Rental vs Business software

[Keith Dalpe]

There seems to be a disconnect here, to me having even one rental property is a business. It seems some BP just seem to treat rentals as investments and not really a business.  So I am debating using Quickbooks  or something cloud based and a little simpler. 

I own a machine shop and use Quickbooks Prem. MFG 2017 desktop , but I also have a full time girl taking care of everything in QB. Now I am getting into single family and vacation rentals.

My big question here is will a software like Rentech Direct or Buildium handle all the small items like QB does ? All expenses, from office supplies, mileage, business vehicle repairs, snow plowing , garbage pickup, property repairs, hours involved DIY repairs, contractors, Tax deduction, depreciation, etc.

They all seem to handle the property management end of things rent, payments, background checks. I would like to have it all in one software, but I don't know if it is possible.

I know many on here say spread sheets, but that is a lot of manual labor and time. Time is money, I could never run a full business with them. So please no spreadsheets 

Price is an issue as well QB Pro Desktop is basically $4.86 month if you upgrade every 3 years many cloud based systems are 10 times that amount or more.

Thanks for any insight you may be able to provide.

[Gita Faust]

@Keith Dalpe To be honest, I do like free software too! But the way I look at it, why should I give someone access to my financials, know how many units I have, how I am collecting rent, what my mortgages are, and so on. 

When a software is free you are signing up to be their test subject. But in the end, they all have to make money, one way or the other. I am sure they are not stealing or invading your privacy. 

Keep us posted so whoever is looking for one they can take your lead and do their due diligence.