Hard goods, dealers & local stores
Books and taxes for trailer and cargo trailer dealers.
Stock trailer sales financed on a floor plan, custom upfit work billed apart from the base unit, titling and registration fees passed through to the state, and a spring towing season that carries the year. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
May came in at $27,100. A custom cargo trailer with shelving and electrical upfit closed out this month, so I kept the upfit labor apart from the base trailer price to show what that work is actually earning.
- Stock trailer sale, cash pmtNew trailer sales
- Sheffield Financial payoutFinanced sales
- Manufacturer floor plan creditManufacturer rebates
- Floor plan interest pmtFloor plan financing
- Upfit shelving and electricalCustom upfit costs
Why your books are different
Trailer dealer books go wrong in the same four places.
A generalist sees deposits and vendor bills. Your business is stock trailers financed on a floor plan until they sell, custom upfit work that turns a bare cargo trailer into a rolling shop, titling fees collected and passed straight to the state, and the occasional trailer sold on consignment for someone else. When the books do not know that, the monthly number lies.
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1
Floor plan interest reads like just another loan bill
A dealer financing trailers on a floor plan can lose track of what one unsold unit is really costing to carry, unless that interest is tied back to the specific trailer it is financing.
What we doTies floor plan interest and curtailment payments back to the specific units they finance, so carrying an unsold trailer never hides inside a vague loan expense. -
2
Custom upfit work disappears into the base trailer price
Shelving, electrical, ramps, and cabinetry added to a bare cargo trailer get rung up as one price with the unit, so there is no way to see whether the upfit labor and materials are actually worth the shop time they take.
What we doKeeps custom upfit costs and income in their own line apart from the base trailer, so you can see what that work is really earning. -
3
Titling and registration fees get mixed into the sale price
Fees collected from a customer to title and register a new trailer get passed straight through to the state, but if they are booked as part of the sale price, they inflate what the dealership actually earned on the unit itself.
What we doKeeps titling and registration fees in their own line as money collected and passed through, so they do not inflate real sales. -
4
A consigned trailer gets booked like owned inventory
Some lots sell a trailer on consignment for an owner who is not ready to hand it over outright, and if that unit is booked the same way as trailer stock the dealership actually bought and owns, the sale overstates income and hides what is still owed back to the consignor.
What we doCounts only the consignment fee as the dealership's income and keeps the rest owed back to the consignor, so a consigned unit never reads as a regular trailer sale.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a trailer dealer.
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
- New trailer salesCash and financed sales of stock trailers from the lot.
- Used and trade-in salesSales of trailers taken in on trade, tracked apart from new units.
- Custom upfit incomeShelving, electrical, and cabinetry work, kept apart from the base trailer.
- Titling and registration feesFees collected and passed through to the state, kept apart from the sale price.
Money out
- Floor plan financingDraws, interest, and curtailment payments on financed lot inventory.
- New trailer inventory purchaseStock units bought from the manufacturer, net of rebates withheld.
- Custom upfit costsShelving, electrical parts, and cabinetry materials.
- Delivery and riggingFuel and equipment to move trailers to and from customers.
- Lot and shop payrollSales staff, upfit technicians, and yard crew.
- Rent and utilitiesShowroom, shop, and outdoor lot space.
- Financing and card processing feesWhat the lender or card processor kept before the sale hit the bank.
What we watch for you
- Floor plan balance owed
What is currently financed against unsold trailers, so it never gets mistaken for cash the dealership can spend.
- Upfit margin
What custom upfit work earns after materials and labor, apart from base trailer sales.
- Gross margin, new versus used
New trailers and reconditioned trade-ins do not carry the same margin, and blending them hides which side is really paying the bills.
- The set-aside
What the dealership will owe, tracked month by month so towing season does not end in a scramble.
Ask Gus
Things trailer dealers 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.
No. I count only your consignment fee as income and keep the rest owed back to the owner, so it never reads as a trailer you bought and sold.
Yes, I keep upfit costs and income in their own line, so you can see whether that work is actually worth the shop time it takes.
No, I keep those as money collected and passed through to the state, so they do not inflate what you actually earned on the trailer itself.
The tax side
The tax side of a trailer dealer.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and cost allocation. A trade-in booked wrong, upfit work buried in the base price, 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.
- Inventory and cost of goods soldWhat was actually paid for the trailers sold during the year, not just what was spent restocking, is what counts against sales. Trade-ins and floor-planned units on the lot at year end need a fair value on the books.
- Floor plan financing interestInterest paid to finance trailers on a floor plan is usually deductible as a cost of doing business, but it can affect other deductions available on those same financed units. This is one for the accountant to look at with the whole picture in view.
- Section 179 on shop and delivery equipmentUpfit shop tools, welding equipment, and a delivery truck can usually be written off in the year you buy them, up to $2,560,000 under Section 179. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property bought after January 19, 2025.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of qualified business income off their taxable income. It only lands right when floor plan interest and upfit work are booked correctly all year.
Deductions trailer and cargo trailer dealers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Floor plan financing fees
- Upfit shop tools and welding equipment
- Delivery truck fuel and repairs
- Financing and card processing fees
- Local advertising and lot signage
- Business liability and inventory insurance
- Damaged or unsellable trade-in write-downs
- Uniforms for shop staff
- Point of sale and job scheduling software
- Lot and yard upkeep
- Manufacturer training and certification
- Trade show and dealer meeting travel
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 trailer dealer year, kept every month.
Spring towing season carries the year, but the team is on the books every month, not just when the rush hits. Your team keeps you ahead of both. 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, the floor plan balance is reviewed with the lender, and a monthly set-aside is planned before towing season begins.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed as spring towing season ramps up, with the set-aside already covering what the dealership owes.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and how spring and early summer towing season changed the number.
- October
Before winter stocking
Before the winter stocking season for enclosed cargo units, Gus looks at equipment you might buy and anything worth doing before December.
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 trailer and cargo trailer dealers. 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 trailer dealer owners ask first.
How does Gus handle trailers we finance on a floor plan?
He keeps floor plan interest and curtailment payments in their own line against the inventory it is financing, so you can see what carrying an unsold trailer is really costing.
We do a lot of custom upfit work. Should that be tracked apart from the base trailer?
Yes. Gus keeps upfit costs and income in their own line, so you can see whether that work is actually earning what it should against the materials and labor it takes.
Do titling and registration fees count as our income?
No. Gus keeps those as money collected and passed through to the state, so they do not inflate what you actually earned on the trailer sale itself.
We sometimes sell a trailer on consignment. Does that get booked like a regular sale?
No. Gus counts only your consignment fee as income and keeps the rest owed back to the trailer's owner, so a consigned unit never overstates what the lot actually earned.
Our books are behind from a busy towing season. Can Gus catch up?
In most cases, yes, within about a week. Send over the bank statements you have, upfit jobs included, and Gus sorts through the backlog with the accountant checking his work.
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