Specialty subcontractors
Books and taxes for commercial painting contractors.
Progress billing on large repaints, retainage, night and weekend crews in occupied buildings, and recurring maintenance contracts. 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
July came in at $15,000. The third coat on the lobby job got tied to that job's materials, so it showed up as a real cost of that wall, not a mystery overage.
- GC pay app #7 payoutProgress billing
- Sherwin-Williams commercial accountPaint and coatings
- Scaffolding rental, atrium jobScaffolding and lift rental
- Fleet fuel, crew vansTrucks and fuel
- Sprayer tip and hose orderSpray equipment and parts
Why your books are different
A commercial painting contractor's books go wrong in a few specific spots.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business is progress billing, crews working nights so tenants are not disrupted, and a mix of one-time bids and repeat maintenance contracts. Blend those together and you cannot tell which job is actually paying you.
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1
Night and weekend crews blur into regular wages
Painting an occupied office lobby has to happen after hours so tenants are not disrupted, paid at a premium rate. Mixed in with a normal week of payroll, that job's real labor cost stops being visible on its own.
What we doKeeps premium labor visible against the job that required it. -
2
Four jobs at once turn into one big pile
Paint orders and crew hours from four active repaints hit the account the same week. Without job costing you cannot tell which bid was priced right and which one is quietly losing money.
What we doSorts materials and labor by job wherever the bank data allows it. -
3
Maintenance repaint contracts blur into one-time jobs
A property management company's annual repaint contract is the steady work that fills slow bidding months, but mixed with one-time construction jobs, you cannot see how much of the business runs on that base.
What we doKeeps maintenance repaint contracts in their own income category, separate from one-time bids. -
4
A third coat looks like wasted paint
Poor coverage on a textured wall sometimes means a third coat that was not in the original bid, and the extra gallons look like a mistake instead of a real cost of that job.
What we doTies extra material to the job that needed it, so it reads as a job cost, not a loss. -
5
Retainage on large repaints disappears
A general contractor holds back 10 percent on a large office repaint and does not release it until closeout, sometimes months after the last coat dries.
What we doKeeps retainage on its own line by job, so you can see what is still owed and roughly when it should land.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a commercial painting business.
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
- Progress billingGeneral contractor pay applications on large repaints and new construction.
- Retainage releasesHeld-back money on install jobs, paid out at closeout.
- Maintenance repaint contractsAnnual or multi-year contracts with property management companies.
- Change order billingExtra coats or added areas beyond the original bid.
- Touch-up and punch list billingWork billed after occupancy once tenants move back in.
Money out
- Field crew wagesPainters, including night and weekend premium for occupied buildings.
- Paint and coatingsSherwin-Williams, PPG, and Benjamin Moore commercial accounts.
- Spray equipment and partsSprayers, tips, hoses, and pumps.
- Scaffolding and lift rentalRented by the day or week for tall or interior atrium jobs.
- Prep suppliesDrop cloths, tape, and plastic sheeting.
- Trucks and fuelCrew vans running between active jobs.
- Bonding and insurancePerformance bonds and liability coverage for larger jobs.
What we watch for you
- Job margin
What each repaint actually made after paint, rework, and labor.
- Maintenance contract base
How much steady repaint contract income is booked against one-time bids.
- Retainage owed
Money general contractors are holding on install jobs right now.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things commercial painting 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 tied the extra paint to that job, so you can see it was a real cost of that wall, not a mystery overage.
Two jobs had to run nights and weekends so tenants weren't disrupted. I kept that premium against those jobs so it does not blend into your regular labor line.
Once they cross $2,000 for the year and are not on your payroll, yes, a 1099 by January 31. I am tracking that total for everyone you bring in outside.
The tax side
The tax side of a commercial painting business.
Most of what goes wrong here is labels and timing. Rework buried in materials, night crews mixed into regular wages, and a set-aside nobody started until April.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Equipment write-offsSprayers, lifts, and crew vans can often be written off the year you buy them, with bonus depreciation at 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025. Heavier trucks carry a separate cap.
- Sub-subcontractor 1099sAny outside painter or specialty crew not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps the list all year.
- Employee or contractorA painter who works your schedule, uses your tools, and takes direction from your foreman is usually an employee. Getting that wrong gets expensive, so Gus asks before it becomes a habit.
- 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 painting contractors miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Sprayers and spray tips
- Scaffolding and lift rental
- Drop cloths and tape
- Painter license renewal
- Continuing education
- Bonding premiums
- Liability insurance
- Truck fuel and repairs
- Safety gear and PPE
- Job costing software
- Uniforms with your logo
- Color-match samples
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 painting year, kept every month.
Bid season, rework costs, and tax season each run on their own clock. Your team keeps you ahead of all three. 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 the 1099 list for outside crews is ready. Bidding is picking up, so your monthly set-aside gets planned before spring jobs fill the schedule.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed while spring repaints get underway. No surprise bill, since the set-aside has been building since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether a run of night and weekend jobs changed the number.
- October
Before the holiday push
Property managers often want repaints finished before the holidays for a clean look. Gus looks at equipment worth buying and anything else worth doing before the year ends.
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 painting 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 commercial painting contractors ask first.
Can Gus keep our maintenance repaint contracts separate from one-time bid jobs?
Yes. Recurring repaint contracts sit in their own category from day one, so you can always see how much of your revenue runs on that steady base.
We run several jobs at once. Can the books tell them apart?
Where your bank data allows it, yes. Gus sorts materials and labor by job, so you can start to see which bids are priced right and which ones just keep the crews busy.
Do I write off a new sprayer all at once?
Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy it, and sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides.
Our crews get overtime for night and weekend work in occupied buildings. Does that complicate things?
Not what you pay them, just how it gets sorted. That premium stays tied to the specific job that needed it, so a string of after-hours work does not quietly inflate your everyday labor line.
Our books are behind after a busy bidding season. Is that fixable?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know exactly 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