The Monthly Report Package for an Apartment Building: What Each Statement Shows and in What Order to Read It

What is in a monthly report package for an apartment building?

6 reports for each building: a cash view, the rent roll, a list of unpaid rent, the profit and loss, budget against actual, and the balance sheet.

The package is the output of apartment building bookkeeping. One package per building, every month.

In what order should an apartment owner read the monthly reports?

Cash view, rent roll, unpaid rent, profit and loss, budget against actual, balance sheet. The order goes from what is urgent this month to what changes slowly.

1. 1Cash view first. It tells you whether there is a problem this week.
2. 2Rent roll second. It says what should have come in.
3. 3Unpaid rent third. It says who to call.
4. 4Profit and loss fourth. It says whether the month worked.
5. 5Budget against actual fifth. It says which lines to ask about.
6. 6Balance sheet last. It changes slowly and holds the long-term picture.

What does an apartment building's cash view show?

The cash view starts with the bank balance and subtracts tenant deposits, reserves and bills due. What is left is the cash the owner can really use.

Birch Way cash view, invented data

$112,000 in the bank looks fine. $41,000 of it is owed back or set aside, and $78,000 of bills are due. Real cash is -$7,000. The building made money this month and is still short of cash.

What do an apartment building's rent roll and unpaid rent list show?

The rent roll shows what every unit owed for the month. The unpaid rent list shows which units still owe, how much, and for how long.

Birch Way rent roll, summary, invented data

Birch Way unpaid rent, invented data

Why rent due and rent banked differ is in rent roll vs bank statement.

What does an apartment building's profit and loss show?

The profit and loss shows rent and other income, less running costs, which gives net operating income. Below that it shows the loan payment and what is left.

Birch Way profit and loss, summary, invented data

Net operating income is rent less running costs, before the loan. Every line of this report, with the 7 cost groups opened up, is in an apartment building profit and loss, line by line. 12 of these months side by side make the T12 statement.

What does budget against actual show for an apartment building?

It sets each income and cost line beside the amount planned for the month and shows the difference, so the owner sees which lines are off plan.

Birch Way budget against actual, invented data

The month planned for 48 rented units and got 47, so rent was $1,450 short of plan. Repairs ran $800 over and utilities $200 over, while the management fee came in $100 under. Together that is the $2,350 shortfall against plan.

Which lines to ask about, and the usual reasons, are in budget vs actual for an apartment building.

What does an apartment building's balance sheet show?

The balance sheet shows what the building owns and owes on the last day of the month: bank accounts, deposits owed to tenants, reserves, and the loan balance.

Birch Way balance sheet, summary, invented data

The building is carried at its purchase price.

Which numbers should agree across an apartment building's reports?

Rent on the P&L should match the rent roll less vacancy and unpaid rent. Deposits on the balance sheet should match the deposit ledger. Cash should match the bank reconciliation.

• Rent on the P&L, $68,150, equals rent due on the rent roll, $68,150. Rent if full less empty units gives the same number.
• Rent owed on the balance sheet, $2,900, equals the unpaid rent list, $2,900.
• Deposits owed on the balance sheet, $35,250, equal the deposit ledger: 47 units at $750.
• Bank accounts on the balance sheet, $112,000, equal the cash view and the 3 bank reconciliations.

The bank check is the one the other 3 rest on. Each account is tied to its statement in bank reconciliation for an apartment building.

When should an apartment building's monthly report package arrive?

After the month is closed: every bank account reconciled, the rent roll tied to the bank, deposits and reserves tied out. A package sent before that is a draft.

The steps that close a month, in order, are in the month-end close for an apartment building. We send the package last, once the month is closed.