Specialty subcontractors
Books and taxes for concrete cutting and coring companies.
Progress billing, same-day core drilling calls, blades that wear out fast on a rebar-heavy job, and slurry that has to be hauled off. 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
August came in at $12,000. The four diamond blades burned through on the rebar-heavy job got tied to that job, so it showed up as what the job actually cost, not a random supply spike.
- GC pay app #3 payoutProgress billing
- Same-day core drilling callsService calls
- Diamond blade orderDiamond blades and core bits
- Slurry vacuum and haul-offSlurry disposal
- Fleet fuel, service trucksTrucks and fuel
Why your books are different
A concrete cutting company's books go wrong in a few specific spots.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business burns through blades at a rate that depends on what is inside the concrete, produces slurry that has to be hauled away, and mixes small same-day calls with bigger progress-billed packages. Blend those together and a job's real cost disappears.
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1
Blade wear looks like a random supply cost
A job cutting through heavily reinforced concrete can burn through several diamond blades in a single day, while a simple slab cut barely uses one, and lumped together, the real cost of a rebar-heavy job disappears.
What we doTies blade and bit costs to the job, so a job with more rebar shows its real cost. -
2
Slurry disposal quietly eats into a job's margin
Wet cutting produces slurry that has to be vacuumed up and hauled off, a real cost on every job that is easy to absorb without ever billing for it.
What we doKeeps slurry disposal visible as its own cost, so you can see whether it is worth billing separately. -
3
Small service calls blur with bigger packages
A handful of same-day core drilling calls for plumbers and electricians looks the same in the books as a multi-week wall sawing package for a general contractor, but the two pay very differently.
What we doKeeps service calls and larger progress-billed packages in separate income lines. -
4
A rebar hit or utility strike spikes a month
Cutting into unexpected rebar or a utility line can destroy a blade or worse, and that unusual cost can look like a bad month instead of a one-time incident.
What we doFlags unusual equipment losses against the job, so it does not look like a normal ongoing cost. -
5
Retainage on larger packages disappears
A general contractor holds back 10 percent on a larger wall sawing package and does not release it until closeout, sometimes months after the cutting is done.
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 concrete cutting 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 billingLarger wall sawing and slab cutting packages billed to general contractors.
- Service callsSame-day core drilling for plumbers, electricians, and property managers.
- Change order billingAdded holes or cuts discovered mid-project.
- Slurry and disposal billingWhen hauling costs are billed to the customer as their own line.
- Retainage releasesHeld-back money on larger packages, paid out at closeout.
Money out
- Field crew wagesCutters and drillers, including certified payroll on public jobs.
- Diamond blades and core bitsThe fastest-wearing cost in the business.
- Equipment rentalWall saws and wire saws for larger jobs.
- Slurry disposalVacuum and haul-off costs from wet cutting.
- Trucks and fuelService trucks moving between calls and packages.
- Bonding and insurancePerformance bonds and liability coverage for larger jobs.
- Utility locatingGround scanning to avoid rebar and utility lines before cutting.
What we watch for you
- Job margin
What each job actually made after blades, disposal, and labor.
- Blade cost per job
How much of a job's cost went to blades and bits, a rough read on rebar.
- Retainage owed
Money general contractors are holding on larger packages right now.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things concrete cutting 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.
No. I tied the blade cost to that job, so it shows up as what that job actually cost, not as a random spike in supplies.
Right now it shows as a cost on every wet-cutting job. Whether to start billing it separately is worth deciding once you see the number building up over a few months.
I flagged it as a one-time equipment loss on that job, so it does not look like your normal blade spending just jumped for no reason.
The tax side
The tax side of a concrete cutting business.
Most of what goes wrong here is labels and timing. Blade wear treated as a mystery, slurry costs never billed, 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-offsWall saws, wire saws, and service trucks 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 cutter or locating service 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 cutter who works your schedule, uses your equipment, and takes direction from you 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 concrete cutting and coring companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Diamond blades and core bits
- Wall saws and wire saws
- Slurry vacuum equipment
- Safety gear and PPE
- Continuing education
- Bonding premiums
- Liability insurance
- Truck fuel and repairs
- Utility locating services
- Permit and inspection fees
- Job costing software
- Uniforms with your logo
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 concrete cutting year, kept every month.
Bid season, blade and disposal 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 demolition and renovation jobs fill the schedule.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed while spring renovation and demolition jobs pick up. 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 rebar-heavy job or a run of service calls changed the number.
- October
Before year end
As outdoor cutting work slows into winter, 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 concrete cutting and coring 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 concrete cutting and coring companies ask first.
Does blade wear get tracked by job instead of just lumped into supplies?
Yes. Blade and bit costs are tied to the specific job, so a job with a lot of rebar shows its real cost instead of making a normal month look like supplies spiked for no reason.
Do we need to bill separately for slurry disposal?
That is your call, but Gus keeps disposal costs visible as their own line so you can see how much they add up to before deciding whether to start billing for it.
Do I write off a new wall saw 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.
We do small service calls and big packages both. Can the books tell them apart?
Yes. Service calls and larger progress-billed packages sit in separate income lines, so you can see which kind of work is actually paying you better.
Our books are behind after a busy 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