If you have a question that isn't here, call us. We'd rather talk it through in 10 minutes than have you guessing.
Three plans. No setup fees. Catch-up work (if you're behind) is quoted separately after your free checkup call.
Owner-operators who need clean books and no surprises.
Growing crews that need numbers to run on.
Multi-crew shops that need full finance visibility.
Annual plans are billed as a lump sum. Monthly plans are billed on the first of each month. We require a 3-month initial commitment on all plans so we have time to actually fix things, not just start.
No setup fee. Your first invoice is just the monthly rate. If you're behind on your books, catch-up work is quoted separately based on how far behind you are and how complex the cleanup is. We give you that number upfront, before you commit to anything.
Because bookkeeping takes time to set up right. The first month we're building your chart of accounts, connecting your bank feeds, and understanding your business. The second month we're refining. By month three you have clean books, a working system, and numbers you can use. A one-month engagement doesn't do that for anyone.
After three months, you can cancel with 30 days notice. No long-term lock-in.
Catch-up work means getting your books current if you're behind. We assess how far back you are and what's involved in the cleanup on your free checkup call. The quote is a flat fee for the project, not an hourly rate. You know the full number before we start anything.
Most catch-ups take two to five weeks depending on how far behind you are and how organized your records are. We've done 14-month cleanups. We've seen worse.
Xero has its own subscription cost, which you pay directly to Xero. It runs about $30-$85/month depending on the plan you need. We do not mark up Xero or take a cut of your subscription. We can help you pick the right Xero plan for your business size and needs.
Every month, we:
Depending on your plan, we also handle payroll entry, job costing by project type, 90-day cash flow projection, and quarterly estimated tax calculation.
We handle payroll entry and reconciliation in Xero for Engine Company and Battalion Chief clients. We don't run a separate payroll service but we work alongside whichever payroll provider you use (Gusto, ADP, QuickBooks Payroll, etc.) and make sure the entries land in your books correctly.
If you're looking for payroll management recommendations, we'll tell you what makes sense for your crew size and state.
We don't file business tax returns. We are bookkeepers, not CPAs. What we do is keep your books clean and current all year so that when your CPA asks for records in January, you have everything they need and tax season is a non-event.
We also calculate and remind you about quarterly estimated tax payments based on your actual income. Most of our clients stop getting surprised by tax bills after their first year with us.
Job costing means tracking revenue and expenses at the job level, not just the business level. Instead of knowing "we made $40K last month," you know "service calls made 38% margin, installs made 24% margin, and that big commercial job we thought was great actually lost $3,200."
If you're running more than one job type or have more than two trucks, you need job costing. It changes how you bid, what work you take, and how you grow. It's included in Engine Company and Battalion Chief plans.
It's not a spreadsheet dump. It's a short written summary that covers: revenue vs. last month, biggest expense changes, anything that looked unusual, and a plain-English read on your cash position. Attached to that is your standard Xero P&L and balance sheet if you want the detail.
The goal is that you read it in 5 minutes and actually understand it. If you have questions, you reply to the email and get a person.
It's a 30-minute call where we figure out where your books are and what you actually need. We'll ask about: how far behind you are, what software you're using, how many accounts and employees you have, and what's been breaking down. By the end, we give you an honest assessment of what it will take to fix things and what it will cost. No commitment required to have the call.
It's not too late. We've cleaned up books that were two years behind. The important thing is that you start. Every month you wait adds another month of work and another month of making decisions on bad information.
We'll quote the catch-up work as a flat fee upfront so you know exactly what you're getting into before you agree to anything.
No. We have seen things. Shoe boxes of receipts. Bank accounts never reconciled. Years of transactions categorized as "Uncategorized Expense." Business and personal accounts completely mixed. We don't judge because we've seen worse, and because every client who called us was in a harder place when they called than they are now.
The call is not an audit. It's a conversation.
After your checkup call, if you decide to move forward, we typically start within one week. The onboarding process takes about three to five business days: we get you set up in Xero, connect your bank feeds, build out your chart of accounts, and get your field software integration working if applicable. You don't have to do most of this yourself.
No. We're remote-first and have been since we started. Most of our client interaction is email and phone. If you're in Louisiana or Wisconsin, we have deep local knowledge of the seasonal patterns and state tax calendars, but you don't need to be local to work with us. If you're outside those two states, we'll let you know on the checkup call if anything about your state changes how we'd structure things.
We use Xero because it's better for job costing, cash flow forecasting, and the kind of reporting that contractors actually need. The job tracking and project accounting features in Xero are more purpose-built for field businesses than what you get from QuickBooks at the same price point.
It's also where we've built our expertise and our workflow. We know how to make Xero work for a trades business specifically. If you're currently on QuickBooks, we handle the migration as part of your onboarding.
Yes. We build the integration between your field software and Xero so that job revenue, costs, and tech data flow into your books correctly. ServiceTitan and Jobber are the two we work with most. If you use a different platform, ask us on the checkup call and we'll tell you what the integration looks like.
We need read-only access to your bank accounts (usually through Xero's bank feed connection, which doesn't give us transaction ability), full access to your Xero account, and read access to your field software if applicable. We do not need login credentials to your bank. We cannot move money or make payments. Xero's bank feed is a one-way data pull.
No. We set up Xero for you as part of onboarding. You'll need a Xero account (we'll walk you through creating one if you don't have it) and we handle everything else: chart of accounts, bank connections, opening balances, field software integration. You don't need to know anything about Xero to start.
Flat fee, quoted after your free checkup call. The factors that affect the price are: how many months behind you are, how many accounts you have, how organized your records are, and whether we need to reconstruct anything. You get the number upfront. We don't bill hourly so you don't get an invoice you didn't expect.
The more you have, the faster and cheaper the catch-up. Here's what's helpful:
If you don't have all of this, we work with what you've got. Bank statements can be requested from your bank going back several years if needed.
Two to eight weeks depending on how far behind you are and how organized your records are. A three-month catch-up with decent records usually takes two weeks. A 14-month catch-up with receipts in a shoe box takes longer. We'll give you a realistic timeline on your checkup call so you know what to expect.
Catch-up work and monthly bookkeeping are billed separately. You pay the flat catch-up fee for the cleanup project. Your monthly bookkeeping plan starts after we've completed the catch-up and your books are current. We don't charge you both at the same time for the same period.
Thirty minutes on the phone is worth more than reading 20 FAQs. We're available Mon-Sat 1:00p-9:00p and we'll give you straight answers.
No judgment · No contracts · No commitment · Mon–Sat 1:00p–9:00p