Specialty subcontractors

Books and taxes for crane service companies.

Hourly and per-lift billing, mobilization fees, standby time waiting on other trades, and retainage on longer installs. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
MayExample month
$17,000
what you made

May came in at $17,000. The mobilization fee for the downtown job got tied to the permit and escort costs for the move, so you can see whether it covered the cost.

  • Hourly and lift billingHourly and per-lift billing
  • Mobilization fee, downtown jobMobilization and demobilization fees
  • Crane maintenance, hydraulicsCrane maintenance and parts
  • Diesel, crane and support truckFuel
  • Sling and shackle orderRigging gear
Money in$72,000
Money out$55,000
Set aside for taxes$4,500
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

A crane service company's books go wrong in a few specific spots.

A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business is billed by the hour and the lift, with standby time, mobilization fees, and a crane payment that can be the single biggest number in the business. Blend those together and you lose sight of what a job actually earned.

  1. 1

    Standby time blurs into working time

    A crane sits on site for six hours waiting on a delayed concrete pour, billed at a lower standby rate than an hour of actual lifting. Lumped into one number, you cannot tell how much of a month's billing was full rate.

    What we doKeeps standby billing separate from working time, so utilization stays visible.
  2. 2

    A mobilization fee looks like a lump of extra income

    Moving a crane to a downtown high-rise site can cost thousands in permits, escorts, and setup, and if the fee you charge is not tied to that cost, you cannot tell whether you actually covered it.

    What we doTies mobilization income to mobilization cost, so you know if that fee is paying for itself.
  3. 3

    The crane payment looks like a routine bill

    A loan or lease payment on a tower crane can be the single biggest line in the business, and treated like an ordinary expense, it is easy to lose sight of how much of every job needs to go toward covering it.

    What we doFlags the loan or lease payment clearly, so it stays visible against what jobs are bringing in.
  4. 4

    Rigging gear wears out quietly

    Slings, shackles, and spreader bars wear out and get replaced regularly, a safety-critical cost that is easy to write off as random small purchases.

    What we doKeeps rigging gear in its own category, so replacement costs stay visible.
  5. 5

    Retainage on longer installs disappears

    A tower crane erection contract on a high-rise can run for months with retainage held until the crane comes down, and it is easy to lose track of how much is still owed.

    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 crane service 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

  • Hourly and per-lift billingStandard crane and operator time billed to the job.
  • Mobilization and demobilization feesCharged for moving the crane to and from a job site.
  • Standby billingCharged when the crane is on site but idle waiting on other trades.
  • Rigging and engineering feesFor heavy or complex picks that need a lift plan.
  • Retainage releasesOn longer install contracts, paid out at closeout.

Money out

  • Operator wagesOften union, including certified payroll on public jobs.
  • Crane maintenance and partsUpkeep on major capital equipment.
  • FuelDiesel for the crane itself and support vehicles.
  • PermitsStreet closures and crane placement in urban areas.
  • InsuranceCrane liability coverage, typically the largest policy the business carries.
  • Crane loan or lease paymentThe largest fixed cost most crane businesses carry.
  • Rigging gearSlings, shackles, and spreader bars.

What we watch for you

  • Job margin

    What each job actually made after fuel, maintenance, and labor.

  • Standby share

    How much billed time is standby versus full working rate.

  • Retainage owed

    Money being held on longer install contracts right now.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things crane service 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.

The crane sat idle for six hours waiting on the pour. Do we get paid for that?

Usually at your standby rate, which I keep separate from working time so you can see how much of the month was full rate versus waiting around.

We charged a mobilization fee for the downtown job. Did it actually cover what it cost us to get the crane there?

Close. I tied that fee to the permit and escort costs for the move, so you can see whether it covered the cost or you ate part of it.

Our rigging crew works other jobs too when we're slow. Do they need 1099s?

If you pay them $2,000 or more this year and they are not on payroll, yes, a 1099 by January 31. I keep that list running so it is ready.

The tax side

The tax side of a crane service business.

Most of what goes wrong here is labels and timing. Standby time buried in working time, a mobilization fee untied from its real cost, 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-offsRigging gear, support vehicles, and crane components can often be written off the year you buy them, with bonus depreciation at 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
  • Sub-subcontractor 1099sAny outside rigging 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 contractorAn operator or rigger 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 crane service companies miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Rigging gear
  • Crane maintenance and parts
  • Operator certification renewal
  • Continuing education
  • Bonding premiums
  • Liability insurance
  • Fuel and lubricants
  • Permit and escort fees
  • Safety gear and PPE
  • Job costing software
  • Uniforms with your logo
  • Load chart and lift plan 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 crane service year, kept every month.

Bid season, mobilization 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.

  1. 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 high-rise jobs mobilize.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed while spring high-rise and infrastructure jobs get underway. No surprise bill, since the set-aside has been building since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether a long tower crane contract changed the number.

  4. October

    Before year end

    As outdoor crane work slows into winter in colder regions, Gus looks at equipment worth buying and anything else worth doing before the year ends.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

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 crane service 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 crane service owners ask first.

Can Gus separate standby billing from working time?

Yes. Standby and full working rate are kept in separate lines, so you can see how much of a month's billing came from time the crane was actually lifting.

Does a mobilization fee get tracked against what it actually cost to move the crane?

Yes. Gus ties the fee you charge to the permit and escort costs for that move, so you can see whether the fee covered the cost or you absorbed part of it.

Do I write off a new set of rigging gear 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're on a long tower crane contract with retainage. Can Gus track that?

Yes. Retainage stays on its own line by job, so you can see how much is being held and roughly when it should be released once the crane comes down.

Our books are behind after a big high-rise contract. 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.

More in specialty subcontractors

We keep books for the business next door too.

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