Budget vs. Actual Variance & Root-Cause Review

Prepare a budget-versus-actual review for [PROPERTY AND REPORTING PERIOD].

Use only [APPROVED BUDGET], [ACTUAL GENERAL LEDGER OR OPERATING STATEMENT], [PRIOR-PERIOD RESULTS], and [KNOWN OPERATING EVENTS AND ACCOUNT NOTES]. Do not invent causes, reclassify accounts without showing the change, or substitute market benchmarks. Mark an explanation as "unconfirmed" when the supplied evidence does not establish the cause. Cite the source account, row, note, or page for every material explanation.

Return:
1. An executive summary stating the total revenue, operating expense, and NOI variances in dollars and percentages.
2. A variance table with account, budget, actual, dollar variance, percentage variance, favorable or unfavorable direction, known cause, evidence reference, and confidence.
3. A root-cause view separating timing, volume, price, one-time, accounting, and unresolved items without double-counting.
4. The five items that deserve management attention, with proposed owner, next action, due date, and expected financial effect. Label any expected effect as an estimate.
5. Questions required to resolve every material unconfirmed variance.

Use the accounting sign convention in the source and state it. Reconcile the detailed variance table to the reported totals before concluding. The Asset Manager is the human decision owner; provide analysis and proposed actions, but do not approve a reforecast or direct property staff.