Bookkeeping for Small Time Real Estate Investors

[Christopher Andrews]

Greetings. I bought my first rental property just this past December. I used funds from a number of different sources; TSP loan, Roth Contributions, and from our HELOC; to pay "cash" for the property. It's definitely a fixer-upper, and work has started. I've been incurring expenses. I set me LLC up last Aug., have business bank accounts, etc. I just haven't been doing any bookkeeping basically, and need to get set up and ready to file taxes, and continue to maintain adequate bookkeeping. Can someone recommend a good approach here. I'm aware of quickbooks, and am ready to try them out, but is there a better easier way? Not quite sure how to account for the capital contributions I've made to the business from my various retirement accounts and HELOC, particularly in regards to the TSP Loan which comes with loan payments. Are payments made back to those loans considered distributions? HELP!

btw, I have an accounting degree with a concentration in Federal Contract Law (never took a tax class).  You'd think i'd have this down, but I haven't used my degree much so am a little rusty.