Apparel, resale & collectibles
Books and taxes for estate sale companies.
A commission cut of the total sale proceeds, a crew paid for staging and running the weekend, and a buyout cost to clear what did not sell. 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
March came in at $9,500. Three sales ran this month, and one client's leftover items needed a paid buyout to clear the house, so I kept that separate from your normal commission income.
- Sale commission, Thompson estateCommission income
- Sale commission, Ruiz estateCommission income
- Crew wages for sale weekendSale crew wages
- Leftover buyout payment to clientBuyout costs
- Estate sale listing site feeAdvertising and listing fees
Why your books are different
Estate sale company books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees cash collected over a weekend. Your business earns a commission on someone else's belongings, pays a crew to stage and run a multi-day sale, and sometimes pays the client to haul away or buy out what did not sell. When the books do not know that, the full sale total looks like the company's income instead of the client's.
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1
The full sale total gets booked as the company's income
A weekend estate sale grosses $18,000, and the company's commission is 35 percent. Booked as an $18,000 sale, the company's real income is overstated many times over, and the rest is money owed to the client.
What we doCounts only the company's commission as income and keeps the client's share as a payout, so the sale reads honest the day it closes. -
2
Buyout costs to clear leftover items look like a normal expense
When unsold items are bought outright to clear the house for the client, that payment can look like a straight loss instead of what it actually is: a cost of doing business that sometimes gets recovered by reselling the goods.
What we doKeeps buyout costs in their own category, separate from crew wages and advertising, so their real impact on a sale's profit is visible. -
3
Crew wages get billed against the wrong sale
A crew paid to stage, price, and run a multi-day sale works across several estates in the same month, and if their pay is not tied to the right job, no single sale's real profitability is ever clear.
What we doKeeps crew wages tracked against the sale they worked, so each estate's commission can be judged against what it actually cost to run. -
4
Listing site and advertising fees get lost in overhead
Fees paid to estate sale listing sites and local advertising for each sale are easy to lump into general overhead, hiding whether a particular sale's marketing spend was worth it.
What we doKeeps advertising and listing fees visible per sale where possible, so marketing cost against turnout can be judged.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an estate sale company.
Set up once for commission, crew, and buyouts. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Commission incomeThe company's percentage of each sale's gross proceeds.
- Consultation and appraisal feesFees billed apart from a full sale engagement.
- Cleanout service feesFlat fees for clearing a property outside a full sale.
- Online auction commissionThe company's cut of items sold through an online estate auction add-on.
Money out
- Sale crew wagesStaff paid to stage, price, and run a sale weekend.
- Buyout costsPayments to clients for leftover items bought outright.
- Advertising and listing feesEstate sale listing sites and local ads for each sale.
- SuppliesPricing tags, tables, and display materials.
- Transportation and haulingTrucks and hauling for cleanout and buyout items.
- InsuranceLiability coverage for working inside a client's home.
- PayrollOffice and scheduling staff, kept apart from owner draw.
What we watch for you
- Commission rate realized
What the company actually collects against total sale proceeds, so pricing the commission can be judged.
- Crew cost per sale
What each sale actually cost to staff, so profitability by sale is clear, not just by the month.
- Buyout recovery
What leftover items bought out actually resell for, so buyout decisions can be judged.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things estate sale company 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, only your $6,300 commission counts as your income. The rest belongs to the client, and I keep it tracked as their share, not yours.
Not necessarily. I logged it as a buyout cost, separate from your other expenses, so we can see what it actually returns once those items resell.
Yes, as long as you tell me which sale each crew payment was for, I keep it tied to that job so each sale's real profit is visible.
The tax side
The tax side of an estate sale company.
Most of what goes wrong here is treating a client's sale proceeds like they belong to the company.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Commission income is only the company's cutOnly the percentage the company keeps from a sale counts as its income. The rest is money collected on behalf of the client and owed back out, not the company's own revenue.
- Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll paid $2,000 or more in 2026 for crew, hauling, or appraisal work gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
- Worker classification for sale crewsCrew who work the company's schedule at the company's direction are usually employees, even if paid per sale. Someone who sets their own hours and works multiple companies is more likely a genuine contractor.
- 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 income and client payouts are kept separate all year.
Deductions estate sale companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Pricing tags and stickers
- Folding tables and display racks
- Estate sale listing site fees
- Local advertising per sale
- Hauling truck fuel and maintenance
- General liability insurance
- Card processing fees
- Signage for sale weekends
- Cash boxes and counting supplies
- Business licenses and permits
- Phone and internet for scheduling
- Continuing appraisal education
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
An estate sale company's year, kept every month.
Spring and summer often bring the heaviest downsizing and moving season. Your taxes come on a schedule. 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 for crew and hauling help is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether commission income is tracking with how many sales actually ran.
- October
Before the season winds down
Fall moves and downsizing often pick up again before the holidays. Gus looks at what the season will owe.
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 estate sale 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 estate sale company owners ask first.
Is the full sale total my income, or just my commission?
Only your commission counts as your income. Gus tracks the rest as money owed to the client, so your books never overstate what the company actually earned.
How does Gus handle a buyout payment for leftover items?
He keeps buyout costs in their own category, separate from crew wages and advertising, so you can see whether the buyout ends up paying for itself once those items resell.
My crew works multiple sales in the same month. Can the books still separate them?
Yes, as long as crew pay is noted against the sale it was for, Gus keeps it tied to that job so each sale's real profit is visible on its own.
I hire extra hands just for busy sale weekends. Do I need to send them 1099s?
If you pay someone $2,000 or more in a year and they are not on payroll, yes, by January 31. Gus keeps that running total so nothing is missed.
My books have not been touched since my last few sales. Can Gus catch up?
Yes. Send the statements covering those sales. Gus works out each sale's real commission against what crew and buyouts cost, and most owners have a clear picture within 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