Why Banner Economics
The capabilities of an accounting department, without building one.
Hiring an accountant solves a staffing problem. It doesn’t automatically give you review, redundancy, or specialized expertise. We designed our service around all three.
01What sets us apart
Built for property management. Structured for accountability.
01
Property management is all we do
Trust accounts, owner and tenant ledgers, security deposits, management fees, and distributions are our everyday work, not an edge case.
02
A CPA on every account
A U.S.-based CPA supervises your account, reviews reconciliations and statements, and is your escalation point.
03
Staffed to your volume
A shared specialist when that is enough, a dedicated specialist when it isn’t. Move between levels as your portfolio changes.
04
The same close, every month
Documented workflows and a fixed close calendar make results consistent and predictable.
05
Problems surface on paper
Monthly exception reporting lists every unresolved item, who owns it, and what is needed to clear it.
06
Defined communication
Named contacts, agreed channels, scheduled reviews, and response standards written into your agreement.
07
Continuity built in
Procedures are written down and coverage is planned, so vacations and turnover don’t stop the work.
08
Room to grow
Add doors, entities, or owners without running another hiring search. Capacity scales with you.
02The full cost of a hire
A salary is only the visible part.
Outsourcing is not automatically cheaper for every company. But a fair comparison includes everything an in-house role requires. We will walk through that comparison with your numbers during the consultation.
- Recruiting and interviewing for a specialized skill setOur responsibility
- Training on your software, properties, and proceduresOur responsibility
- Reviewing their work, or trusting it unreviewedOur responsibility
- Covering vacations, sick days, and leavesOur responsibility
- Restarting the search when they resignOur responsibility
- Benefits, payroll taxes, equipment, and software seatsOur responsibility
Outsourced vs. in-house
Everything you want from an in-house accountant. Except the desk.
Wanting your accountant close by is reasonable. What most owners are really after is availability, familiarity, and accountability. Those come from how the work is staffed and supervised, not from where the chair is.
- Someone available when questions come up
- Single hire: Available when in the office, not on leave, and not between jobs.
- Banner: Named specialist, defined channels, and response standards in writing. Dedicated clients get priority support.
- Someone who knows our business
- Single hire: Knowledge lives in one person's head and leaves with them.
- Banner: Your specialist learns your portfolio, and your procedures are documented so the knowledge stays.
- Accountability for the numbers
- Single hire: Often no one with accounting expertise reviews their work.
- Banner: A U.S.-based CPA reviews reconciliations and statements before they reach you.
- Control over daily priorities
- Single hire: You direct the work, and you also train, manage, and cover for it.
- Banner: You set priorities and approvals; we handle staffing, training, supervision, and coverage.
- Dependability
- Single hire: Vacations, turnover, and resignations stop the work.
- Banner: Backup coverage and documented workflows keep the close on schedule.
What stays on site, and how we work with it
Remote accounting cannot open your mail. Some tasks need someone in the building, and we plan for them rather than pretend otherwise.
Your office staff
- Receiving and scanning physical mail and invoices
- Accepting paper documents and authorized physical payments
- Assisting walk-in tenants
- Other on-site administrative tasks
How we coordinate
- Written handoff procedures for each task
- A secure channel for scanned documents
- Clear task ownership on both sides
- Escalation to your CPA account manager
03Why not hire directly?
The talent is excellent. The structure around it is what you’re buying.
Our accounting specialists are based in the Philippines, and we’re glad to say so. Hiring a capable offshore bookkeeper directly is possible. What’s harder is everything that has to surround them.
- Who trains them on property management accounting?
- We do, before and during your engagement.
- Who reviews their reconciliations and statements?
- Your U.S.-based CPA account manager.
- What happens when they’re out or leave?
- Documented procedures and planned coverage keep the work moving.
- Who is accountable if something is wrong?
- Banner Economics, a U.S. company with a defined engagement agreement.
04Security & controls
Your access, your approvals, your funds.
We handle sensitive financial information with defined permissions and documented procedures. We never take unrestricted control of client funds or bank accounts.
Access you grant and control
Least-privilege access to the systems in scope, provisioned by your administrator and revocable at any time.
No unilateral control of funds
Payments, distributions, and banking changes follow your written approval rules. We prepare; authorized people approve.
Segregation of duties
Preparation and review are separated where the engagement allows, with CPA review of key deliverables.
Documented procedures
Each client's workflows, approvals, and close calendar are written down and followed.
Secure communication
Client information moves through agreed, secure channels, not personal email or messaging apps.
Clear escalation
Exceptions and unusual items go to your U.S.-based CPA account manager, with a written record.
Work is performed by U.S.-based leadership and Philippines-based accounting specialists. Specific security controls, data handling, and access arrangements are documented in each client’s engagement agreement.
05Questions
Straight answers to the hard questions.
We'd rather have our accountant in-house. Why outsource?
Being in the building and being accountable are different things. An in-house hire gives you proximity; it also gives you a single point of failure, no independent review of their work, and a search to run every time they leave. Our Dedicated Accounting Department gives you a full-time specialist who knows your portfolio, a U.S.-based CPA who reviews the work, and documented backup coverage. On-site tasks like mail and walk-in tenants stay with your office staff, and we coordinate with them through defined procedures.
How do I know my accounting specialist will actually be available?
Availability is written into your engagement agreement, not left to goodwill. Each client has named contacts, agreed communication channels, and defined response expectations. Dedicated Department clients work with a specialist assigned only to them during agreed working hours, with priority support and documented backup coverage.
Will your team understand how our properties work?
We only serve property management companies, so the work is familiar from day one: trust and operating accounts, security deposit liabilities, owner and tenant ledgers, management fees, owner distributions, and vendor payables. During onboarding we document your properties, owners, approval rules, and month-end calendar so the work follows your business, not a generic template.
Who do I call when something goes wrong?
Your CPA account manager. Every engagement has a named U.S.-based CPA who supervises the work, reviews the financials, and is your escalation point. Routine questions go to your accounting specialist; anything urgent, unusual, or sensitive goes up to the CPA.
Is a CPA actually reviewing our financials?
Yes. CPA oversight is part of every service level, not an upgrade. Your CPA account manager reviews reconciliations and monthly financial statements before they are delivered, investigates exceptions, and meets with you on a defined schedule. The scope and frequency of review are set out in your engagement agreement.
How will we know the books are accurate?
Each month you receive completed reconciliations, financial statements, and an exception report listing anything unresolved, who owns it, and what is needed to clear it. Problems are surfaced on paper rather than discovered at year-end.
What happens if our accounting specialist leaves?
Your accounting does not leave with them. Your procedures are documented, coverage is planned in advance, and your CPA account manager already knows your books. We handle recruiting, training, and transition. With an in-house hire, all of that falls to you.
Why not just hire our own bookkeeper in the Philippines?
Many excellent accountants work in the Philippines; ours do. The difference is everything around the individual: CPA supervision and review, property management training, documented procedures, quality control, backup coverage, and a U.S. company accountable for the result. Hiring directly means you become the recruiter, trainer, reviewer, and contingency plan.
Will offshore staff have access to sensitive information?
Only what the work requires. Access is granted by you, limited to the systems and permissions in the agreed scope, and can be revoked at any time. We do not take unrestricted control of bank accounts or funds; payments and distributions follow your approval rules. Work is performed under documented procedures with U.S.-based supervision.
How disruptive is it to switch?
Less than replacing an employee. We work inside your existing software, take over in a planned sequence with a defined start date, and review the first close with you line by line. If your books need historical cleanup, we identify that during discovery and scope it separately, so it does not quietly delay the transition.
Which software do you work in?
We work inside the property management and accounting platforms property management companies already use, including AppFolio, Buildium, Rent Manager, Propertyware, Yardi, DoorLoop, and QuickBooks Online. Tell us your system during the consultation and we will confirm fit.
Do you work with companies that manage their own portfolio?
Yes. Third-party managers carry trust, owner reporting, and distribution obligations; owner-operators typically need entity-level reporting across properties they own. We scope each differently, and many companies do both.
How is pricing determined?
By scope and complexity: units, properties, owners, bank and trust accounts, entities, transaction volume, software, and the condition of your books. After a consultation we send a written proposal with a defined monthly scope, so you know exactly what you are paying for.
Schedule a consultation
See what your accounting department could look like.
Start with a consultation. We review your portfolio, software, and current process, then recommend a service level and send a written proposal.
