Faith-based, nonprofit & membership orgs
Books and taxes for private family foundations.
A single family's endowment, a grant payout to a cause the founders cared about, a family board member's travel reimbursement, and an excise tax that has to be tracked all year. Your own bookkeeper keeps it sorted, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
November came in at $4,700 after expenses. I kept the trustee travel reimbursement for the fall board meeting in its own line, apart from the grant checks that went out the same week.
- Quarterly endowment distributionInvestment income
- Grant, Lakeside Youth CenterGrant payouts
- Trustee travel reimbursementBoard and governance costs
- Investment advisory feeInvestment manager fees
- Foundation administrator payStaff payroll
Why your books are different
A family foundation's books go wrong in the same recurring places.
A generalist sees an investment account and a handful of checks going out each year. Your foundation carries a real excise tax on its own investment income, a payout requirement it has to meet, and family members on the board whose expenses have to be handled carefully to avoid the appearance of self-dealing. Miss any of that and the family's own trustees are exposed.
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1
The payout requirement gets tracked too late
A private foundation generally has to distribute a set share of its assets toward its charitable purpose each year, and a family that only checks this near year end can find itself scrambling to approve enough grants in time.
What we doTracks grant payouts against the year's requirement all along, so the family knows well before December whether it needs to approve more giving. -
2
Family board member expenses look like self-dealing
A trustee's travel reimbursement for a board meeting is normal, but paid without a clear record of what it covered and why, it can look like the family is using the foundation for its own benefit rather than for a legitimate governance cost.
What we doKeeps board and governance expenses in their own line with a plain note on what each one covered, so there is a clear record if anyone ever asks. -
3
Investment income gets mixed with grant funding
The return the endowment earns from its investments looks like ordinary cash if it is not kept apart, and confused with money set aside for grants, it becomes hard to see how much the foundation actually has to give away.
What we doKeeps investment income in its own category, separate from grant payout funds, so the two are never confused. -
4
A program-related investment gets booked like a grant
A loan or investment the foundation makes into a charitable project, meant to be repaid or to earn a modest return, is not the same as a straight grant, and booked the same way, the foundation loses track of what it is owed back.
What we doTags program-related investments separately from outright grants, so any expected repayment stays visible and does not get lost. -
5
Investment manager fees get buried inside distributions
The fee an investment advisor charges to manage the endowment often gets netted against the distribution itself, hiding what management actually costs the foundation each year.
What we doKeeps investment manager fees in their own line, separate from the income the endowment produces, so the true cost of management is visible.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a family foundation.
Set up once for how the endowment, grants, and governance costs flow through the foundation. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Investment incomeReturns and distributions from the endowment portfolio.
- Family contributionsAdditional gifts the founding family adds to the endowment.
- Program-related investment repaymentsMoney returned from loans or investments the foundation made into charitable projects.
- Bequests and estate giftsAssets added to the endowment from a family member's estate.
Money out
- Grant payoutsChecks and wires sent to grantee organizations.
- Program-related investmentsLoans or investments made into charitable projects, kept apart from outright grants.
- Investment manager feesFees paid to the firm managing the endowment.
- Board and governance costsTrustee travel, meeting costs, and related expenses, clearly documented.
- Staff payrollAny paid administrator or program staff running the foundation's day-to-day work.
- Grantee due diligenceCosts of reviewing prospective grantees before a gift is approved.
What we watch for you
- Payout progress
Grants approved and paid against what the year is expected to require, tracked before December, not during it.
- Excise tax set-aside
What the foundation will owe on its net investment income, tracked every month.
- Governance cost ratio
Board and administrative costs against total assets, a number the family and any outside reviewer will ask about.
- Program-related investment balance
What is outstanding on any loans or investments the foundation expects back.
Ask Gus
Things family foundation trustees 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.
Based on what has gone out so far, you are close but likely short. I flagged it now instead of in December so the board has time to act, not scramble.
Reimbursing a trustee for legitimate governance travel is normal. I kept it documented with a plain note on what it covered, so there is a clear record if the accountant or anyone else ever asks.
As a program-related investment, kept apart from your outright grants, with the expected repayment tracked so it does not get lost in the books.
The tax side
The tax side of running a family foundation.
Most of what matters here is the excise tax, the payout requirement, and keeping family transactions clearly documented.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Excise tax on net investment incomeA private foundation generally owes a modest excise tax on its net investment income each year, which the accountant calculates as part of the foundation's own annual filing.
- Minimum distribution requirementA private foundation generally has to distribute a set share of its assets toward charitable purposes each year, tracked against the value of its investments, not just against what came in as income.
- Self-dealing between the foundation and family membersTransactions between the foundation and its founders or their family, beyond reasonable compensation and expense reimbursement for actual services, are generally restricted and worth flagging for the accountant before they happen, not after.
- Program-related investmentsA loan or investment made to further the foundation's charitable purpose, rather than to earn a market return, can sometimes count toward the payout requirement differently than a straight grant. The accountant determines how a specific investment should be treated.
Deductions private family foundations miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Investment advisory fees
- Grantee due diligence and site visits
- Board meeting and travel costs
- Foundation administrator pay
- Fiduciary and liability insurance
- Legal and audit fees
- Grant management software
- Postage for grant agreements
- Professional membership dues for staff
- Tax preparation and filing fees
- Record storage and document management
- Website hosting for the foundation
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 family foundation's year, kept every month.
The excise tax and the payout requirement run on their own clock, and the books track both all year. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Confirm last year's payout
Last year's records are wrapped up, grant payouts are confirmed against the year's requirement, and the excise tax set-aside for the coming year is planned.
- April
Payout year finalized
Whatever filing applies to the foundation is ready to hand off, with grant payouts, investment income, and the excise tax already calculated and documented.
- July
Payout pace check
Where the payout requirement stands at the year's midpoint, so the board is not making late-year grant decisions under pressure.
- October
Before year-end grant decisions
Gus tallies the payout progress before the family's final board meeting of the year, so grant decisions are made with real numbers, not a guess.
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 private family foundations. 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 family foundation trustees ask first.
Can Gus tell us whether we are on track to meet our required payout?
Yes. Grant payouts are tracked against the year's requirement all along, so the board knows where it stands months before year end, not in December.
How do you handle expense reimbursements to family members who serve as trustees?
They are recorded as board and governance costs with a plain note on what each one covered, kept clearly documented in case the accountant or an outside reviewer ever asks.
We made a loan to a nonprofit instead of a grant. Does that count differently?
It is tracked as a program-related investment, separate from outright grants, with the expected repayment visible, and the accountant determines how it factors into your payout requirement.
Do you calculate our foundation's excise tax?
Gus keeps investment income and expenses tracked cleanly all year so the calculation is straightforward, and the accountant handles the actual figure as part of preparing the foundation's own filing.
Does the subscription include filing our foundation's 990-PF?
No, that filing sits with the foundation's own preparer. Gus keeps grant payouts, investment income, and governance expenses reconciled every month, so the numbers that return needs are already sitting there instead of being pieced together in March.
Our foundation's records have not been reconciled since our last administrator left. Can you catch us up?
Yes. Send the investment and bank statements you have. Gus works through the backlog and the accountant checks it, and most foundations know where they stand within a few weeks.
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