Brokerage, lending & investing

Books and taxes for house flippers.

A hard money draw against a rehab, contractor invoices tied to one specific house, a permit fee, and the sale proceeds that finally show what the flip actually made. 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

AugustExample month

$27,600

what you made

August closed the Maple Street flip at a $27,600 profit. Every contractor draw on that house since February landed against this one sale, so the real margin is finally visible.

Title company payout, Maple StFlip sale proceeds
Kiavi draw, Maple StHard money loan draws
Roofing contractor, Maple StRehab labor and materials
Home Depot Pro, Oak AveRehab labor and materials
County permit feePermits and inspections

Money in$187,000

Money out$159,400

Set aside for taxes$6,800

An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Flip books go wrong when a property is not tracked as its own deal.

Every flip is really a small project with its own purchase price, rehab budget, financing cost, and sale price. When those get blended across two or three houses in progress at once, you cannot tell which flip actually made money and which one just moved cash around.

1
The sale check looks like pure profit

When a flip sells, the closing check can look like a huge windfall, but the purchase price, every contractor draw, and months of financing cost already left the account long before the sale.

What we doTracks each house as its own job from purchase through sale, so the closing check shows the real profit on that flip, not a number that ignores months of spend.
2
Two houses in progress at once blend their costs together

A roofer, a plumber, or a Home Depot Pro run gets paid from one account while two rehabs are underway, and without tagging each cost to its house, neither property's real budget is visible.

What we doTags every contractor invoice and material run to the specific property it went to, so each flip's true cost stays separate from the others.
3
Hard money draws and interest get mistaken for income or a flat cost

A hard money loan pays out in draws as work progresses, and the interest accrues against the property, so booked wrong, a draw can look like income or the interest can look like an unrelated fee instead of part of the flip's real cost.

What we doBooks loan draws against the property they fund and keeps interest as a cost of that specific flip, so the full cost of financing shows up where it belongs.
4
Dealer status turns the sale into ordinary income, not a capital gain

A house bought to fix and resell quickly is usually taxed as ordinary business income, not the capital gain a long-term rental sale would get, and assuming otherwise can lead to a real surprise at tax time.

What we doFlags flips as dealer property from the day they are bought, so the accountant applies the right tax treatment instead of the wrong one showing up in April.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a house flipper.

Set up once for how a flip actually moves through your accounts. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

Flip sale proceedsThe closing payout on a sold property, tracked against that property's full cost.
Hard money loan drawsFunds drawn from a lender to cover a purchase or rehab stage.
Wholesale assignment incomeFees from assigning a contract instead of closing on a property.
Seller-financed note paymentsPayments received when you carry financing for a buyer on a sold flip.

Money out

Property acquisition costsPurchase price and closing costs on a flip, tracked by property.
Rehab labor and materialsContractor invoices and supply runs, tagged to the specific house.
Permits and inspectionsCounty and city fees tied to a property's rehab work.
Hard money interest and pointsFinancing cost on a specific property's loan, kept apart from the draw itself.
Holding costsUtilities, insurance, and property tax on a flip while it sits unsold.
Real estate agent commissionsFees paid to list and sell a completed flip.

What we watch for you

Profit per flip
What each property actually cleared after acquisition, rehab, and financing, not just the sale price.
Days held per property
How long capital is tied up in a flip, since a longer hold eats into the margin through interest and holding costs.
Financing cost per deal
Interest and points on each flip's loan, since it can quietly erase a chunk of the profit.
The set-aside
What you will owe on flip profit, tracked every month even while a rehab is still in progress.

Ask Gus

Things house flippers 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 Maple Street closing check looks huge. Is that really all profit?

No. That number includes paying back the Kiavi loan and covering six months of contractor draws. The real profit is what is left after all of that, which I have tracked against this one house since February.

I have two flips going right now and the Home Depot runs are getting mixed up between them.

I tag every material run and contractor invoice to the specific address it went to, so each flip's real budget stays separate, even when both are active at once.

Can I do a 1031 exchange on this flip to defer the tax?

Usually not. Flips are typically taxed as ordinary income since they are bought to resell quickly, not held as an investment. A real accountant can confirm how your specific situation is treated.

The tax side

The tax side of house flipping.

Most of what matters here is that a flip is usually taxed like inventory, not an investment, and that every dollar spent on a property needs to trace back to it.

What your return has to get right

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

Dealer status and ordinary incomeProperty bought to fix and resell quickly is usually taxed as ordinary business income, and a 1031 exchange usually is not available, unlike a property held for rental income or long-term appreciation.
Self-employment tax on flip profitProfit from flipping carries self-employment tax at 15.3 percent up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500, since it is treated as ordinary business income.
Quarterly estimated paymentsWith flip profits landing unevenly across the year, estimated payments due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15 need a real look at which sales are likely to close when.
Contractor 1099sA subcontractor not on payroll who is paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list running across every active flip.

Deductions house flippers miss

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

Contractor labor and materials
Permit and inspection fees
Hard money interest and points
Utilities and insurance while a flip sits unsold
Property tax during the holding period
Real estate agent commissions on sale
Dumpster rental and debris removal
Title and closing costs
Vehicle mileage between job sites
Tools that stay with the business
Staging costs for a listed flip
Home office for a dedicated workspace

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 house flipper's year, kept every month.

Flips close on their own timeline, not a calendar quarter. Your team keeps you ahead of what each closing means for taxes. 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, subcontractor 1099s go out, and a monthly set-aside is planned around flips expected to close this year.
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 the flips that closed so far changed the number.
October
Before year-end sales
Some buyers push to close before year end. Gus looks at what is worth doing or buying before December while there is still time to plan for it.

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 house flippers. 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 house flippers ask first.

Can Gus track two or three flips I have going at the same time?

Yes. Every cost gets tagged to the specific property it belongs to, so each flip's real budget and profit stay separate, no matter how many are active at once.

How does Gus handle a hard money loan that pays out in draws?

Each draw is booked against the property it funds, and the interest is tracked as a cost of that specific flip, so the full financing cost shows up where it belongs, not as a mystery deposit.

Do I get a capital gain on a flip if I hold it a little longer?

Usually not. Flips are typically taxed as ordinary income based on intent to resell quickly, regardless of exactly how long you held it. The accountant looks at your specific situation.

I also wholesale a few contracts a year without ever owning the property. Does that get tracked differently?

Yes. Assignment income from a wholesale deal is kept in its own category, separate from flips you actually purchase and rehab.

My last flip's books are a mess with receipts from three different suppliers. Can Gus sort it out after the fact?

Yes. Send the bank and card statements you have. Gus sorts every cost to the property it belongs to, and most flippers know their real numbers within a couple of weeks.

Do I need a separate bank account for every flip?

It is not required. Gus can tag costs to the right property even from one account, though a separate account per deal can make your own tracking simpler if you run several at once.

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.

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

Books and taxes for house flippers.

Flip books go wrong when a property is not tracked as its own deal.

The sale check looks like pure profit

Two houses in progress at once blend their costs together

Hard money draws and interest get mistaken for income or a flat cost

Dealer status turns the sale into ordinary income, not a capital gain