Building Better Multifamily Budgets through Forecasting and Planning

Building better multifamily budgets through forecasting and planning is no easy task for today’s accounting teams. With so many facets to operating and marketing apartments, no two budgets are alike. Creating a plan that meets the specific needs of a portfolio calls for more than just linking a few spreadsheets together. With the apartment industry’s mission to create better experiences for residents, the need to accurately account for certain operational expenses and marketing opportunities has become greater. More granular forecasting and planning is essential and depends on accurate, real-time information presented in multiple ways for stakeholder review. Manually creating formulas and entering data on traditional budgeting worksheets is time-consuming and runs the risk of incorrect or incomplete presentation. As portfolios grow, accounting challenges mount. And when a business changes on a dime, as it did in 2020, the budgeting platform must pivot as quickly. “It’s a herculean effort with spreadsheets and reference columns to make sure you are capturing everything that should be included,” says Dan Newbern, RealPage VP, Financial Suite. “Once that’s done it can get even more challenging when it comes to reforecasting or creating alternate budgets due to changes in your business.” Forecasting and planning have become an integral part of financial planning within a multifamily portfolio, adds Newbern, who recently discussed the merits of RealPage’s new Forecasting & Planning solution within RealPage Accounting. The accounting platform, the newest piece to RealPage’s Financial Suite, saves time, reduces risk and creates, monitors and manages a budget or forecast for corporate entities. A key function is creating budget scenarios for all entities to be used in financial reporting. Building robust budgets through forecasting and planning In “Easy Does It: Forecasting & Planning,” N...