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How to Split & Categorize Mortgage and Escrow Payments

Track each key component of your mortgage payment, like interest, principal, and escrows, for more accurate reporting and easy tax prep.

Updated over a week ago

What’s in Your Monthly Mortgage Payment?

Your rental property mortgage payment may include one or more of the following:

  • Principal

  • Interest

  • Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) Escrow

  • Property Taxes Escrow

  • Insurance Escrow

  • HOA Dues Escrow

Payment Variability

  • If your loan is amortizing, principal and interest amounts vary monthly.

  • Escrow amounts are often fixed and adjusted annually.

Why You May See Two Transactions for One Payment

If you’ve connected Stessa to:

  • Your bank account, and

  • Your lender account (via mortgage provider connection)

…then each mortgage payment may show up twice:

  1. Money Out from your bank account

  2. Money In reported by your lender

Since this is just a transfer of funds (not income), you’ll want to:

  • Split the money out transaction from your bank into parts (principal, interest, escrow).

  • Categorize the money in transaction as a Transfer to prevent duplicate reporting.

How to Split a Mortgage Payment in Stessa

To break a mortgage payment into individual components:

  1. Go to your Transactions page.

  2. Click the checkbox next to the mortgage payment transaction.

  3. Click the Split icon (upper right of the screen).

  4. In the split menu, divide the transaction into:

    • Mortgage Principal

    • Mortgage Interest

    • Escrow Transfer categories (e.g., PMI, Property Tax Escrows, etc.)

  5. Assign a category to each split.

  6. Click Save to apply the changes.

Tracking Expenses Paid from Escrow

When large expenses (e.g. property taxes or insurance) are paid from escrow, here's how to track them:

Option 1: Lender Pays Directly from Escrow

  1. Record the expense transaction in the appropriate category (e.g., Insurance, Property Taxes).

  2. Edit the transaction and check the “Paid from Escrow” box.

Result:

  • Expense is reported on Net Cash Flow.

  • Escrow balance is reduced on the balance sheet.

Option 2: Lender Disburses Escrow Funds to You

If your lender reimburses you, and you pay the bill:

  1. Record the incoming transaction from the lender and categorize under an Escrow Transfer category.

  2. Record the payment to the vendor (e.g., county tax office) in the correct expense category.

  3. Do not check the “Paid from Escrow” box on the expense.

Result:

  • Transfer reduces escrow balance

  • Expense appears on Net Cash Flow

  • No double counting

Best Practices & Final Tips

  • Always split mortgage payments if they contain multiple components.

  • Escrow contributions = Transfers, not Expenses.

  • Use the “Paid from Escrow” checkbox only when your lender pays the bill directly.

  • Track escrow balances accurately via the balance sheet in Stessa.

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