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Record a Non-Refundable Fee on a Lease

Charge a tenant a non-refundable fee, such as a pet fee, that counts as revenue rather than a liability like a security deposit.

Written by Samuel

Overview

If you charge tenants a non-refundable fee, it shouldn't be categorized as a liability like a regular security deposit, since you won't be returning it to the tenant at the end of the lease. Because this counts as income, you'll use a revenue category instead.

The Steps

Follow the steps in Post a One-Time Charge on a Lease, with this one difference:

  • Category: Choose a revenue account for the charge — for example, a non-refundable pet fee category — and no a liability account since this is a payment that will not be returned to the tenant at the end of the lease.

Once the tenant pays, or once you enter the payment, this shows up in your reports as revenue collected, since it won't be returned to the tenant. It also won't show up as a liability or a deposit.

Note: If this money is kept by the property management company rather than passed on to the owner, you'll need to add it to the payout categories of your management fees settings. See Set Up Your Management Payout Categories for instructions.

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