If your accountant asked for a year's worth of rental income and expenses tomorrow, how easily could you find everything?
Would you have it ready, or would you need to start searching through emails, bank statements and old invoices?
It's a question worth asking as Making Tax Digital changes how more landlords will need to keep their financial records.
But this isn't just about tax.
If you're paying a letting agent to manage your property, you should know what's happening with your money, what's being spent and why.
Your landlord statement should show more than the rent you've received
Most letting agents provide regular statements. But there's a difference between receiving a statement and having useful financial records.
Imagine your property brings in £1,296 in rent. You pay £176 for carpet cleaning, £45 for rubbish clearance and £124.42 in management fees.
The amount arriving in your bank account is £950.58.
But that figure alone doesn't tell you what you've received in rent or where the rest has gone.
At Nook, our statements break down rental income and deductions, and we keep supporting invoices for maintenance work we arrange.
We also don't add hidden mark-ups to contractor invoices. If a contractor charges £176 for carpet cleaning, that's what the landlord pays for the work.
We think that's how it should be. It's your property and your money, and you should know exactly where it's going.
Why good records matter beyond Making Tax Digital
Good property management isn't just about arranging repairs. It's about keeping a record of what's been done, what it cost and who carried it out.
Those records help you understand your property's running costs, plan future maintenance and give your accountant the information they need.
And when you want to look back at what you've spent six months ago, you shouldn't have to piece everything together yourself.
Does every landlord need to use Making Tax Digital now?
No. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is being introduced in stages.
It started in April 2026 for those with qualifying income over £50,000. The threshold falls to over £30,000 from April 2027 and over £20,000 from April 2028.
Importantly, qualifying income generally means gross income from property and self-employment combined, before expenses, rather than just your rental profit.
Not every landlord will be affected immediately, and some may not be affected at all.
We've explained the rules in more detail in our earlier article, The End of the January Scramble? What Making Tax Digital Means for Bristol Landlords.
Can your letting agent's statements be used for Making Tax Digital?
Your letting agent's statements can provide useful records of rental income, management fees and maintenance costs.
But statements alone won't necessarily meet HMRC's digital record-keeping requirements. Landlords who fall within Making Tax Digital need compatible software, and it's worth checking with your accountant how your records should be maintained.
At Nook, we keep records of the management work we carry out. If you arrange work or pay expenses independently, you'll still need to keep those records yourself.
We're not accountants, but we do believe good property management should make the accounting side easier.
Five questions worth asking your letting agent
Whether Making Tax Digital affects you now or in the future, we'd suggest asking:
Can I clearly see the rent collected and all deductions?
Can I access supporting invoices for maintenance and repairs?
Are contractor charges transparent, including any additional fees?
Is there a record of maintenance carried out at my property?
How easily can I obtain the information my accountant needs?
If the answers aren't straightforward, it's worth understanding why.
Good management should make owning a property easier
A lot of our landlords own one or two properties. They're perfectly capable of managing the administration themselves, but that doesn't mean it's how they want to spend their time.
When you employ a letting agent, you're not simply paying someone to collect the rent. You're paying them to look after the property, deal with the day-to-day decisions and keep the details organised.
And that includes the paperwork.
Making Tax Digital is another reason to look carefully at how your rental property is managed. But even without it, landlords should expect clear records, transparent costs and information they can actually use.
Because if you're paying someone to manage your property, you shouldn't also have to manage the paperwork they produce.
Want to know how Nook manages the details?
If you own a rental property in Bristol and want to understand what properly managed lettings could look like, speak to Harley or Emma at Nook.
We'll happily talk you through how we handle rent statements, maintenance costs and the day-to-day management of your property.
Email: hello@nooklettings.com
Phone: 0117 370 4778
This article provides general information, not tax advice. Your accountant or HMRC can advise on your specific Making Tax Digital obligations.
