Most home services owners came up through the trades, not the books. You can run a profitable job and still end the month wondering where the cash went — and that gap between “busy” and “actually making money” is where financial management lives.
The articles in this category cover the things we see blow up most often inside HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and roofing businesses: job costing that actually ties back to the P&L, cash flow forecasting when receivables are choppy, labor burden math nobody wants to do, pricing floors that don’t leave margin on the table, and the monthly close discipline that separates a $2M shop from a $20M one. Every piece is written from the seat we sit in — working hands-on with home services contractors as fractional CFOs — not from a textbook.
If you’re trying to get a cleaner read on your numbers, fix a margin that’s been sliding, or just stop flying blind between tax returns, start here.
How to calculate gross profit by department for home services companies. Why segment-level P&Ls matter more than your total company gross margin.
Payment processing fees eat 2.5% to 3.5% of every dollar your home services company collects. For a contractor running $8M in revenue,...
Profit and cash are not the same thing. A contractor can run 14% net margin and still bounce a payroll check if...
EBITDA stands for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. It is the number that determines what your home services business is...
Bookkeeper vs. controller vs. CFO: what each role does, when you need them, and signs you've outgrown your current financial team.
The DIY Bookkeeping Trap Every home services company starts with the owner doing the books. Or the owner’s spouse. Or a part-time...