Rent Statement vs Rent Ledger: What to Send Your Tenant
Landlords use both, but they are not the same document. A rent ledger is the internal record you keep of every charge and payment. A rent statement is the summary you send the tenant, the way a bank sends an account statement. Here is how they differ and what to put on a statement.
The difference in one line
The ledger is for you. The statement is for the tenant. The ledger is the full running history you maintain and would take to court. The statement is a clean, period summary you hand to the tenant so they can see rent, any late fees or credits, what they paid, and the balance carried forward.
What a good rent statement includes
Tenant and property at the top, then for the period: opening balance, rent charged, any late fees or other charges, payments received with dates, and the closing balance. Keep it to one page. The tenant should be able to see at a glance whether they are current and, if not, exactly what is owed.
When to send one
Send a rent statement monthly for any tenant who is behind, and on request for tenants who need proof of their payment record for a mortgage, a rental application, or their own files. A statement sent regularly also heads off disputes, because the tenant has seen the running balance every month rather than being surprised by it later.
Generate both from the same numbers
Keep the tenant ledger current, and the statement is just a period view of it. That way the statement you send always matches your internal record, which is what you want if the balance is ever questioned. Generate the statement, save it as PDF, and keep the ledger alongside.
Create a rent statement
Free — upload a rent ledger and download the file you need.
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