Accounting spreadsheet template

[Zach Wittmann]

Hey BP community, this is my first post. I'm just starting to get my feet wet with real estate investing. My brother and I (who both have history of doing multiple live-in flips over the years) recently consulted with an attorney, started an LLC, purchased the BP state-specific forms, and have purchased one single-family rental thus far and are closing on a second singe family property that will be a flip later this month. We are located in Illinois, but very close to St. Louis, MO.

I have a question that I was hoping the BP community could help with: I was wondering if anybody could point me in the direction of a nice, clean, and easy to use accounting spreadsheet template (or something of that nature) for real estate investing book-keeping? I have looked at the "spreadsheets" section of Bigger Pockets, but there is so much there that I thought it might be easier to ask BP members directly if there are ones that you have used successfully and could recommend? We have an accountant that will be doing our taxes, but I am in charge of keeping the books until tax time, and I want to start off on the right foot and keep my accounting very organized.

Thanks so much everyone!

Zach

[Megan Greathouse]

@Zach Wittmann... I found one here that I've been using since getting started in real estate investing last year:

http://www.fastbusinessplans.com/business-template...

It already includes the Schedule E categories that you'll want to use, and has a summary page at the front that autopopulates based on the info you enter for each month. I have one of these spreadsheets for each property I own. I also have a slightly modified version of this spreadsheet that I use to track all business expenses not attributed to a specific property. For instance, mileage from driving around to view properties for sale, educational expenses like books or seminars, expenses from networking events with other real estate professionals, etc.

Hope that provides a helpful example. Good luck getting things set up!