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How To Track Short-Term Rentals with Stessa

With a few custom tweaks, owners of vacation and other short-term rental (STR) properties can use Stessa to efficiently track performance.

Updated over a week ago

It's easy to get your vacation rental up and running on Stessa. Just use the new Airbnb file importer to quickly populate your income and expense ledger. Then use Stessa's short-term rental categories to track investment performance and stay organized for tax time.
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Set Up Your Short-Term Rental In 4 Easy Steps

1. Import Airbnb Transactions

  • In Stessa, go to your Transactions page and click "Import" to upload the file.

Tips:

  • Airbnb reports two line items per stay. The sum of these equals your net income.

    • Gross income (Money In)

    • Host fee (Money Out)

  • If you've also connected a bank account in Stessa, check for duplicates and delete as needed.

2. Update Your Rent Roll for STR

  • Go to your Leases & Tenants page.

  • Set your unit as "Short-Term Rental".

  • Enter your average nightly rate and expected occupancy for the year.

  • Stessa will calculate expected monthly income automatically.


3. Set Pro Forma Operating Expenses

  • Visit your Dashboard page.

  • Locate the Monthly Expenses card and click the 3 dots to select "Edit All Pro Forma"

  • Enter your expected monthly expenses in the Pro Forma column.

    • This baseline helps you compare projected vs. actual expenses.​

4. Connect Bank and Credit Card Accounts

  • Link any accounts used for:

    • Receiving STR income (e.g., Airbnb, VRBO)

    • Paying STR-related expenses

  • Navigate to the Connected Accounts page and click "+ Add Bank".

  • Stessa will auto-import and categorize transactions from these accounts.

Key Categories for STR Owners

When categorizing transactions for your STR property, use these categories to accurately track activity:

Transaction Type

Recommended Category

Rental income

Income > Short Term Rents

Taxes collected from guests

Transfers > Taxes to Remit (positive)

Taxes paid out from collections

Transfers > Taxes to Remit (negative)

Taxes paid out from your own funds

Taxes > Short Term Occupancy Taxes

Guest refunds or discounts

Admin & Other > Discounts & Refunds

Platform & listing fees

Management Fees > Booking & Platform Fees

Cleaning services

Repairs & Maintenance > Cleaning

Linens, snacks, toiletries, etc.

Repairs & Maintenance > Linens, Soaps & Other...

New furniture, appliances, TVs, etc.

Capital Expenses > New Furniture & Equipment

Renovation or remodeling costs

Capital Expenses > Remodeling

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