Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: DIY Accounting vs Management Company

[Peter Orbeton (peter.orbeton]

Responding on behalf of Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm in Peterborough, NH.
We have a resident as the bookkeeper. After the untimely passing of our
original bookkeeper (also a resident), we switched accounting software from
Quickbooks to Xero, an online service ($360 annually after the introductory
6 month rate). There is a learning curve to setting up invoices,
categories, accounts, etc., and access to or knowledge of accounting is
without doubt a requirement. Now our bookkeeper says that the time it takes
her to manage our accounts has dropped dramatically to a handful of hours
per month. She also handled the transition.

Teams/individuals submit expenses electronically using a Google sheet
template, which the originator copies and makes unique for any particular
expense and sends it along. Then subsequently the team lead and the
Treasurer approve it electronically and route it to the bookkeeper. We give
residents the option of submitting either paper or electronically, and the
latter is the most often used. We capture and store invoices
electronically, and have a history for teams and residents to review,
consult, etc. Reporting is online and fast - within a day or two of closing
the books for any given month.

We also store certificates of insurance for vendors electronically and will
be generating W-9's using Xero.

The bookkeeper does not do any banking. All banking - deposits and
withdrawals - are handled by the Treasurer (or in an absence, a designated
individual), and we capture and store those transaction slips
electronically as well.

The result is much improved transparency. Residents and teams have
up-to-date information about finances, and questions about what we paid to
whom and when can be answered rather quickly in real-time; for example, in
a meeting.

This is my second stint as the Treasurer - first using Quickbooks, and then
during and after the transition to Xero. There is no way I would want to go
back to the former method.

We do have a separate system for our common meals accounting, handled by
one person as a spreadsheet (Google sheets), though again all residents
have access to their account. The bank transactions are handled by the
Treasurer as well.

A important element of how our system works is Google Sites, although using
Xero stand-alone, in my opinion, would be a winner. We have a Google Site
with the assistance of several technology-savy residents. The community
bulletin board, document repository, calendar, mailing lists, document
signing/routing, etc. is based on Google Sites functionality. We have
learned, the hard way, that Google changes things from time to time, and
guess what - it breaks. Knowledge of scripting, debugging, etc., is
essential. We are almost four years in to using Google Sites, and
integrating our processes with Xero has gone fairly smoothly. Certainly it
helps to have folks who understand the nuances of what is known as
workflow. Combined the functionality of Xero and Google Sites are making
management of operational details much easier.

Finally, we have 31 units.

Peter Orbeton
Treasurer, Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm


Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm
http://www.peterboroughcohousing.org


On Thu, Oct 29, 2015 at 4:29 PM, Sharon Villines <sharon [at] 
sharonvillines.com>
wrote:

>
> We have hired management companies since we moved in. Some have been
> horrible — losing all our records and not paying bills — and some have been
> good but also have not paid bills or noticed that when we switched credit
> card accounts there was a lapse in transferring payments so other things
> were cut off. No perceptible difference in the cost of purchases and
> services which they promise — we have clout.
>
> My personal opinion is that we have them because it gives some people
> confidence but they aren’t worth the money. We spend as much time
> communicating problems as we would just doing the job ourselves. With all
> the online property management services or Freshbooks for accounting,
> invoicing, tracking condo fees, etc. it is much easier now that it ever has
> been.
>
> It seems like a no brainer to me since we have many more professional
> managers, including budget analysis experts, in house than we have
> carpenters and cleaners. I think we are paying the wrong people. The fees
> with everything included are approaching $20,000 an year— an average of
> $465 per unit. I think we can save $15,000 by using online condo management
> software or Freshbooks.
>
> My question is for those who do it in house. How much time does it take?
> How many people are involved? How many units do you have? Does it create
> tensions?
>
> Sharon
> ----
> Sharon Villines
> Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
> http://www.takomavillage.org
>
>
>
>
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