What Is a Rent Roll? Meaning, Format and Example

Ask a landlord with fifteen flats and six shops, "Who is in every unit, what do they pay, and who owes you money right now?" Many will reach for a notebook, scroll through WhatsApp messages or call the caretaker. A rent roll is the document that answers all of those questions on a single page. It is one of the most basic and powerful tools in property management, yet many owners in Bangladesh have never heard the term, even though they keep something similar in their heads or in an old register.

This glossary guide explains what a rent roll is, what it contains, how it differs from a rent ledger, a sample rent roll format with worked numbers, how to use it to spot problems and make decisions, and how buyers, banks and family members use it. Whether you manage a single building in Dhaka, a market in Chattogram, or flats you own from abroad, a good rent roll will make your life easier.

What Is a Rent Roll? A Simple Definition

A rent roll is a summary list of all the rentable units in a property (or portfolio), showing, for each unit, who the tenant is, the key lease terms, the rent and other charges, deposits and the current payment status. It is a snapshot of the property's rental position on a particular date.

Think of it as the "register" of your building: one row per flat, shop or office, and columns for the information you need most often. In Bangla, you might simply call it the bhara talika or a list of tenants and rents, but the idea is the same.

What a Rent Roll Usually Contains

A rent roll can be as simple or as detailed as you need. The most useful columns are:

For a small building you might use only six or seven of these columns. For a market or commercial building, you may add the tenant's trade, contact person, TIN or trade licence number for corporate tenants, and escalation terms.

Sample Rent Roll: A Worked Example

For example (illustrative): a small mixed-use building in Dhaka has four flats and two ground-floor shops. The rent roll as of 10 August looks like this:

The tenant labels are placeholders for illustration. From this one table, the owner can calculate several important numbers.

Monthly scheduled income from occupied units

Rent: 30,000 + 20,000 + 21,000 + 21,000 + 22,000 = Tk 114,000. Service charge: 2,000 + 2,500 + 2,500 + 2,500 + 2,500 = Tk 12,000. Total billed per month = Tk 114,000 + Tk 12,000 = Tk 126,000.

Potential rent if fully let

Adding the vacant shop's asking rent: Tk 114,000 + Tk 28,000 = Tk 142,000 in rent per month. The vacant shop represents 28,000 ÷ 142,000 ≈ 19.7% of potential rent, so its vacancy is a significant loss. Our glossary entry on vacancy rate explains how to measure this over time.

Total arrears

Balance due: 22,500 (Flat 1A) + 5,000 (Flat 4A) = Tk 27,500. Flat 1A owes exactly one month of rent plus service charge (20,000 + 2,500), which should be followed up promptly.

Deposits held

180,000 + 40,000 + 42,000 + 42,000 + 44,000 = Tk 348,000. This is money the owner holds on behalf of tenants and may need to refund; it is not income. Flat 3A has given notice, so Tk 42,000 may need to be settled in September, subject to the final inspection and bills.

Upcoming actions

• Flat 3A becomes vacant in September: start advertising now.
• Shop G-2 is vacant: review the asking rent and marketing.
• Flat 1A has one month of arrears: send a polite reminder.

That is the real value of a rent roll: in one glance, you know your income, your problems and your next steps.

Rent Roll vs Rent Ledger: What Is the Difference?

People often confuse these two, but they serve different purposes.

The two work together: each tenant's ledger feeds the "balance due" column in the rent roll. See our glossary entry on what a rent ledger is for more detail.

Why a Rent Roll Matters for Bangladeshi Landlords

Day-to-day management

Instead of relying on memory or a caretaker's word, the rent roll shows exactly who has paid and who has not, which leases are ending and which units are empty. It is especially useful at the start of each month and before Eid, when many tenants' payments shift.

Family-owned and inherited buildings

In many families, one member manages the building while siblings or relatives share the income. A monthly rent roll shared with all co-owners builds trust, because everyone sees the same picture of income, dues and vacancies.

Probashi (expatriate) owners

Owners living abroad often depend on a relative, manager or caretaker. Asking for an updated rent roll every month is one of the simplest ways to keep oversight without being physically present.

Selling a building or taking a loan

A buyer or bank evaluating an income-producing property will want to know the tenancies, rents, lease terms and arrears. A clean, accurate rent roll, supported by agreements and ledgers, makes that process faster and more credible.

Tax and accounts

A rent roll is not a tax document on its own, but combined with receipts and ledgers it helps you and your tax adviser understand your annual rental income. See our guide on rental property accounting basics.

How to Create a Rent Roll: Step by Step

1. List every rentable unit in the building, including vacant ones, garages or rooftop spaces that are rented.
2. Collect the rental agreements and note tenant names, start and end dates, rent, service charge, deposit and escalation terms.
3. Check each tenant's payment history and calculate the balance due as of your chosen date.
4. Record deposits and advances held and, for advances being adjusted, the remaining amount.
5. Add status and notes: vacant, notice given, under repair, any disputes.
6. Total the key columns: scheduled rent, service charges, arrears and deposits.
7. Date the rent roll and update it at least monthly, ideally right after the rent collection period.

Tip: Always date your rent roll. A rent roll without a date is misleading, because balances and statuses change every week.

Using the Rent Roll to Make Better Decisions

• Rent reviews: compare rents for similar units. If one flat is far below the others, plan a fair, legally compliant increase at the right time.
• Lease expiries: if several leases end in the same month, you risk multiple vacancies at once. Stagger renewals where possible.
• Arrears patterns: the same tenant appearing in the arrears column month after month signals a problem to address early.
• Tenant mix in markets: for shopping complexes, the rent roll shows which trades occupy which spaces, helping plan a balanced mix.
• Deposit liability: knowing how much deposit you hold helps you keep enough cash available for refunds.

Rent Rolls for Markets and Shopping Complexes

In a market or shopping complex with dozens or hundreds of shops, the rent roll becomes the central management document. Beyond the basic columns, market owners and committees often add:

• Floor and block: so vacancies and arrears can be seen by location.
• Trade or category: clothing, electronics, food, pharmacy and so on, to manage the tenant mix.
• Position money (salami) details: where a shop was let with position money, recording the amount and terms helps avoid confusion later, since it is usually treated differently from monthly rent and security deposit.
• Escalation date and rate: commercial leases often increase rent on a fixed schedule.
• Contact person: the shop owner and, if different, the person who actually pays.

Sorting the rent roll by floor or by trade quickly reveals patterns, such as an upper floor with many empty shops, or one category with repeated arrears.

A Simple Monthly Rent Roll Routine

1. After the collection deadline (for example, the 10th of the month), update payments received from receipts and bank or mobile payment records.
2. Update statuses: new tenants, notices received, units vacated, units under repair.
3. Review the arrears column and send polite reminders to anyone with a balance due.
4. Look three months ahead at lease end dates and rent review dates.
5. Share the dated rent roll with co-owners, family members or your accountant as needed.

This routine usually takes less than an hour for a small building, and it prevents most of the surprises that cost landlords money.

Common Mistakes With Rent Rolls

• Leaving out vacant units: this hides lost income and inflates the property's apparent performance.
• Mixing deposits with income: deposits are refundable and should be shown separately.
• Not updating regularly: an out-of-date rent roll gives false comfort.
• No link to ledgers and receipts: balances that cannot be traced to actual transactions will not convince a buyer or co-owner.
• Using asking rent for occupied units: always use the actual agreed rent.
• Ignoring lease end dates: renewals and vacancies then come as surprises.

Rent Roll Formats: Paper, Excel or Software

A rent roll can be kept in a register, in Excel or Google Sheets, or generated by property management software. A register works for two or three units. Spreadsheets are flexible but depend on someone updating formulas and balances correctly, and errors are easy to miss. Software can build the rent roll automatically from invoices and payments, so it stays current without manual work. Choose based on the number of units, how many people need access, and how much time you want to spend updating it.

Related Terms

• Rent ledger: the transaction history for a single tenant or unit.
• Vacancy rate: the share of units or potential rent that is empty.
• Arrears (rent due): rent that has fallen due but has not been paid.
• Security deposit (jamanat): refundable money held by the landlord as security.
• Potential gross rent: total rent if all units were let at asking rent.

Final Thoughts

A rent roll is simply a well-organised list, but it turns scattered information into a clear picture of your property. Keep one row per unit, include vacant units, separate deposits from income, date it, and update it every month. Whether you manage a handful of flats or a whole market, it will help you collect rent on time, plan for vacancies and share accurate information with family, buyers or lenders.

In Bariwala ERP (বাড়িওয়ালা ERP), buildings, floors and units are linked to tenant profiles, agreements, monthly invoices, payments, advances and the due list, so the information that makes up a rent roll is always up to date without retyping it into a spreadsheet each month.