Fixed Assets (also known as capital expenses) are your depreciable items: the investment property itself and the capital improvements you make to it. These non-operational costs are not written off against income in a single year but are instead recovered over a preset period of time through depreciation.

TurboTenant Accounting makes it easy to track your fixed assets and Accumulated Depreciation. Fixed assets include your rental property and capital improvements you make to it (such as a substantial renovation or a new HVAC system). After a fixed asset has been set up, you can book depreciation against it.

Some Important Things to Know

At this time, depreciation is automatically calculated in TurboTenant Accounting based on the transaction(s) in the fixed asset, but the system does not automatically enter it on your behalf.
To add your investment property as a fixed asset, first create a new fixed asset. Use the Opening Balance transaction if you purchased the property before the current bookkeeping period (usually before this year) and know your Land/ Buildings/ Accumulated Depreciation numbers. If you purchased the property during the current bookkeeping period, use a manual journal to make a property purchase journal entry.
Tracking fixed assets in TurboTenant Accounting is optional, and not utilizing fixed assets will not harm your ability to keep your Net Income (profit & loss) or Schedule E books. However, if you are not tracking your fixed assets and depreciation, ensure your CPA or tax preparer is on your behalf!

To Add a New Fixed Asset

1) Navigate to Fixed Assets under the Tracking Tab

Click on the Tracking tab on the left side menu, and navigate to Fixed Assets using the tabs at the top of the screen:

2) Click Add Fixed Asset

If you've not added a fixed asset yet, there will be a big blue "Add Fixed Asset" button.

If you've already added a fixed asset, you will find the "Add Asset" button in the top right corner to add additional fixed assets.

3) Follow the prompts to fill out asset details

There are multiple types of fixed assets. Your investment property is a fixed asset, but so is a roof replacement after you've already owned the property for three years. Even though they are both fixed assets, they will be depreciated on different timelines.
Follow the prompts based on the fixed asset you are adding to enter the appropriate information.
Many of the fields are optional, so you can create the asset with the information you have at hand and update it later.

4) Click on your new Fixed Asset

5) View details, Edit, and Add Transactions from the specific Fixed Asset page

Tips for Fixed Assets

As mentioned above, use the fixed asset purchase transaction type to book purchases, payments, and expenses associated with a fixed asset. Do not use the Expense transaction type, which is tied to your operational P&L records.
Manual journals
- Use the Manual Journal transaction type to enter property purchases and/or loan origination transactions that occur during your current bookkeeping period.
- If the purchase occurred prior to the current period, you can add a property basis for past acquisitions, or we recommend you use the opening balance feature.
Use the Opening Balance transaction type when transitioning from another accounting system. The Closing Balance from your previous system provides the Opening Balance for TurboTenant Accounting. Click on "add transaction" in the top right of the fixed asset to enter an opening balance.

Entering Depreciation to Fixed Assets

Use the Depreciation transaction type to book depreciation against a fixed asset. Currently, TurboTenant Accounting automatically calculates depreciation on a straight-line basis and a mid-month convention, but it does not enter these values in the system automatically. Read more on how to enter depreciation for specific fixed assets in TurboTenant Accounting.
If you are working with a CPA or tax preparer, they will likely provide you with a depreciation number for each asset.