Home maintenance & specialty services

Books and taxes for residential moving companies.

Hourly local moves, broker-sourced long-distance jobs, deposits collected weeks out, and a crew paid by the day. 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
$15,500
what you made

June came in at $15,500. Two of your bigger jobs came from a moving broker, so I kept their lead fee separate from what you booked direct.

  • Local move, cardLocal moves
  • Broker lead payoutBroker-sourced moves
  • U-Haul truck rentalTrucks and equipment
  • Cash paid to day crewDay labor
  • Uline moving suppliesMoving supplies
Money in$64,000
Money out$48,500
Set aside for taxes$3,200
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Moving company books go wrong in the same five places.

A generalist sees deposits and a fuel bill. Your business runs on broker leads that take a cut, deposits collected weeks before the truck shows up, and a crew that grows or shrinks by the job. When the books do not track those apart, you cannot tell which jobs actually pay.

  1. 1

    Broker-sourced jobs pay a set lead fee cut

    A moving broker that books a long-distance job on your behalf takes its own fee off the top before you ever see the money, so a $3,200 move might land as something less once the broker is paid.

    What we doKeeps broker-sourced jobs in their own line, so you can compare that fee against jobs you book direct.
  2. 2

    A deposit lands weeks before the move happens

    Long-distance and larger local moves often collect a deposit to hold the date, sometimes a month or more ahead of the actual move. Counted as income on arrival, the booking month looks better than it was and the move month looks thin.

    What we doTracks the deposit against the actual move date, so income lands closer to when the work happened.
  3. 3

    A valuation claim is a cost, not a refund of the job

    When something gets damaged in transit and your cargo or valuation coverage pays out on a claim, subtracting that straight from the job's revenue understates your sales and hides how often claims are happening.

    What we doBooks the original move as income and the claim payout as its own cost, so both numbers stay honest.
  4. 4

    Storage-in-transit fees blur with the move itself

    When a shipment sits in a warehouse between pickup and delivery, the storage fee is a different cost and sometimes a different charge to the customer than the move itself, but it often gets lumped into one number.

    What we doKeeps storage-in-transit charges and costs in their own line, separate from the move fee.
  5. 5

    Day crew pay blurs into regular wages

    A big move often means bringing on extra hands paid by the day, sometimes in cash. Mixed in with regular payroll, it hides the real labor cost of a bigger crew and the classification question that comes with using the same helpers often.

    What we doKeeps day labor in its own line and flags anyone paid enough in a year that a 1099 conversation is worth having.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a residential moving company.

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

  • Local movesHourly crew-billed jobs paid by card or cash.
  • Long-distance movesFlat-rate or weight-based moves booked direct.
  • Broker-sourced movesJobs from a moving broker, net of the broker's lead fee.
  • Storage-in-transitFees for shipments held between pickup and delivery.
  • Packing servicesAdd-on packing and unpacking, kept apart from the move fee.

Money out

  • Trucks and equipmentRental, lease, fuel, and repairs for the moving fleet.
  • Crew wagesRegular payroll for movers, kept separate from day labor.
  • Day laborExtra hands brought on for bigger jobs, paid by the day.
  • Moving suppliesBoxes, blankets, straps, and dollies.
  • Cargo and valuation insuranceCoverage for damaged or lost items in transit.
  • Broker lead feesWhat a moving broker kept before the payout landed.
  • Storage facility rentWarehouse space for storage-in-transit shipments.

What we watch for you

  • Broker fee share

    What brokers keep against jobs booked direct. Worth knowing before taking more broker work.

  • Labor share

    Crew wages and day labor against money in. A rising share means pricing or crew size needs a look.

  • Claims rate

    How often valuation claims happen, tracked apart from completed moves.

  • The set-aside

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

Ask Gus

Things moving 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.

A broker sent me a $4,000 job and I only saw $3,100. Is that normal?

Yes, that is the broker's lead fee. I keep broker jobs in their own line so you can see that cut against what you book direct.

I paid out $600 on a valuation claim this month. Does that come off the job's revenue?

No, I keep the original move as income and the claim payout as its own cost, so your sales stay accurate and you can see how often claims come up.

I hired three extra guys for a big move and paid them cash at the end of the day. Do I owe them paperwork?

If any of them add up to $2,000 or more for the year and are not on payroll, they need a 1099 by January 31. I keep that running total as we go.

The tax side

The tax side of a moving company.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labor: a deposit counted before the move, day crew pay hiding in wages, and a broker's fee mistaken for lost revenue.

What your return has to get right

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

  • Trucks and equipmentA moving truck bought for the business, or major equipment like ramps and hand trucks, can usually be written off in the year you buy it, up to the Section 179 limit, with 100 percent bonus depreciation on property bought after January 19, 2025.
  • Contractor 1099s for day laborAnyone not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
  • Worker classification for regular helpersA helper who works your schedule and rides in your truck on most jobs usually counts as an employee, not a contractor, even if paid by the day.
  • 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 residential moving companies miss

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

  • Truck rental, lease, and fuel
  • Moving blankets and straps
  • Dollies and hand trucks
  • Cargo and valuation insurance
  • Broker lead fees
  • Uniforms with your logo
  • Storage facility rent
  • Packing boxes and tape
  • Phone and tablet for dispatch
  • Card processing fees
  • Business license and permit fees
  • Small tools under the expensing threshold

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 moving company year, kept every month.

Summer lease turnover brings the busiest weeks of the year. 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 for day crew 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 the summer move season changed the number.

  4. October

    Before the slower season

    As the moving calendar quiets down, 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 residential moving 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 moving company owners ask first.

Can Gus track jobs from a moving broker separately from ones I book myself?

Yes. Broker-sourced moves get their own category, net of the lead fee, so you can compare that against what you keep on jobs you book direct.

I collect a deposit weeks before a long-distance move. How does that get booked?

Gus tracks the deposit against the actual move date rather than the day it lands, so income shows up closer to when the work happened.

Does a valuation claim payout reduce my reported income for that job?

No. Gus books the original move as income and the claim payout as its own cost, so your sales numbers stay accurate.

My crew size changes job to job with day labor. Can Gus keep up with that?

Yes. Day labor gets its own line separate from regular payroll, and Gus tracks who is owed a 1099 as the year goes.

My books are years behind between two trucks and a lot of cash. Can Gus catch up?

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 a special registration to move things across state lines?

Interstate movers usually need federal registration, and some states require their own permit for local moves. Gus tracks the related costs, and the accountant can point you to what applies.

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