Eng Flanders Group | Integrate Your Property Management Software into Budgeting Process

Say goodbye to Excel chaos and unlock smarter, system-driven budgeting.

A well-prepared budget is critical so that property managers can forecast revenue, control expenses, plan capital improvements, and communicate with ownership, all while supporting the long-term performance of the portfolio. Asset managers and investment managers must forecast revenue and return on investment over 5-10 years to properly valuate their assets so that they may make good acquisition and disposition decisions.

Yet, too often, property managers, asset managers and investment managers are stuck in “Excel hell”: juggling outdated, error-prone spreadsheets, manually entering figures, and emailing back and forth between departments to pull numbers from the various departments of the company.

This fragmented process wastes an enormous amount of time and increases the risk of errors. Even if they use a third-party budgeting tool, it still must be adapted for the real estate management business. Then, after all that turmoil, somehow the budgets must be moved from Excel or third-party budgeting tool into the real estate management database so that accurate budget comparison reports may be generated, and that forecasts may utilize actual revenue and expenses.

The good news? The industries leading real estate management platforms offer robust in-platform budgeting tools that streamline the process, reduce risk, and improve clarity. This post will walk you through why budgeting inside your real estate management system matters and how to take advantage of it.

Why You Should Budget Inside Your Software

Centralized Data Access
Budgeting directly in AppFolio or Yardi allows you to work within the same system that tracks your leases, expenses, and operations. This eliminates the need for duplicate entry and ensures data consistency across your organization.

Reduced Manual Entry & Errors
When you budget outside the system, you’re more prone to errors, mismatched figures, or outdated templates. Inside the PMS, you’re pulling from live or recent actuals, minimizing copy/paste mistakes and version control issues.

Integration with Actuals & Forecasts
Both platforms support historical data, trends, and forecasting tools. This lets you build smarter assumptions and compare actuals to budgets throughout the year—helping you stay on target and adjust proactively.

Highlighting Two of the Leading Property Management and Investment Management Platforms

Yardi Voyager

Yardi’s robust enterprise suite supports deep financial modeling and multi-entity forecasting for larger portfolios.

Key Features:

Forecast Manager: Create multi-version budgets, rolling forecasts, and projections based on live data across all our Voyager modules.
Budget Worksheets: Import/export Excel templates tied to real-time GL codes and COA structures.
Commercial Lease Integration: Link budgets with actual and speculative lease and recovery profiles for detail lease-based revenue.
Expense Models: Make use of complex formulas for modeling expenses.
Budget Narratives: Annotate your budget details to show your work when sending draft budgets for approval.

AppFolio Property Manager

AppFolio offers user-friendly tools designed for small to mid-sized operators who want clarity and efficiency.

Key Features:

Budgeting Tool: Build budgets by property, unit type, or portfolio segment.
Actual vs Budget Reports: Track performance in real time with built-in variance reports.
Performance Insights: Use data visualizations to identify trends and monitor KPIs.
Calculation Methods: Easily calculate budget amounts based on past year financials utilizing advanced pre-built formulas.
Templates: Start with built-in templates and customize based on property type.

Pro Tips for Better Budgeting

Use System Tags & Custom Fields
Organize your budget with internal tags—such as by unit type, renovation plan, or lease tier. This helps track specific initiatives and improve reporting granularity.

Run Budget vs. Actual Reports Monthly
Set up automated reporting to catch deviations early. Most systems allow you to schedule these reports and send them to stakeholders automatically.

Get Cross-Functional Input
Loop in maintenance, leasing, and regional managers early in the process. They offer real-world insights into staffing needs, supply costs, lease-up pace, and turn costs that static data can’t reveal.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Over-Relying on Last Year’s Budget
Every year brings new lease renewals, market shifts, and vendor contracts. Avoid copying and pasting last year’s numbers—challenge assumptions and update accordingly.

Not Coordinating with Accounting
Accounting teams ensure your budget aligns with COA codes, accrual practices, and ownership expectations. Bring them into the process early to avoid last-minute rework.

Ignoring System-Generated Assumptions
Budgeting tools may auto-fill assumptions like occupancy or rent growth—don’t take these at face value. Customize them based on your actual lease expirations and renewal strategies.

Willard Retail: A Real-World Success Story About Integrated Budgeting, Forecasting and Valuation

EFG played a critical role in helping Willard Retail integrate Forecast Manager into their Yardi Voyager platform—resulting in improved financial visibility, streamlined operations, and rapid scalability. The following benefits were delivered through EFG’s budgeting services:

Accurate and Automated CAM Forecasting

Integrated Forecast Manager with CAM data workflows to drive more precise revenue forecasting and next-year CAM budget estimates.
Enabled automated CAM reconciliations, improving efficiency and accuracy.

End-to-End Budget Integration

Connected Yardi Forecast Manager with key property and accounting modules to allow seamless budget-to-GL transfers and eliminate manual duplication.
Supported year-end budgeting revisions and reforecasts, aligned with GAAP adjustments and investor expectations.

Customized Budget-to-Actual Reporting

Developed a custom Budget to Actuals Report for ongoing performance tracking.
Automated recurring reports through Yardi’s scheduler, enabling consistent monthly and quarterly financial transparency.

Support for Institutional-Grade Financial Reporting

Tailored financial reports, including budget analysis, to match the strict standards of Willard Retail’s institutional investor partners.
Maintained familiar report formats to build investor confidence, even during a platform transition.

Faster Property Onboarding with Budget Continuity

Created a standard budgeting process that allowed for rapid onboarding of new properties without delaying financial planning cycles.
Enabled 280% portfolio growth (from 5 to 19 properties in 18 months) without the need for an internal accounting team.

Conclusion

Budgeting directly within your property or investment management platform isn’t just more efficient, it’s a strategic necessity. It creates a connected, scalable process that reduces risk and enables better decision-making. More importantly, it is one of the key elements in increasing NOI and ROI, achieving steady growth and maintaining a competitive edge in today’s fast-moving real estate market.
Whether you're planning your first system-driven budget or optimizing an existing process, our team is here to help.