Outdoor living & structures
Books and taxes for deck builders.
Deposits, progress draws, Trex and pressure-treated lumber orders, and the permit fee that gets passed through or absorbed. 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
May came in at $12,600. The Trex order for the Alvarez deck went in as materials for that job, not a general lumber cost.
- Deposit, Alvarez deckJob deposits
- Final payment, Novak deckFinal payments
- 84 Lumber pressure-treated orderFraming lumber
- Trex decking orderComposite decking
- County permit feePermits
Why your books are different
Deck building books go wrong in the same four places.
A generalist sees deposits and lumber bills. Your business is a framed structure under a composite deck, permit fees that sometimes get billed through and sometimes do not, and crews building three decks at once. When the books do not know that, you cannot tell which job actually paid.
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1
A deposit looks like profit before the frame is set
A $10,000 deposit on a deck that will not be framed for two weeks shows up as income the day it lands, so the month looks strong before a single post hole is dug. The lumber and crew costs land later with nothing to offset them.
What we doTracks the deposit against its job and recognizes the income as the work gets done, so a big deposit month does not hide a thin one underneath it. -
2
Framing lumber and composite decking blur together
Pressure-treated framing and Trex or TimberTech decking boards get bought from the same supplier and logged as one lumber line, hiding how much of the job's cost is structure versus the decking surface the customer is really paying for.
What we doKeeps framing lumber and composite decking on separate lines against the job, so you can see what each part of the build actually cost. -
3
Permit fees get lost in the noise
Some contracts bill the permit fee straight through to the customer, others absorb it into the price. When it is not tracked consistently, it is easy to lose track of which jobs actually covered their own permit cost.
What we doBooks permit fees against the job they belong to and flags whether it was billed through, so the job's true margin is clear. -
4
A big decking order skews a slow month
One Trex order for three upcoming decks can make a month look like a loss on paper, with nothing built yet to show for it, and the following month with no material buys looks unusually good.
What we doFlags large stock-up purchases and notes which jobs they belong to, so a big order does not read as the month falling apart.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a deck building 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
- Job depositsThe third to half collected at contract signing, tracked against the job it belongs to.
- Progress drawsPayments collected at framing and decking milestones.
- Final paymentsWalkthrough payment once the deck and railing are complete.
- Financed jobsThe full job amount, with the lender's cut from Wisetack or GreenSky booked as a fee.
- Change ordersAdded railing upgrades, lighting, or stairs billed separately from the base contract.
Money out
- Framing lumberPressure-treated joists, beams, and posts from 84 Lumber or a local yard.
- Composite deckingTrex, TimberTech, or similar boards, kept apart from framing so margin is visible.
- Railing and hardwareCable rail, aluminum balusters, joist hangers, and structural screws.
- PermitsCounty or city permit fees, tagged to whether the job billed them through.
- Crew wages and subsFraming crew pay and any subs brought in for stairs or lighting.
- Equipment rentalPost hole diggers, saws, and lifts for larger elevated decks.
- Lead fees and marketingAngi, HomeAdvisor, and Google local services ads.
- Financing and card feesWhat the lender or Square kept before you got paid.
What we watch for you
- Material cost share
Lumber and decking costs against money in, so pricing keeps up with material prices.
- Jobs in progress
Deposits collected for decks not yet built, so a big deposit month does not look like profit that is not there yet.
- Composite versus wood margin
How composite jobs compare to pressure-treated builds, so you know which to steer customers toward.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things deck builders 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 booked it as a change order on the same job, so the extra scope and what it added to the bill are both visible.
The Trex order for the Alvarez deck landed this month. I tagged it to that job, so it is not really a loss, it is a job still in progress.
If you pay them $2,000 or more this year and they are not on payroll, they get a 1099 by January 31. I keep that list running.
The tax side
The tax side of a deck building business.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels. A deposit counted too early, decking filed the same as framing lumber, 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-offsA post hole digger, saw, or lift bought for the business can usually be written off in the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll paid $2,000 or more in 2026, like a framing crew or a railing sub, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- Self-employment taxAn owner not on payroll pays 15.3 percent self-employment tax on profit, up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base.
- 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 deck builders miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Post hole digger rental
- Circular and miter saw blades
- Joist hangers and structural screws
- Truck fuel and repairs
- Angi and Google local services ads
- Permit application fees
- Uniforms with your logo
- Tools that live on the truck
- Phone and tablet for job sites
- Trade licenses and bonding
- Card and financing fees
- Job photo software
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 deck building year, kept every month.
Deposits start landing in spring and crews stay busy through fall. Your taxes come on a schedule either way. 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, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed before the spring deposits start coming in for the season ahead.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether composite or pressure-treated jobs carried the summer.
- October
Before the season slows
A look at any equipment worth buying before winter, 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 deck builders. 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 deck builders ask first.
Can Gus handle jobs paid through financing companies?
Yes. He books the full job as money in and the lender's fee as a cost, so your sales are not understated and the fee still counts against your taxes.
I run estimates in Buildertrend. Do I have to change how I work?
No. Keep running jobs the way you do. Gus works from your bank statement, and when a deposit or payout is unclear he asks you once and remembers the answer.
Do I write off a new saw or lift all at once?
Often, yes. Business equipment can usually be deducted in the year you buy it, though sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
My books are behind from last 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.
How does Gus keep a permit fee from getting lost?
He books it against the job it belongs to and flags whether the customer's contract billed it through, so the job's true cost stays visible.
Do you handle sales tax on the lumber I buy?
No. Sales tax on materials and contracts varies by state and Gus does not file it. He keeps your books clean so whoever files your sales tax has accurate numbers to work from.
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