Statement Balance Doesn't Match Owners Due Report

Owner Balance Due Dates

Within the owner payment schedules, you have the flexibility to update the due date, allowing payments to be moved earlier or later. This adjustment transforms the payment into an ad-hoc payment, deviating from your standard rules.

When due dates are updated, your reconciliation process may be affected. Follow these steps to address this issue:

Example Scenario

Suppose you identify that several bookings have had their due dates moved forward or delayed. You calculate the total adjustments made and compare this with your expected Owner Balance. If the adjusted balance matches the expected balance, you can proceed with running your statements. If not, you will need to follow the booking errors process to resolve any outstanding issues.

Scenario Details:

• Owner Payment Due Report: £100,000
• Bookings Report: £101,000

Booking 1:

• Owner Balance: £1,000
• Due Date: Moved to next month

In this example, you observe a £1,000 shortfall. The discrepancy arises because one booking's due date has been moved to the next month. The adjusted reports illustrate this:

• Owner Payment Due Report: £100,000
• Bookings Report: £101,000
• Difference: £1,000

The shortfall is explained by the £1,000 booking moved to the next month.

This methodical approach helps maintain accurate financial records and ensures trust and transparency with property owners.

1. Identify Bookings With Updated Due Dates:

• Review all bookings to identify those with due dates moved forward or delayed.

2. Calculate Total Adjustments:

• Sum the adjustments from these bookings to see if they account for the discrepancy.

3. Reconcile Adjusted Balances:

• Compare the adjusted totals with your expected Owner Balance.

Outcome

• If the Adjusted Balance Matches:
  • Proceed with running your statements. The example shows that adjusting for the £1,000 moved booking reconciles the reports.
• If the Adjusted Balance Does Not Match:
  • Move on to the booking errors process to identify and rectify any outstanding issues.

By using this methodical approach, you maintain accurate financial records and ensure trust and transparency with property owners.

Booking Errors

Step 1: Identify Errors on Bookings

In the short-term rental industry, managing bookings can be complex due to the involvement of multiple stakeholders and the dynamic nature of reservations. Bookings are often modified for various reasons such as price changes, date adjustments, and quantity updates. These changes can lead to inaccuracies in financial data, especially when systems are new or users overlook warning messages.

To ensure the accuracy of financial reporting and owner payments, it is crucial to identify and rectify errors in bookings before beginning the reconciliation process.

Best Practices for Monitoring Booking Data Health

1. Regular Data Audits:

• Conduct regular audits of your booking data to catch any discrepancies early. This can be done weekly or monthly depending on the volume of bookings.
• Compare booking data across different channels and systems to ensure consistency.

2. Utilise System Warnings and Alerts:

• Pay attention to system-generated warnings and alerts. These notifications are designed to highlight potential issues such as conflicting dates, pricing errors, or overbookings.
• Ensure that all staff members are trained to recognise and address these warnings promptly.

3. Cross-Check Payment Schedules:

• Verify that payment schedules align with booking details. Discrepancies in due dates or payment amounts can indicate underlying booking errors.
• Use reports like the 'Owner Payments Due Report' to cross-check and validate payment schedules.

4. Monitor Booking Modifications:

• Keep a log of all booking modifications, including changes in price, dates, and quantities. This log should be reviewed regularly to ensure that all changes are properly recorded and reflected in the financial data.
• Implement a review process for significant booking changes to ensure accuracy before they are finalized.

5. Validate Data Entry:

• Ensure that all booking entries are double-checked for accuracy. This includes verifying guest details, payment amounts, and booking dates.
• Encourage a culture of accuracy and attention to detail among staff to minimize data entry errors.

6. System Training and Updates:

• Provide ongoing training for staff on the booking system, emphasizing the importance of accuracy and how to handle system warnings.
• Keep your booking system updated with the latest features and bug fixes to minimize the likelihood of errors.

By implementing these steps, you can significantly reduce the occurrence of booking errors and maintain accurate financial records. This, in turn, will ensure that owner payments are processed correctly, fostering trust and transparency in your short-term rental business.

Categories of Errors to Identify and Fix

These errors must be fixed before processing the owner statement:

1. Owner Payments vs. Statement Payments:

• Ensure that owner payments match the statement payments to avoid discrepancies.

2. Extras Payable:

• Verify that extras payable are set correctly in the system.

3. Renter Payments and Schedules:

• Check that renter payments are linked to the correct renter schedules.

4. Owner Payments and Schedules:

• Confirm that owner payments are linked to the appropriate owner schedules.

5. Schedules for Extras:

• Ensure that all extras have associated schedules.

6. Unlinked Owner Schedules:

• Identify owner schedules that are not linked to a renter schedule.

7. Discrepant Owner Schedules:

• Check for owner schedules with values greater than the linked renter schedule.

Owner Bookings with Financials:

• Ensure that owner bookings have correct financial records.

8. Unpaid Schedules with Zero Balance:

• Find and fix any unpaid schedules that show a zero balance.

9. Schedules with Outstanding Balances:

• Correct any schedules marked as paid that still have an outstanding balance.

10. Negative Balance Schedules:

• Identify and rectify schedules with negative balances.

11. Payment Allocation:

• Check the allocation of payments to schedules and ensure they are correctly assigned.

12. Fully Paid Bookings with Unpaid Renter Schedules:

• Address any fully paid bookings that still have unpaid renter schedules.

13. Bookings with Negative Balances:

• Correct any bookings that show a negative balance.

14. Owner Balance Check:

• Verify the owner balance to ensure accuracy.

Resolving Common Issues

The good news is that these common issues can be resolved with a few clicks. Your iPRO support team is equipped to identify all issues and automatically resolve them. Once these issues are addressed, they will provide a list of bookings that require a manual check before proceeding.

For assistance, please reach out to our team at support@ipro-software.com, who will be happy to help.