Bank account synchronisation and import
This section lets you synchronise and import a bank account.
Automatic account synchronisation
This section of the software lets you synchronise and import a bank account and its transactions automatically.
Here is how to proceed:
- Go to the “Finance” section, “Bank import”. Click the “New import” or “Bank account sync” button.
- Select the owner and the synchronisation period (30, 60, 90 days).
- You will be redirected to a new page where you can enter your banking credentials and log in to your account.
- Follow the instructions, select the accounts to synchronise and confirm.
- You can manage the connected accounts from the “Accounts” section.
- The transactions of the connected accounts are imported into the “Transactions” section.
Transaction matching
The site collects transactions daily; you will find them in the “Transactions” section.
When there is a match, you will see an indicator on the right with the number of matches.
- A green indicator 1 for exact matches. The amount, the date and a keyword of the imported transaction are identical to those of an entry already present. With this level of matching, you can confirm the operation quickly without editing it, because all the details agree perfectly.
- An amber indicator 1 for partial matches. Some of the details coincide (for example, the amount and the date), but others such as the keyword or the reference are not recognised. This situation needs a manual check, to confirm it really is the same transaction or to make the necessary corrections.
- A grey indicator 0 when there is no match. No data from the imported transaction corresponds to an existing entry. In this case, you can either create a new line in the “Finance” section, or reassign the transaction if it relates to something you have not yet recorded.
A match is considered exact when the amount, the dates and a keyword of the imported transaction correspond to a line that already exists in “Finance”.
Manual matching
After the import, you can match the entries manually and add them to the “Finance” section in one of the following ways:
- Confirm a match. When the system spots a similarity between the imported transaction and an existing unpaid line in the “Finance” section, you can confirm the match immediately to mark the payment as made.
- Record a payment for an existing line. If the transaction relates to an expense or an income already recorded (but not settled) in your accounts, you can enter the payment to update its payment status.
- Add a new line in “Finance”. If no match is detected, you can manually add a new line in the “Finance” section to account for the imported transaction.
When you confirm and add a transaction to “Finance”, an Already added indicator appears. If you make a mistake, you can reset transactions that have already been matched, and match them again.
You can use and link one imported transaction to several existing lines in the “Finance” section (for example: the tenant pays the first rent and the security deposit with a single payment).
If the amount allocated to an invoice is lower than the transaction amount, the remainder can be used and linked to another line. Once the full amount has been used and linked, the transaction is marked as Already added.
Automatic matching
When an exact match is found for an unpaid rent, the system automatically links the transaction and marks the rent as paid.
When a rent is matched automatically and recorded as paid, the software also sends an email notification to the landlord.
Example
If the January rent for a tenant — John, say — of £500 is still unpaid, and you import a bank transaction dated 5 January for the same amount (£500) with a clear description such as “PAYMENT JOHN DOE”, the system:
- automatically recognises it as the payment of that rent,
- links the transaction to the corresponding rent,
- and marks the rent as paid.
For this automatic matching to work, the amount and the description of the transaction must be consistent with the rent details.
Disconnected account
Occasionally, synchronisation stops working.
For security reasons, you may need to identify yourself again and reconnect your account every three months. This depends on the bank.
You can also delete the accounts and the connection, then recreate them.
Frequent account disconnections!
With some banks, you can change the frequency of strong authentication in your online banking area. Simply set it to “90 days”.
If strong authentication is required every time, it is worth checking with your bank whether it can be disabled.
Delete a synchronised account
You can delete the connected accounts from the “Accounts” section using the actions on the right.
When you delete an account, the system also deletes its transactions.
Manual import
This section lets you import a bank statement in QIF or OFX format and reconcile it.
- Download the file provided by your bank (in QIF or OFX format).
- Click the “New import” or “New manual import” button.
- Import the file into Rentila.
After the import, you can match the entries. You only need to check the data, choose the entry type if necessary and confirm.
