Built by hand. Booked by someone who gets it.
Construction bookkeeping is its own beast. Job costing, sub payments, retainage, multi-state material tax, prevailing wage rules, 1099s for every guy who showed up with a truck — most bookkeepers can't keep up. We've done payroll by hand for contractors. We know what the back office actually looks like, and we know what your CPA wishes you'd hand them at year-end.
Sound familiar?
- You can't tell which jobs actually made money and which ones lost it.
- Your subs get paid out of the same checking account as your suppliers, payroll, and personal expenses.
- You've got a shoebox of receipts, a stack of unfiled 1099s, and a CPA waiting on documentation.
- Retainage, change orders, and progress billings aren't tracked properly — so your books don't match your project status.
- You buy materials across state lines and have no idea what your sales tax exposure actually is.
- You've been audited (or you're worried about it) and you don't have documentation that holds up.
- You'd grow if you knew the books were under control, but every quarter feels like starting over.
Your books should tell you which job actually paid.
Most contractors look at their bank balance and call it good. But the bank balance doesn't tell you which job made money, which one lost money, and which one is bleeding cash you haven't recovered yet. By the time you figure it out, you've already taken the next job and you're losing money on it too.
Job costing is the difference between "I think I made money this year" and "I know exactly which $40,000 of revenue actually netted me $3,000 after subs, materials, and rework." That's not optional bookkeeping — that's the entire reason to have books in the first place.
We build the structure so every dollar in and out is tied to a job, a phase, or a category that means something. Then the books start telling you what to bid differently next time.
"I've done hand payroll for contractors. I know what sub-payment tracking actually looks like when there's no software, just receipts and trust. That's where this work gets real."
— Lauren Albright, Ledger & Grain Co.Services for construction clients.
- Job costing & project tracking
- Sub-contractor payment tracking
- 1099 preparation & vendor compliance
- Monthly P&L by job or category
- Multi-year transaction cleanup
- Sub-payment & 1099 reconstruction
- Job cost reclassification
- Chart of accounts built for construction
- Multi-state material tax review
- Use tax exposure quantification
- Filing-ready summaries
- Audit documentation support
What we know that most bookkeepers don't.
Construction is messy by nature — and most bookkeeping software wasn't built for it. The bookkeepers who don't know the trade miss the things that matter, and you pay for it at tax time or audit time.
- Hand payroll and 1099 sub tracking. When you don't have a payroll service yet, the books still have to be right. We've done it manually — for contractors who paid subs in cash, checks, and Venmo all in the same week.
- Job costing without expensive software. You don't need Foundation or Sage 300 to know which job paid. QuickBooks Online with the right structure does the job for most builders under $5M revenue.
- Multi-state material tax. Buying materials in one state and using them in another creates use tax exposure most contractors don't realize they have. We quantify it.
- Retainage, progress billing, and change orders. Standard bookkeeping treats these wrong by default — booking revenue you haven't earned or missing revenue you have. We track them properly so your books match your project status.
- Owner draws vs. business expenses. The single biggest mess in contractor books is when business and personal expenses run through the same accounts. We separate them cleanly, with documentation.
- 1099 compliance for the subs you forgot about. Every guy who got paid over $600 needs a 1099. We track all year so January isn't a panic.
Why contractors choose us.
We Know the Trade
Hand payroll, sub payments, job costing, retainage, multi-state materials — we've done the back office work for contractors who don't have the time or staff to do it themselves.
Job Cost Clarity
Books built around job costing from day one. Every transaction tied to a job, a phase, or a category that matters. So you know what to bid differently next time.
Audit-Ready Documentation
If you've been audited or you're worried about it, the issue is rarely the numbers — it's the documentation. We build workpapers and 1099 records that hold up to scrutiny.
Ready to know which jobs actually paid?
The Books Diagnostic is where every engagement starts. A structured review of your books, your job costing setup, and your exposure points. $250, credited toward your engagement if we move forward within 30 days.