Small manufacturers & fabricators
Books and taxes for custom furniture makers.
A designer's commission deposit, a hardwood lumber order, finish room supplies, and a delivery and install fee. Your own bookkeeper stays on it all year, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September came in at $10,400. The walnut order for the Hendricks dining table is logged against that job, not general lumber spend.
- Hendricks project depositCommission deposits
- Delivery balance, Ashford projectFinished commission payments
- Hardwood lumber orderLumber and veneer
- Finish room suppliesFinishing
- Delivery truck fuelDelivery and install
Why your books are different
Custom furniture books go wrong across a build that outlasts the invoice.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your shop takes a deposit on a piece that will not be finished for two or three months, buys hardwood that sits drying or waiting on the design, and finishes each piece in its own room before delivery. When the books do not track that arc, a deposit month looks flush and a delivery month looks thin, when neither tells the real story.
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1
A commission deposit reads as a finished sale
A client pays half down on an $8,000 dining table that will not be delivered for ten weeks, and if the deposit is counted as income right away, the month looks better than it is while the work still owed goes unseen.
What we doHolds commission deposits as money still owed until the piece is delivered, then moves it to income so the timeline matches reality. -
2
Lumber bought for one job blends into the general pile
A special order of quartersawn white oak for one commission gets lumped in with the shop's everyday stock, so you cannot tell what that specific piece actually cost in material.
What we doTags lumber and veneer purchases to the job they were bought for, so each commission's real material cost is visible. -
3
Finish room supplies hide the true cost of a piece
Stain, lacquer, and wax used to finish a piece can add real hours and real cost, but on the bank statement it looks like the same small purchase every job makes.
What we doKeeps finishing supplies in their own line so a piece with a demanding finish shows its real cost. -
4
Delivery and install get folded into the job price
Moving and installing a large finished piece, sometimes with a rigger or a second person, costs real money that a flat commission price can quietly absorb.
What we doKeeps delivery and install costs separate from build costs so you can see what getting a piece to the client actually costs.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a custom furniture shop.
Set up once for how commissions get paid and what a build costs. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Commission depositsHeld as money owed until a piece is delivered.
- Finished commission paymentsThe balance due once a piece ships or delivers.
- Designer and architect referralsWork sourced through a design trade relationship, often with its own terms.
- Repair and refinish workSmaller jobs restoring or refinishing existing pieces.
Money out
- Lumber and veneerHardwood, sheet goods, and veneer tagged to the job they were bought for.
- Hardware and fittingsHinges, slides, and fasteners specific to fine furniture.
- FinishingStain, lacquer, wax, and finish room supplies.
- Delivery and installFuel, rigging, and help getting a piece into a client's home.
- Shop rent and utilitiesIncludes dust collection and finish room ventilation.
- Equipment loan or leasePayments on planers, table saws, and finish room equipment.
- Design softwareCAD or rendering tools used to present a commission before it is built.
What we watch for you
- Deposit backlog
The value of deposits held for pieces not yet delivered, so cash on hand is not mistaken for profit.
- Material cost by job
Lumber and hardware cost against a commission's price, the real test of a quote.
- Finish cost per piece
What finishing actually adds to a job, so a demanding finish gets priced for next time.
- Days to get paid
How long a final balance sits before a client or designer settles it.
Ask Gus
Things custom furniture makers 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.
Not yet, in the books it is. I hold it as money you still owe until the piece is delivered, then it moves to income so the month is not overstated.
It does. I tag it to that job instead of general lumber, so you can see exactly what that piece cost to build.
If you pay him $2,000 or more this year and he is not on payroll, he gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. I keep that list running as we go.
The tax side
The tax side of a custom furniture shop.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing on deposits and keeping one commission's material cost from blending into another's.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Shop equipmentPlaners, table saws, and finish room equipment can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025, and Section 179 covers up to $2,560,000.
- Deposits and progress billingA deposit taken before a piece is delivered is money you owe the client, not income, until the work is finished and the final invoice is issued.
- Lumber and material on handHardwood and veneer bought and sitting in the shop at year end get valued and matched against what actually sold, rather than expensed the day they were bought.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when commission deposits and lumber cost are tracked correctly all year.
Deductions custom furniture makers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Hardwood and veneer
- Fine furniture hardware
- Stain, lacquer, and finish supplies
- Sandpaper and abrasives
- Design and rendering software
- Delivery vehicle fuel and maintenance
- Rigging and moving equipment
- Trade show and showroom costs
- Dust collection filters
- Safety gear and respirators
- Shop insurance
- Photography of finished work
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 custom furniture year, kept every month.
Commissions land on their own timeline, not a season. Your taxes still run on one. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Waitlist planned
Open deposits and lumber on hand get sorted, last year's return gets started, and your monthly set-aside is planned so April is already handled.
- April
Build return filed
The accountant files and signs your return on schedule. A slow month spent mostly on one big commission does not turn into a scramble, since the set-aside has been building since January.
- July
Midyear build check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether this year's commissions are running ahead of or behind last year's pace.
- October
Before December
Gus reviews any planer, saw, or finishing equipment worth buying before year end closes, and flags it so the accountant can make the call on how it gets written off.
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 custom furniture makers. 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 custom furniture makers ask first.
How does Gus handle a deposit on a commissioned piece?
He holds it as money you still owe the client, not income, until the piece is delivered. That keeps a strong deposit month from overstating what you actually earned.
Can Gus track what a specific commission's lumber actually cost?
Yes. When you tell him a purchase was for a specific job, he tags it there instead of general material spend, so that piece's real cost is visible.
We get a lot of work through interior designers. Does that change anything?
It does not change what you do. Gus keeps designer-referred work in its own category so you can see how much of the shop's income comes through that channel.
Do we have to change how we quote a commission?
No. Keep quoting commissions the way you always have. Gus reads it off your bank statement, and when a deposit is unclear he asks once and remembers your answer from then on.
My books are behind after a few big custom builds this year. Is that fixable?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have, even from a few commissions back. Gus works through the deposits and lumber orders, the accountant checks the result, and most makers see where they stand within a week.
Do I write off a new planer or table saw all at once?
Often you can. A planer or table saw bought for the business can usually be deducted the year it is bought, though sometimes spreading it out fits a shop's year better. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
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