Billing damage at cost vs selling at price

A tenant who breaks a glass should pay what the glass cost you, not what you would sell it for. The platform keeps the two apart with two buttons, and the P&L shows the difference.

By the end of this page

You will know when to record damage versus a sale, what each puts on the invoice and in the P&L, and how to explain the charge to a tenant.

One item, two ways to charge itCalculator

Your cost per item ($) Selling price per item ($) Quantity

billed as damage (at cost)

$ if it were billed as a sale

$ difference — margin you are not taking on a breakage

Damage replaces your cost; a sale earns a margin. The invoice line says which it is.

Two buttons, two lines

Sold to tenant records a sale at the selling price. The invoice line reads "Bottled water ×2". The P&L credits the sale under extras and charges the cost under stock consumed; the difference is margin. Damaged · bill at cost records a loss at the item's cost. The invoice line reads "Damage · drinking glass ×2 · at cost". The P&L charges the cost under stock consumed and credits exactly the same amount under recoveries; margin is zero.

Why keep them apart

Fairness first: a tenant should make you whole, not make you a profit, on something they broke — and a charge at cost with the receipt behind it ends most arguments before they start. Then the books: recoveries are not sales, and a P&L that mixes them overstates how well the minibar is doing.

Damage that is not stock

A cracked tile, a burnt socket: not inventory items. That is a ticket closed with a cost, then billed to the tenant or held against the deposit. Same principle — at cost, with the contractor's receipt.

Against the deposit instead

Mid-tenancy, bill it. At move-out, deduct it. Both buttons offer both. The deductions statement at move-out lists each damage line with its cost and, where there is one, the photo from inspection.

Normal wear is not damage. A mattress at the end of five years, a faded curtain, a tap washer — those are your cost of doing business and go through the expense side, never the tenant's invoice. The inspection checklist marks items as wear or damage for this reason.

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Describes the platform as it is today. Something out of date? Tell us. · help 0.71.0