Landscaping & lawn care
Books and taxes for commercial grounds maintenance companies.
A bid-won annual contract covering a dozen properties, invoices sent net-30 or net-60, crews routed across sites all week, and equipment big enough to matter. 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
June came in at $19,300. The office park contract paid on net-60 finally landed, two months after the work was done, so it is booked to the month it was earned, not when it cleared.
- Office park contract, net-60Commercial contract billing
- HOA portfolio, net-30Commercial contract billing
- Crew payroll, three sitesCrew wages
- Mower fleet fuelTrucks and fuel
- Zero-turn mower, dealer purchaseEquipment
Why your books are different
Commercial grounds books go wrong around net terms and multiple sites.
A generalist sees invoices and a payroll run. Your business runs on bid contracts covering multiple properties, paid weeks or months after the work is done, with crews and equipment split across sites all week. When the books do not track that, you cannot tell which contract is actually worth keeping.
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1
Net-30 and net-60 payments land the wrong month
Work done in April but paid in June looks like June income if the books just follow the bank deposit, hiding when the work was actually earned and making month-to-month comparisons meaningless.
What we doBooks income to the month the work was done when you tell him the contract terms, so the numbers reflect real performance, not payment timing. -
2
One contract's crew cost gets buried in total payroll
Crews split across a dozen properties get paid out of one payroll run, so a losing contract and a profitable one look the same until someone does the math by hand.
What we doKeeps wage totals visible against contract billing, so you can see which contracts are actually worth the crew hours they take. -
3
A big equipment purchase looks like it belongs to one contract
A mower or truck bought to service the whole route gets charged against whichever contract happened to be open that week, distorting that contract's real margin.
What we doFlags equipment purchases the day they post and keeps them separate from any single contract's cost. -
4
Bid pricing does not get checked against real cost
A contract bid a year or two ago at a fixed annual price can quietly become unprofitable as fuel, labor, and material costs rise, and nobody notices until renewal time.
What we doKeeps contract revenue against real cost visible all year, so a bid that needs repricing is a number you see early.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a commercial grounds maintenance company.
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
- Commercial contract billingProperty management and HOA contracts on net terms.
- One-time and add-on workExtra jobs outside the standing contract scope.
- Seasonal add-onsSnow removal or leaf cleanup billed alongside the main contract.
- Bid and proposal jobsNew contract work won through a competitive bid.
Money out
- Crew wagesPayroll for multi-site maintenance crews.
- Trucks and fuelFuel, repairs, and insurance for the fleet.
- EquipmentMowers, trailers, and larger machinery, logged so they get written off right.
- Materials and suppliesFertilizer, mulch, and seasonal materials used across sites.
- Liability and workers comp insuranceCoverage sized for multi-site commercial work.
- Bonding and licensingBonding often required to bid municipal or larger commercial contracts.
- Route and scheduling softwareSubscription costs for managing multiple sites and crews.
What we watch for you
- Contract margin
Crew wages and materials against contract billing, so you know which contracts to renew or reprice.
- Accounts receivable aging
How much is owed on net-30 and net-60 terms, so cash flow timing is not a surprise.
- Labor cost per site
Wages against contract revenue by site, worth reviewing before rebidding.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things commercial grounds maintenance owners 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 book it back to the month the work was actually done, so your numbers reflect real performance, not just when the check finally cleared.
I keep it separate from any single contract's cost, so it does not distort that contract's margin. It is logged as equipment for the fleet as a whole.
I keep that contract's revenue against its real cost visible all year, so when it comes up for renewal, you have the numbers, not a guess.
The tax side
The tax side of a commercial grounds maintenance business.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and scale: payments that land months after the work, equipment shared across contracts, and a set-aside that has to account for real growth.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Equipment and fleet vehiclesMowers, trailers, and trucks bought for the business can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Contractor 1099sAny subcontracted crew or specialty vendor not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC if paid $2,000 or more in 2026, due January 31.
- Quarterly estimated taxesGrowing contract revenue often means growing tax owed, due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15, and the set-aside should keep pace.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions commercial grounds maintenance companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Mower and equipment repairs
- Fleet fuel
- Bonding and licensing fees
- Liability and workers comp insurance
- Materials used across sites
- Route software subscriptions
- Bid and proposal costs
- Uniforms with your logo
- Storage yard rent
- Card processing fees
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 commercial grounds maintenance year, kept every month.
Your contracts run on their own renewal calendar. Your taxes come on a schedule too. 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
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started and you get a monthly set-aside, so contract renewals and new bids do not come with a tax surprise.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed while spring contract work is in full swing.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand at the peak of the season, what you will owe, and which contracts need a fresh look before renewal.
- October
Before renewal season
Before contracts come up for renewal or rebid, Gus looks at equipment you might buy 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 grounds maintenance companies. 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 commercial grounds maintenance owners ask first.
My contracts pay net-30 or net-60. Does that throw off my monthly numbers?
No. Gus can book income to the month the work was actually done, when you tell him the contract terms, so a slow-paying client does not distort your real monthly performance.
Can Gus tell me which of my contracts are actually profitable?
He keeps crew wages and materials visible against each contract's billing, so you can see which ones carry their weight before a renewal or rebid decision.
I need to bid on a municipal contract that requires bonding. Is that a deductible cost?
Yes, bonding and licensing fees required to bid or hold a contract are a legitimate business expense, tracked in their own category.
My crews work across a dozen sites. Does that make payroll harder to track?
No, Gus keeps overall wage totals visible against your total contract billing, so labor cost as a share of revenue is a number you can watch.
My books are behind by a season. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know where they stand inside 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