Paper budget and ledger book

[Jacqueline1358]

Hello! I know there are many electronic ways to keep track of your income and expenses for an airbnb, although I would like to find a paper version that I can keep track of things manually. Has anyone had any luck with this? Thank you for any input!

[Lorna170 · Accepted solution]

@Jacqueline1358 Old school here.

I used to print out a copy of the reservation details and put it in a file.  On the front of the file I would write down the dates of the reservation and the income expected.  When I got my bank statement, I would verify receipt of the money and would color the reservation with a highlighter as having been paid.  I kept the reservations file by month.

Expenses were a shoebox of receipts with a written journal.  I would color code the journal entry to show what category (per Schedule E)  the expense was to be applied to.  I would also write on the receipt as "recorded on page X" once it went into the journal.

You can look online for templates that you can print and use with pen or pencil.  My father used a large calendar that he could write on for entering reservations and expenses.  Just figure out what works best for you.  

[Jacqueline1358]

Thank you so much for your detailed assistance @Lorna170! I think that's a good idea about the reference to the schedule E to make it easier for deductions. I know it would be much easier to do on the computer but right now my computer is not in the best shape and I would hate to lose everything until I can get an upgraded computer!