Electrical, energy & home tech

Books and taxes for landscape and outdoor lighting installers.

Direct design-build installs, jobs subcontracted through landscape companies, prepaid maintenance plans, and callbacks that turn out to be a timer, not a failure. 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
JuneExample month
$9,000
what you made

June came in at $9,000. Two of the installs this month were subcontracted through Greenscape Landscaping, so I kept them apart from jobs you booked yourself.

  • Greenscape Landscaping sub paymentSubcontracted lighting jobs
  • Direct customer final paymentDirect lighting installs
  • FX Luminaire fixture orderFixtures and transformers
  • Houzz lead feeLead fees
  • BP fuel, install truckTruck and fuel
Money in$36,000
Money out$27,000
Set aside for taxes$1,900
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

A landscape lighting installer's books go wrong around who is really paying.

A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business splits between direct design-build jobs, work sent by landscape companies at a sub rate, and maintenance plans used unevenly through the year. When the books do not know that, you cannot tell what is actually paying you.

  1. 1

    A landscaper's sub rate is not the job's full value

    A landscape company sells a client on uplighting for their new patio, then hires you to install it at a subcontractor rate below what the landscaper billed the client. Shown only as an invoice total, you cannot tell which landscape relationships are actually worth the lower rate.

    What we doTracks subcontracted lighting jobs by the landscape company that sent them, so you can see which referral relationships are worth keeping at their rate.
  2. 2

    Maintenance plan calls do not land on a schedule

    A customer pays for a year of bulb and fixture upkeep, but burnt-out LEDs and drifting timers get reported whenever they happen, not on a fixed spring and fall visit like other seasonal trades. Booked as income the day the plan is sold, the books show nothing about how much service has actually been used.

    What we doTracks prepaid maintenance plans against the calls actually used, so the plan's remaining value stays visible.
  3. 3

    A timer drifting with the seasons looks like a broken system

    A customer calls in a panic that half the yard's lights are not coming on, and it turns out to be a photocell or timer that needs a seasonal adjustment, not a failed fixture. Billed and booked like a normal repair, it hides how often callbacks are really about settings, not equipment.

    What we doFlags timer and photocell adjustment calls as their own category, so real equipment failures do not get confused with a seasonal reset.
  4. 4

    Trenching equipment gets lost inside a fixture order

    A trencher or wire puller bought to run low-voltage lines under a lawn costs far more than the fixtures and wire for a single job, and filed the same as materials, it disappears into an ordinary-looking supply order.

    What we doFlags equipment purchases the day they show up and logs them separately from job materials, so the accountant can decide how to write them off.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a landscape lighting installer.

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

  • Direct lighting installsDesign-build lighting jobs booked and paid directly by the homeowner.
  • Subcontracted lighting jobsWork paid by a landscape company that hired you for the lighting portion.
  • Maintenance plan callsPrepaid bulb and fixture upkeep, tracked against calls actually used.
  • Financed installsThe full job amount, with the lender's cut booked as a fee.

Money out

  • Crew wagesKept apart from timer and photocell calls so labor cost by job type stays clear.
  • Fixtures and transformersBrass fixtures, LEDs, and low-voltage transformers from FX Luminaire or a similar supplier.
  • Trenching equipmentTrenchers and wire pullers, logged as equipment apart from job materials.
  • Liability and bonding insuranceCoverage for working in customer yards and landscaping.
  • Lead fees and marketingHouzz and Google local services leads.
  • Truck and fuelFuel, repairs, insurance, and loan payments for the install truck.

What we watch for you

  • Sub versus direct mix

    How much of the month came from your own leads against work sent by landscape companies.

  • Maintenance plan usage

    Calls used against what a prepaid plan still covers.

  • Timer call rate

    How often callbacks turn out to be a seasonal setting, not a failed fixture.

  • The set-aside

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

Ask Gus

Things landscape lighting installers 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.

Greenscape hired me to install lighting on one of their patio jobs. Where does that money go?

Into subcontracted lighting jobs, kept apart from work you book yourself, so you can see which landscape relationships are worth the rate they pay.

A customer paid for a year of maintenance in January. How do I know what's left on that plan?

I track calls used against what the plan covers, so you always know how much is left, not just what was paid up front.

Half my emergency calls turn out to be a timer that needs resetting for the season, not a broken light. Worth tracking?

Yes, I keep those in their own category, so a pattern of seasonal resets never gets confused with real equipment failing.

The tax side

The tax side of a landscape lighting business.

Most of what goes wrong here is mixing income sources and mistaking a setting for a failure. A sub rate blended with direct work, a plan sold with no tracking, 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.

  • Trenching and install equipmentTrenchers, wire pullers, and shop tools can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
  • Contractor 1099sAnyone not on payroll paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
  • Employee or contractorA helper who uses your tools and works your schedule is usually an employee, not a subcontractor, no matter how the pay is set up.
  • 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 landscape and outdoor lighting installers miss

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

  • Trenching tool rental
  • Wire pulling equipment
  • Fixture testing meters
  • Truck signage and wraps
  • Liability and bonding insurance
  • Houzz and lead fees
  • Phone for site photos
  • Home office for scheduling
  • Vehicle registration
  • Background check fees

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 landscape lighting installer's year, kept every month.

Outdoor entertaining season and the earlier dark of fall bring two different rushes. 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, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  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 whether summer's install rush changed the number.

  4. October

    Before the early dark

    Shorter days bring a wave of new lighting interest. Before it hits, Gus looks at equipment you might buy 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 landscape and outdoor lighting installers. 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 landscape lighting installers ask first.

A landscape company hires me to install lighting on their client's project. Does Gus track that separately?

Yes. Subcontracted jobs are kept apart from work you book directly, so you can see which landscape relationships are worth the rate they pay.

My customers pay for a year of maintenance up front. How do I know what's left on their plan?

Gus tracks the calls actually used against what the plan covers, so you always know how much service is left, not just what was paid.

A lot of my emergency calls turn out to be a timer needing a seasonal reset. Does that matter for the books?

Yes. Those calls are kept in their own category, so a pattern of seasonal resets never gets confused with real equipment failing.

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.

Do I write off my trenching equipment all at once?

Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy it, and 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 a year behind. Is that a problem?

No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most people know where they stand inside 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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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