Home maintenance & specialty services

Books and taxes for home watch services.

Seasonal retainers paid up front, emergency calls when a pipe bursts while the owner is away, and insurance sized to how many keys you are holding. Gus sorts all of it, and an accountant checks every transaction.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
NovemberExample month
$4,600
what you made

November came in at $4,600. Two clients prepaid their winter season, so I am spreading that income across the months you will actually be visiting.

  • Winter season prepay, Client ASeasonal retainer
  • Emergency response feeEmergency response calls
  • Home watch software renewalVisit log software
  • Bonding and liability insuranceInsurance and bonding
  • Shell fuelVehicle and fuel
Money in$9,800
Money out$5,200
Set aside for taxes$1,000
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Home watch books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees deposits and a software bill. Your business runs on seasons paid for months in advance, a rare emergency call that pays differently than a routine visit, and insurance that scales with how many keys you hold. When the books do not track those apart, a prepay month looks huge and the next several look empty.

  1. 1

    A season prepaid up front is not one month of income

    A snowbird client who pays for a whole winter of weekly visits before leaving town hands you months of revenue in a single payment. Counted as income the day it lands, that one month looks enormous and every visit month after looks like nothing happened.

    What we doSpreads a seasonal prepay across the months you are actually doing the visits, so each month shows what was really earned.
  2. 2

    An emergency call is a different service than a routine visit

    When a pipe bursts or a storm knocks out power while an owner is away, the emergency response fee you charge is a one-time call, not part of the steady retainer. Mixed together, you cannot see how often emergencies are actually happening.

    What we doKeeps emergency response fees in their own line, separate from the regular seasonal retainer.
  3. 3

    Key-holding insurance grows with your client count, not your revenue

    Holding keys and alarm codes to more empty homes usually means a bigger bonding and liability bill, even in a month when you did not add much new business. Left unexplained, that rising cost can look like a mistake.

    What we doKeeps insurance and bonding in its own line so the cost of covering more keys and homes is easy to see and explain.
  4. 4

    Storm prep fees spike outside the regular retainer

    Before a hurricane or a hard freeze, clients often pay a one-time fee to have their home boarded up, shutters closed, or pipes checked. That spike is real seasonal work, not part of the steady weekly visit income.

    What we doKeeps storm prep and weather-event fees separate, so a seasonal spike is not mistaken for the new normal.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a home watch 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

  • Seasonal retainerWeekly or biweekly visit plans, spread across the season they cover.
  • Emergency response callsOne-time fees for urgent issues while an owner is away.
  • Storm prep and post-storm checksPre-storm closures and post-storm damage checks, billed separately.
  • Concierge add-onsMail handling, plant watering, and pre-arrival stocking.

Money out

  • Insurance and bondingCoverage for holding keys and alarm codes to client homes.
  • Visit log softwareApps used to document each visit with photos and notes.
  • Vehicle and fuelDriving between properties across the service area.
  • Background check feesVetting for any staff who visit homes or hold keys.
  • Association duesNational Home Watch Association or similar certification costs.
  • Phone and tabletDevices used for photo documentation and visit reports.

What we watch for you

  • Prepay unearned balance

    How much prepaid season income has not yet been earned by a completed visit.

  • Emergency call rate

    How often emergency response fees come up, tracked apart from the steady retainer.

  • Insurance cost per key

    Bonding and liability cost against the number of homes you are watching.

  • The set-aside

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

Ask Gus

Things home watch 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.

Two clients paid for the whole winter season at once. Does that count as one huge month?

No, I spread that across the months you will actually be doing the visits, so each month shows what was really earned instead of one inflated number.

I charged an emergency fee when a pipe burst at a client's house. Does that count the same as a regular visit?

I keep it separate. That way you can see how often emergency calls actually happen instead of them blending into your routine visit income.

My insurance went up when I picked up three new accounts. Is that normal?

It tracks. Holding more keys and alarm codes usually means a higher bonding cost. I kept it in its own line so the increase makes sense instead of looking like a random charge.

The tax side

The tax side of a home watch business.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing: a prepaid season counted all at once, and expenses that scale with client count without a clear reason shown.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Vehicle expensesDriving between properties can be deducted using the standard mileage rate, 72.5 cents a mile through June 2026 and 76 cents after, or by tracking actual costs.
  • Prepaid income and timingMoney collected for a season of visits is earned as the visits happen, not all at once, which affects how it should be recognized on the books and reported at tax time.
  • Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026, such as a backup visitor covering vacation weeks, gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
  • 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 home watch services miss

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

  • Vehicle mileage or fuel and repairs
  • Bonding and liability insurance
  • Visit log software subscription
  • National Home Watch Association dues
  • Background check fees
  • Phone and tablet for reports
  • Uniforms and branded materials
  • Marketing to HOAs and gated communities
  • Continuing education courses
  • Card processing fees for retainer payments
  • Small tools for storm prep, such as tarps and shutters
  • Office supplies for visit reports

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 home watch year, kept every month.

Snowbird departures and returns set the rhythm of your year, and 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.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled while winter visits are in full swing.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and how winter season prepay income is tracking as it gets earned.

  4. October

    Before storm and departure season

    As hurricane season and fall departures ramp up, Gus looks at equipment worth buying and anything worth doing before December.

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 home watch services. 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 home watch owners ask first.

Can Gus spread a prepaid season across the months I am actually working?

Yes. Seasonal retainer payments get tracked against the visits they cover, so a big upfront payment does not make one month look inflated and the rest look empty.

Do emergency response calls get counted differently than my regular visits?

Yes. They get their own category, so you can see how often urgent calls happen separate from your steady weekly or biweekly visit income.

My insurance keeps changing as I add or lose clients. Is that a books problem?

No, that is expected. Gus keeps bonding and liability insurance in its own line so the cost tracking with your client count is easy to see and explain.

I charge extra before hurricanes to close up shutters and check pipes. How does that get tracked?

Storm prep fees get their own category, kept apart from your regular retainer, since it is a seasonal spike rather than routine income.

My books have just been a spreadsheet I update when I remember. Can Gus take it from there?

Yes. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most people know where they stand inside a week.

Do I need to track concierge add-ons like plant watering separately?

It helps. Keeping add-ons apart from your base retainer shows whether those extras are worth offering at the price you charge.

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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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