Landscaping contractors: see what each route and install made — books, payroll and taxes done for you

Free tax review

Find out what we’d handle and what it costs

Thirty minutes by phone; you leave with one written price.

We keep the books every month, show how much each maintenance route and install job made, run payroll and prepare the year-end return. Bookkeeping starts at $375 a month, quoted as a flat fee in writing before we start. Based in Santa Clarita, we work with landscaping contractors in any state.

Profit by route and by install, monthly Payroll for a crew that grows in spring Quarterly estimates from real numbers The return prepared from your own books

Typical situations

Do you work with landscaping contractors like me?

Yes, we take on landscaping contractors who run maintenance routes, install jobs or both, with a crew that grows in spring and shrinks in the fall.

Sixty maintenance accounts, plus a few installs

A landscaping company bills sixty maintenance customers every month and takes a few installs on top, and the route payments and the install payments land in the bank feed as one stream of deposits. The miss is route income and install income sitting in one line. We split the routes from the installs, track the costs on each side, and show the two margins side by side every month.

An install crew on deposits and progress payments

A landscaper with an install crew bids irrigation and hardscape jobs, takes a deposit, then bills progress payments — payments billed as the work moves along. The month the deposits land looks great and the next looks thin. The miss is reading the bank balance as profit. We record each payment against its job, so each job shows what’s been billed, collected and still owed against what it cost. Monthly bookkeeping from $375 a month — what the monthly service covers.

Three seasonal workers added every spring

A landscaping contractor adds three workers every spring and has been paying them in cash or on a 1099, the year-end form for people who aren’t on payroll. The miss is paying first and sorting out the paperwork later. We collect a signed W-9 — the form that records a worker’s legal name and taxpayer ID — from each person before the first check, and we run payroll for anyone you put on it (the California rules are in the California section). Payroll for the crew from $95 a month — how the payroll service runs.

Nursery runs for installs and for route customers

A landscaper buys plants, sod and irrigation parts at the nursery and the supply yard, some for install jobs and some for maintenance customers. The miss is treating every nursery bill the same way for sales tax and job cost. We keep each purchase on the job or the route it went to (the California sales-tax detail sits in the California section).

A newly licensed landscaper with a mowing route and first install bids

A landscaper with a mowing route just picked up a contractor’s license and is bidding first installs, with route and install money running through one personal account. The miss is starting the install side with no business account and nothing set aside for quarterly estimates. We set up the books, the route and job lists and quarterly estimates from day one, and we look at the entity question with the owner. The return from $650, or from $850 for an LLC or S-corp with the owner’s personal return included — how we prepare the return and how we compare entity options.

A year behind, receipts in the truck

A landscaping business stopped keeping the books a year ago; nursery receipts and fuel slips live in the truck. The miss is fuel slips that mix mower gas with truck gas, so the equipment fuel credit can’t be backed up, and subs paid all year with no 1099s filed. We rebuild the year first, then prepare the return from it. Cleanup from $750 — how a catch-up project runs.

Profit by job

How do you show what each route and install made?

Job costing is how you see what each route and install made: we match every cost, from plants, sod and irrigation parts to fuel and equipment to your crew’s hours, against what each route and install billed, and send you a report each month showing what every one made.

We set up your job list and cost codes — the labels that tie each cost to a job — in whatever you already use: QuickBooks, Xero or a spreadsheet.
We load each worker’s hourly rate with payroll taxes and benefits, so a mow day or an install day carries what the crew really costs.
We spread the trailer, the mowers and the yard rent across routes and installs, so overhead lands on the work that uses it.
We keep plant and sod cost apart from what you charge for them, with nursery credits and returned plants tracked.

What we do each month: crew hours, plants, materials and any sub bills are coded to the route or install they belong to as the books close, and the job report arrives with the profit and loss statement (P&L). Read: why a busy contractor can still be broke.

Maintenance route income and install jobs stay on separate lines in the books. We track route income by customer, cost the installs like any other job, split crew hours between routes and installs, and spread fuel and equipment costs across the routes they serve — so each month you see each side’s margin on its own.

Subcontractors

What do I need from a sub before I pay them?

Before you pay a tree crew, an irrigation sub or a hauler, get a signed W-9 and their license number — we keep both on file before the first payment goes out.

For payments made in 2026, a sub who isn’t a corporation — an individual, sole proprietor, single-member LLC or partnership — gets a 1099-NEC, the year-end form that reports what you paid a sub, once you pay them $2,000 or more in the year (the line was $600 for 2025). The sub’s copy and the IRS copy are both due February 1, 2027. We total each sub’s payments from the books and file the forms.

Read: the 2026 rules for every sub and supplier on your job.

Getting paid

How should monthly maintenance billing and install deposits show up in my books?

Maintenance customers are billed and tracked by route each month, and install deposits and progress payments are held on their job until the work is done.

We match each route customer’s monthly invoice to the payment that paid it, and list who still owes for last month at every close.
We hold each install deposit on its job until the work is billed.
We match each progress bill to the irrigation or hardscape phase it covers and list unpaid progress bills at every close.

Catch-up work

What does a catch-up look like when a landscaping contractor’s books are behind?

For a landscaping contractor whose books are behind, a catch-up rebuilds the missing months from the bank, nursery and job records, files any missed 1099s, and ends with the return and quarterly estimates prepared from the reconciled books; it starts at $750.

What we ask for

Bank and card statements; nursery and supply-yard statements and receipts; fuel receipts, with equipment gas kept apart from truck fuel; the route list and the monthly maintenance invoices; install contracts, deposit and progress bills; payroll reports; the list of any subs with their W-9s and any 1099s already filed; the equipment list with purchase records; last year’s return.

How the cleanup runs

We trace bank deposits back to their jobs and sources, code every cost to the job it belongs to, and rebuild each gap from the bank statements and the job records.

What you get

Reconciled books, a profit-and-loss and balance sheet for the rebuilt year, and a clean baseline the monthly service starts from.

Cleanup is billed half to start and the balance on delivery; the cleanup page has the service details.

The monthly close

What do you check every month?

Every month we reconcile the bank and card accounts, close the routes and the installs on their own lines, code every cost to its job or route, and check payroll and sub payments against the paperwork on file.

Every bill, part and labor hour coded to its job
Nursery and supply-yard purchases split between jobs and routes
Extras added on site — more heads, more plants, a haul-away — billed before the job closes
Equipment fuel kept apart from truck fuel
Sub payments matched to a signed W-9 and license on file
Payroll records against the season’s hires and rehires

Each month you get the P&L, the balance sheet, the job report and a short note on what needs attention.

California

What’s different for a landscaping contractor in California?

In California, four things change for a landscaping contractor: who can be paid as a sub on licensed work, a state report for subs, workers’ comp, and sales tax on what you furnish and install.

We check each worker’s license at setup, because California presumes an unlicensed worker on licensed work is your employee — payroll, not a 1099. The C-27 is the landscaping license from the Contractors State License Board (CSLB): routine maintenance paid on a regular basis generally needs no C-27, while installs and extras of $1,000 or more do. Read: should your next crew member be an employee or a sub.
California has its own report for subs who are individuals, sole proprietors or single-member LLCs: the DE 542, filed with the EDD — the Employment Development Department, the state’s payroll agency — within 20 days once you’ve paid a sub $600 or more or signed a contract for that much. We file it when a sub is set up.
A landscaping business with anyone on payroll carries workers’ comp — the insurance that covers a crew member hurt on the job — and CSLB needs proof of coverage. We keep the payroll reports your comp carrier asks for.
Sod and flowers are materials: the tax is paid at the nursery and we carry it as job cost. Plants, trees and shrubs are fixtures you sell, which takes a seller’s permit (the state registration to collect sales tax) and a sales-tax return; we split each nursery bill into the two groups and keep the figures the return needs for CDTFA, California’s sales-tax agency. Read: the 2026 sales-tax rules for products you use on the job.

Pricing

What does accounting cost a landscaping contractor in 2026?

In 2026, bookkeeping for a landscaping contractor starts at $375 a month. Payroll for the crew starts at $95 a month. The return alone starts at $650 for a landscaper filing Schedule C, and from $850 for an LLC or S-corp with the owner’s personal return included. Schedule C is the business page of your personal return. Cleanup starts at $750. W-2 and 1099 filing on their own, without monthly books, starts at $95.

Each is a flat fee quoted in writing before we start. Tracking what each job made, 1099 filing and license checks sit inside the quote; there’s no separate charge for them.

What moves a quote: how many open jobs or route stops you bill in a month, crew size and how often payroll runs, the number of subs, the bank and card accounts, how far behind the books are, and how many trucks and pieces of equipment you run.

Books

from $375/mo

Route and install income kept as separate lines
Plants, parts and crew hours on their job
Subs’ W-9s, license checks and 1099s
Monthly P&L, balance sheet and job report

The return alone

from $650

Schedule C prepared from your records
From $850 for an LLC or S-corp — the owner’s personal return included
The equipment fuel credit claimed on the return
How we prepare the return

The quote is the price.

Book my free 30-minute call

How it works

What happens after you book?

After you book, there’s a free 30-minute call, then the engagement letter, a portal invite and a short list of documents to send.

The 30-minute call

About six questions: installs, routes or both; crew size and how it swings with the season; how maintenance customers and installs are billed; the trucks and equipment; whether the books are in QuickBooks; how far behind things are. You leave with one flat price in writing.

The engagement letter

Sent during the call and signed when you’re ready; it doesn’t expire. Signing books a short onboarding call.

Access and documents

The portal invite, read-only bank feeds or the QuickBooks file, your open-jobs list, your license number, and your workers’ comp policy details or CSLB exemption.

Behind first, then monthly

If the books are behind, the cleanup comes first, then the first monthly close and job report.

You see the return before it’s filed

The return comes to you before anything is filed; half the fee starts the work and the balance is due before e-file, and an extension is free if April gets tight.

Communication

You’ll know where the books and the return stand.

The person who answers the phone is on the same team that closes your books and prepares your return.

The same-day rule

Call or email during business hours and you’ll hear back the same day — all twelve months.

Landscapers are welcome

Routes only, installs only or both, two workers or eight, in any state — the free call ends with a straight answer on whether we’re the right fit.

Admitted to practice before the IRS

Our team of IRS representation specialists is admitted to practice before the IRS. If an IRS letter shows up, forward it: how we handle IRS letters.

The N&T Tax & Advisory Group team

We keep the books and prepare the return from the same set of numbers. A question mid-month gets an answer from someone who already knows your routes, your jobs and your crew.

Bookkeeping · Profit by job · Payroll · Quarterly estimates · Tax preparation · IRS representation · Direct line: (661) 554-4495

Reviews

Rated 5.0 on Google

★★★★★ Twelve reviews, every one five stars, every one verifiable. Read all of them on Google →

"Alex helped me resolve a complicated tax situation that had been causing me a lot of stress. He was extremely knowledgeable, responsive, and efficient throughout the entire process."

Kevin B. — via Google

"Working with Alex was straightforward. I hadn't looked at my books all year, but he made my life easy and handled the whole profit and loss at the end of the year so I could get my taxes done."

Levon B. — via Google

"I came to this company with previous tax years and bookkeeping that were done incorrectly. They're very knowledgeable about what they do and help me get everything in order at a very reasonable price."

Sayra A. — via Google

Where we work

Do you work with landscaping contractors outside California?

Yes — we work with landscaping contractors remotely in any state.

Job paperwork — nursery statements, install contracts, progress bills, fuel receipts — moves through the secure portal, and we walk the monthly job report with you on a call with screen share. If your work falls under another state’s rules, we cover that in your quote. If you also run whole jobs as a general contractor, our page for general contractors covers that side.

Santa Clarita Los Angeles San Fernando Valley Van Nuys North Hollywood Pacoima Sylmar Canoga Park Reseda Burbank Glendale Anywhere in the US

What we don’t do

We handle the money side: the books, what each job made, payroll, quarterly estimates and the returns. Bids and estimates, change orders, lien waivers, permits, insurance certificates, legal advice on contracts or worker status, getting workers licensed or certified, pricing or selling your installs, and reviewed, audited or compiled statements for bonding or banks are outside our work, and we don’t advise on them.

Worth reading

What can you read before you call?

Short articles from our blog, in the words of the trade.

Margins

What’s a Good Landscaping Profit Margin? Why Most Owners Watch the Wrong Number

Vehicles

Your Contractor Vehicle Tax Deduction in 2026: Standard Mileage vs. Actual Expenses for Heavy Work Trucks

Equipment

Contractor Equipment Depreciation: Expensing vs. Depreciating That New Machine in 2026

Tools

Tax Write Off for Tools and Equipment: Should You Expense or Depreciate That Purchase?

Buying equipment

Buy Used Lease or Finance Equipment? A Contractor’s Tight-Budget Guide

Entity

LLC vs S-Corp for Contractors: Where the 2026 Tax Savings Actually Come From

FAQ

What do landscaping contractors ask before booking?

Do I have to send 1099s to the people I hire?

Yes, for subs you pay $2,000 or more in 2026 who aren’t corporations: individuals, sole proprietors, single-member LLCs and partnerships each get a 1099-NEC, while corporate subs generally don’t. The sub’s copy and the IRS copy are both due February 1, 2027. We add up what each sub was paid during the year and send the forms out.

Can my seasonal helpers be paid as 1099 subs?

Not always. Worker status is a legal question about how the work is run, and California adds a license rule for anyone doing licensed work. We set up payroll for anyone who should be an employee. This isn’t legal advice; gray cases go to an employment attorney.

Do I need a contractor’s license for maintenance work?

Not for routine maintenance in California: mowing and upkeep on a regular paid schedule needs no C-27 license, but a C-27 is needed once an install or extra reaches $1,000 — that’s the Contractors State License Board’s line. When you start taking installs, we set up the install jobs as their own list so the route numbers stay clean. That’s general information, not legal advice.

Can I get a tax credit for the gas my mowers use?

Yes: gas burned in mowers, trimmers, blowers and chain saws is off-highway business use, so the federal fuel tax in it can come back as a credit on the return (Form 4136), while gas in the trucks doesn’t count. We keep equipment fuel apart from truck fuel, with gallons, dates and suppliers recorded, and claim the credit when the records support it.

My books are a year behind. Can you catch them up?

Yes. A cleanup project from $750 puts the missing months back together from your bank records, route billing history, install contracts and nursery statements, and we prepare the return once they balance. Timing depends on the records, and we scope the project with you before any work begins.

Should a landscaping business be an LLC or an S-corp?

It depends on your numbers: an S-corp is a federal tax election an LLC can make, so the choice is about how the business is taxed, and a California LLC owes $800 a year. We model both options on your figures before you form anything; our entity-selection page shows how the comparison runs.

Ready to see which routes and installs pay?

One free 30-minute call. One team keeps the books, runs payroll and prepares the return, and you’ll leave the call knowing what we’d handle and what it costs — whether or not you hire us.