Commercial facility services
Books and taxes for door and hardware contractors.
A broken panic bar fixed same day, a full door and frame replacement bid on a school, closer and lock stock bought by the case, and a fire code inspection that flags a dozen doors. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
November came in at $10,700. The case of exit devices for the school fire code job went in as hardware stock, kept apart from the service call parts.
- Service call, broken panic barService calls
- Deposit, school door replacementInstall job deposits
- Exit device case orderHardware stock
- Door service van fuelVehicle and route
- Frame and threshold materialsJob materials
Why your books are different
Door and hardware books go wrong in the same four places.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business runs same-day service calls, bids full door and frame installs, and keeps hardware stock ready for fire code compliance jobs that can turn up a dozen doors at once. When the books do not know that, job cost is a guess.
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1
Service calls and install bids blur together
A same-day panic bar repair and a full door and frame replacement bid on a school land in the same revenue line, so you cannot tell whether service work or install jobs are really carrying the month.
What we doKeeps service call billing separate from install job billing, so you can see which side of the business is the steady base. -
2
Hardware stock bought by the case wrecks the monthly number
Closers, exit devices, and locksets bought in bulk to keep the van stocked for compliance jobs can make one month look expensive and the next look artificially light.
What we doKeeps hardware stock in one steady category and flags stock-up months, so a bulk order does not read as a bad month. -
3
A code compliance job gets priced like a single repair
A fire marshal inspection that flags a dozen doors for closer or exit device replacement is a bigger job than a single service call, and pricing or booking it the same way hides what the real job actually cost.
What we doKeeps multi-door compliance jobs in their own line, so you can see the real labor and hardware cost against what was billed. -
4
A deposit on a big install job gets counted as income too soon
A deposit taken before a school or office door and frame replacement starts is not fully earned yet, and counting the whole thing as income the day it lands makes the month look better than the work completed so far actually supports.
What we doTracks deposits against the job they belong to, so income lines up with the work actually done.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a door and hardware contractor.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Service callsSame-day repairs on closers, locksets, panic bars, and frames.
- Install job depositsDeposits collected before a door and frame install starts.
- Completed install billingFinal payment collected on job completion.
- Code compliance jobsFire marshal or inspection-driven hardware replacement across multiple doors.
Money out
- Hardware stockClosers, exit devices, locksets, and hinges from a commercial door supplier.
- Job materialsFrames, thresholds, and weatherstripping tied to a specific job.
- Crew laborInstall and service wages, tracked by the job they worked.
- EquipmentDoor lifts, drills, and templating tools logged so they get written off right.
- Vehicle and routeFuel, insurance, and repairs for the service van fleet.
- Bid and marketing costsProposals sent to schools, property managers, and general contractors.
- Insurance and licensingGeneral liability, workers comp, and state contractor licensing.
What we watch for you
- Service call share
Service work against total income, so you know how dependent the month is on repairs versus bigger install jobs.
- Hardware cost per job
What closers, locksets, and exit devices actually cost against jobs run, so pricing keeps up when supplier prices move.
- Compliance job margin
What a multi-door code compliance job actually cleared after hardware and labor, tracked apart from a single service call.
Ask Gus
Things door and hardware contractors ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
I kept it in hardware stock, separate from your everyday service call parts, so it does not read like a bad month of spending.
Not yet. I book it against that job, so it only counts as earned once the crew finishes the install, not the moment the check clears.
If you pay him $2,000 or more this year and he is not on payroll, he gets a 1099 by January 31. I keep that list updated as each install closes out.
The tax side
The tax side of a door and hardware contracting business.
Most of what goes wrong here is labels and timing. Hardware stock filed like a single job's materials, a helper paid like a contractor who works like an employee, and a set-aside nobody started until the return was due.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Tools and templating equipmentDoor lifts and templating tools bought for the business can usually be written off the year you buy them, with bonus depreciation back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone who helps on a job and is not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31 if you paid them $2,000 or more in 2026. Gus keeps that running all year.
- Employee or contractorA helper who works your jobs on your schedule with your tools is usually an employee. Getting that wrong gets expensive, so Gus asks before it becomes a habit.
- The pass-through deductionA profitable door and hardware owner can usually take up to 20 percent of business profit off taxable income under the pass-through deduction, once the books are right all year.
Deductions commercial door and hardware contractors miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Closers and exit devices
- Locksets and hinges
- Frame and threshold materials
- Door lifts and templating tools
- Service van fuel and maintenance
- Uniforms with your logo
- Job site safety gear
- Proposal and bid software
- Phone and tablet for scheduling
- Contractor licensing and bonding
- Card processing fees
- Liability and workers comp insurance
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A door and hardware contracting year, kept every month.
Service calls come whenever hardware breaks, while install bids and code compliance jobs come in waves tied to inspections and construction schedules. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Service year kickoff
Filing on last year's return begins, any helper's 1099 gets confirmed, and a monthly set-aside starts building toward the spring deadline.
- April
Return closed out
The return is filed and signed this month, no scramble, since the monthly set-aside has been adding up since January.
- July
Midyear hardware check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer school and building projects changed the number.
- October
Before winter inspections
As fire marshal inspections often pick up before year-end, Gus looks at hardware stock worth ordering and anything worth doing before December.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for commercial door and hardware contractors. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions door and hardware contractors ask first.
Can Gus tell my service calls apart from install job bids?
Yes. He keeps service call billing in its own category from install job deposits and completed billing, so you can see which part of the business is the steady base.
A code compliance job covers a dozen doors at once. Does that get booked differently?
Yes. Multi-door compliance jobs are kept in their own line, so you can see the real labor and hardware cost against a bigger job, not lumped in with single service calls.
Do I write off door lifts and tools all at once?
Often you can. Tools and equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy them, and sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
A big hardware order made this month look bad. Is that normal?
It happens whenever a bulk stock order lands ahead of the jobs it supports. Gus keeps hardware stock in its own line so a stock-up month does not read as a loss.
I have not touched my books in a while. Is that a problem?
No. Send whatever statements you have, service calls and installs alike. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and you will know where you stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever