour, you already made a PROFIT of $2200.

Look at a bigger picture.

What am I missing here? Just want basic bookkeeping that can look through a statement and categorize your expenses? How would that software know if you paid Home Depot for capital improvement or expenses.

It is not - NOT going to keep track what the split is on that payment? for eg mortgage payments - principal vs interest vs escrow? How would you analyze your properties?

Gita Faust

Erik Trefzger · Answer

I signed up for bench.co because bookkeeping is the least favorite part of this business, and I have yet to find a solution.  They seem like a great company, but when they called me to get information about my LLC, they told me that they don't offer bookkeeping services for Real Estate Investment Companies.

Good luck with your search and let me know if you find anything else out there-- I have tried two different remote bookkeepers and ended up with a big mess, and I have no desire to waste anymore of my life looking at QuickBooks.  It's tough b/c I have a property management company collecting all of the rent checks and sending me monthly statements, so I don't need invoicing etc like many online bookkeeping services offer.  I just need basic bookkeeping that can look through a statement and categorize all of the real estate specific transactions (for example, split up my mortgage payment into P, I & Escrow, and also track when the bank pays taxes or insurance out of my escrow account).

Bench.co for bookkeeping?

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