Real Estate Bookkeeper / Controller

Job Description

Job Description

We are a growing real estate investment and property management company seeking a highly organized, detail-oriented Bookkeeper / Controller to join our team. This role is ideal for someone who understands real estate accounting, can manage day-to-day bookkeeping responsibilities, and is also capable of handling higher-level controller functions such as closing entries, reconciliations, financial reporting, and property-level accounting.

Our company owns and manages a diverse portfolio of residential and commercial properties, including single-family homes, multifamily properties, industrial buildings, shopping centers, office buildings, and mixed-use assets. We are looking for someone who can bring structure, accuracy, and consistency to our accounting process.

Responsibilities

The Bookkeeper / Controller will be responsible for managing and supporting the accounting function across our real estate portfolio.

Responsibilities include:

• Record and maintain accurate financial transactions for multiple properties and entities.
• Log real estate closings, acquisitions, refinances, sales, and related closing entries.
• Review closing statements and properly record purchase prices, loan proceeds, lender fees, escrow items, prorations, deposits, and settlement charges.
• Reconcile bank accounts, credit cards, loan accounts, escrow accounts, and security deposit accounts.
• Manage accounts payable, including entering bills, coding expenses to the correct property/entity, tracking vendor invoices, and preparing payments.
• Manage accounts receivable, including tenant charges, rent payments, reimbursements, deposits, and open balances.
• Assist with rent rolls, tenant ledgers, security deposits, and owner/property reporting.
• Track loan payments, interest, principal, escrow, and lender reserves.
• Prepare monthly financial reports by property and entity.
• Assist with monthly and year-end closing procedures.
• Maintain organized books for multiple LLCs and property-owning entities.
• Work with outside CPAs on tax preparation, year-end reporting, and required documentation.
• Help maintain clean records for acquisitions, refinances, dispositions, capital improvements, and investor-related reporting.
• Assist with CAM, tax, insurance, and other commercial tenant reimbursement tracking where applicable.
• Review accounting records for accuracy and flag discrepancies.
• Help improve internal accounting processes, controls, and reporting systems.
• Maintain vendor files, W-9s, insurance documents, and payment records.
• Support ownership and management with ad hoc reporting and financial analysis.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate should have:

• Prior bookkeeping, accounting, or controller experience.
• Real estate accounting experience strongly preferred.
• Experience working with multiple entities, properties, or bank accounts.
• Ability to reconcile accounts accurately and consistently.
• Strong understanding of AP, AR, general ledger entries, and monthly close procedures.
• Ability to read and understand closing statements, settlement statements, loan documents, and property-level financials.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to stay organized.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced real estate environment.
• Ability to communicate clearly with ownership, property managers, vendors, tenants, banks, and outside accountants.
• Experience with property management or accounting software preferred.
• Proficiency with Excel and/or Google Sheets.
• Ability to identify issues, clean up records, and create better accounting processes.

Preferred Experience

Experience with any of the following is a plus:

• Real estate investment accounting.
• Property management accounting.
• Commercial real estate accounting.
• Residential rental accounting.
• CAM/NNN reconciliations.
• AppFolio, Buildium, Rent Manager, QuickBooks, Yardi, or similar systems.
• Recording acquisitions, dispositions, refinances, and closing entries.
• Working with multiple LLCs or related entities.
• Investor reporting or partner distributions.

Ideal Candidate

We are looking for someone who is more than just a data-entry bookkeeper. The right person should be able to take ownership of the accounting process, keep records organized, reconcile accounts, understand property-level reporting, and help management get accurate financial information.

This person should be reliable, detail-oriented, proactive, and comfortable working independently. We need someone who can handle everyday bookkeeping tasks while also having the ability to think at a higher accounting level.