Real estate accounting · Landlords, investors & developers
Real estate accounting, tax & CFO services
Rental properties, flips and development projects each need their own books, accurate depreciation and tax planning that uses the rules built for real estate. CPA Torrance is a CPA-led firm in Torrance that keeps real estate investors organized for lenders and tax time.
- Property-level bookkeeping
- Depreciation and cost segregation planning
- Lender-ready financials
In short
What is the best way to do accounting for rental properties?
Keep each property or entity in its own class or set of books, record rent, expenses, loan payments and capital improvements separately, and reconcile every account monthly. A CPA then tracks depreciation, passive loss rules and tax strategies like cost segregation. CPA Torrance sets this up and keeps it running every month.
- Who we serve
- Landlords, flippers, developers
- Core work
- Property books, depreciation, tax
- Where
- Los Angeles and nationwide
Common challenges
Why real estate books fall apart
Investors add properties, entities and loans faster than their bookkeeping can keep up.
Properties mixed together
When several properties share one bank account and one set of books, nobody knows which ones actually make money.
Repairs versus improvements
Expensing improvements or capitalizing repairs the wrong way changes your taxes and can cause problems in an audit.
Missed real estate tax strategies
Cost segregation, the real estate professional rules and 1031 exchanges need planning before the year ends, not after.
What we fix first
We separate every property and entity, reconcile loans and security deposits, and set up a fixed asset schedule so depreciation is right.
- 01Each property tracked separately
- 02Loan principal and interest split
- 03Improvements capitalized correctly
How we help investors
Real estate accounting services
Everything your portfolio needs, from one CPA-led team.
Bookkeeping Services
Property-level bookkeeping with rent rolls, expenses, security deposits and loans reconciled each month.
02Tax Planning & Strategy
Depreciation planning, cost segregation reviews, passive loss and real estate professional analysis, and 1031 exchange coordination.
03Tax Filing & Compliance
Partnership and LLC returns, Schedule E reporting, property tax and 1099 filings for vendors and contractors.
04Fractional CFO Services
Portfolio dashboards, cash-flow forecasts, refinance and acquisition models and lender-ready financial statements.
Investors we serve
Real estate clients we work with
FAQ
Real estate accounting questions
Not covered here? A 15-minute call gets you a straight answer for your situation.
Should each rental property have its own LLC?
It depends on liability, financing and cost. Many investors use separate LLCs for liability reasons, but the tax treatment is often the same. We help you weigh it with your attorney and keep each entity clean.
What is cost segregation?
A cost segregation study breaks a building into components that can be depreciated faster than the building itself, which can create large early deductions. We review whether a study makes sense for your property.
Can rental losses offset my other income?
Usually only within limits, because rental losses are generally passive. Exceptions exist for some active participants and real estate professionals. We analyze your situation each year.
Do you handle short-term rentals?
Yes. We reconcile platform payouts, track cleaning and management fees and help with occupancy tax reporting where required.
Do you work with investors outside California?
Yes. We serve real estate investors in all 50 states.
Can you set up our books so we see results by property?
Yes. Through our financial systems and advisory work we set up QuickBooks Online with a class or location for each property, connect bank feeds and build reports that show income and expenses property by property.
Other industries we serve
Know which properties really pay.
Book a 15-minute call to review your portfolio books and tax plan.