Plumbing contractors: see what each call and job 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.

Each month we keep your books, track what builders still owe you in retention, show how much each service call and builder job made, run payroll and prepare the return. Bookkeeping starts at $375 a month, quoted as a flat fee in writing before we start. Based in Santa Clarita, we work with plumbing contractors in any state.

Draws and retention tracked by builder job Truck restocks coded to the calls they went on What each job and call made, every month Payroll and subcontractor paperwork

Typical situations

Do you work with plumbing contractors like me?

Yes, we work with plumbing contractors who run service and repair calls, rough in new construction for builders, or both.

A plumber roughing in new homes for two builders

He roughs in tract homes for two builders who pay on draws — progress payments made as the work goes in — and hold back retention, the share of each payment kept until the job is done. The miss is losing track of retention still owed from jobs he finished months ago. We take the retention line off each builder’s pay application on every draw and list what’s still out on jobs you finished. Monthly bookkeeping from $375 a month — how we track draws and retention in the monthly books.

A three-truck service company

Drains, leaks and water-heater swaps are billed on the spot, but truck restocks are never assigned to calls. The miss is not knowing what a service call really costs. We code restocks and parts to the calls they went on and show service and new-construction margins side by side. Books plus the return from $475 a month — what monthly bookkeeping includes.

A shop installing fixtures on remodels

Water heaters, toilets and faucets go in on remodel jobs, and the heater lands on the same supply-house ticket as the pipe and fittings. With the heater and the fittings on one supply-house line, the job report can’t show fixture cost against what was billed. We keep fixtures and materials on separate lines on each job. Monthly bookkeeping from $375 a month — how the monthly books split fixtures from materials.

A contractor paying a helper on a 1099

The helper does plumbing work on his jobs and gets paid as a sub, with the pay reported on a 1099 — the year-end form that reports what you paid a sub. The miss is paying first and sorting out status later. We collect each person’s W-9 — the form with the worker’s name and taxpayer ID — and look up their license before the first check, and we run payroll for anyone you put on it; the California rule is in the California section. Payroll from $95 a month — how payroll runs. For the status question itself, see our article on 1099 versus W-2 for contractors.

A newly licensed plumbing contractor going out on his own

After years as a journeyman he has his first truck and his first jobs. What slips: the first jobs run through a personal account, and nothing gets set aside for the quarterly estimates — the tax you pay in during the year. We set up the books, the job list and the estimates from day one and look at the entity question with him. The return from $650 for a Schedule C filer — Schedule C is the business page of your personal return — or $850 for an LLC or S-corp: how we prepare the return and how we compare entities.

A shop a year behind

There’s a stack of builder pay applications and supply-house invoices, and the books stopped a year ago. The gap is retention and sub payments that were never recorded. We rebuild the year from the bank, the builders’ pay applications and the supply-house statements, then prepare the return. Cleanup from $750 — how a catch-up project runs.

Profit by job

Which jobs and calls actually made money?

That’s what job costing is: we match every cost, from fixtures and truck stock to your plumbers’ hours, against what each call and job billed, and send you a report each month showing what every one made.

We set up your job list and cost codes — service calls and builder jobs each get their own.
We load each worker’s hourly rate with payroll taxes and benefits, so an hour on a job costs what it really costs.
We check that a water-heater swap’s heater, fittings and helper hours land on that call, and show service calls by type next to rough-ins by builder.
We keep material cost apart from markup on every job.

What we do each month: parts, payroll and sub bills are coded to their jobs in the close, and the job report — estimated against actual cost on every job and call — ties to the books. More in our article on profit by job for contractors.

Subcontractors

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

Before you pay a sub, get a signed W-9 and their license number; we keep both on file before the first check goes out.

For payments made in 2026, a sub who isn’t a corporation and is paid $2,000 or more gets a 1099-NEC, and the forms go out by February 1, 2027; the line was $600 for 2025.

A trenching or concrete-cutting sub on a sewer replacement, a backflow tester, a helper paid by the job — we keep each one’s W-9 and license on file, code each invoice to its job and keep a running total for each sub.

We file the 1099s in January — how payroll and year-end filings run. More detail in our article on when to give a contractor a 1099.

Builder work

How should deposits, draws and retention show up in my books?

For a plumbing contractor, each builder job carries its contract, its draws and the retention held back, so the books show what’s been billed, what’s been paid and what’s still owed.

We set up each builder’s draw schedule when the job starts.
We carry the retention each builder holds as money still owed to you, by job.
We carry retention you hold from your own subs as money you owe.
We tie each homeowner deposit on a remodel or repipe to its job until the work is billed.
We log each extra a builder or homeowner approves against its job, so it goes out on the next draw.
We flag a draw that’s late against the schedule.

The draw schedule and the retention list run inside the monthly close — how the monthly books handle builder draws.

Catch-up work

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

For a plumbing contractor whose books are behind, a catch-up is a cleanup project from $750 — and the return and quarterly estimates are prepared from the reconciled numbers.

What we ask for

Bank and card statements, service invoices, the builder contracts, draw requests and retention statements for open jobs, supply-house statements and parts receipts, W-9s and any 1099s already filed, payroll reports and last year’s return.

How the cleanup runs

We trace each bank deposit to its job and source — service calls, draws, retention payments — and code costs to jobs. We rebuild missing months from the bank and job records, and we file missed 1099s for anyone paid as a sub as part of the catch-up.

What you get

Every open job’s retention and sub totals carried forward, the first monthly close and job report, and the return prepared from the rebuilt books.

Cleanup is billed half to start and the balance on delivery.

The monthly close

What do you check every month?

Every month we close the books and check that every dollar landed on the right job, each builder’s draws and retention match their statements, and payroll ties to the job report.

Every bank and card account reconciled
Every bill, part and labor hour coded to its job
Draws checked against the draw schedule and the work in place
Retention held, by job, with what’s due back flagged
Work done but not yet invoiced, so an unbilled extra shows up
Truck restocks assigned to service calls
No sub paid without a W-9 and a license number on file
Supply-house returns and credits taken off the job they were charged to

Each month: the P&L, the balance sheet, the job report and a short note on what needs attention — how the monthly books run.

California

What’s different for a plumbing contractor in California?

In California, four things change for a plumbing contractor: who counts as a sub, workers’ comp, sales tax on what you install, and when retention has to be paid.

Who counts as a sub. A worker doing licensed plumbing work without a contractor’s license of their own is presumed to be your employee. We look up each sub’s license on the CSLB (the Contractors State License Board) site before the first check, and we file the DE 542 — California’s report of the independent contractors you pay, due to the EDD (the Employment Development Department) within 20 days of paying or contracting for $600 or more with an individual, sole-proprietor or single-member-LLC sub — inside that window.
Workers’ comp. Workers’ comp — the insurance that covers someone hurt on the job — is required once anyone is on payroll, and a C-36 (California’s plumbing license) contractor with no employees can keep CSLB’s no-employee exemption on file instead. We keep your certificate or exemption with your license records. More in our article on what workers’ comp costs and when a contractor can skip it.
Sales tax. Pipe, valves and fittings are materials — tax is paid when you buy them — and we carry that tax as job cost. Water heaters and other plumbing fixtures count as fixtures, which you sell when you install them, and we keep them on their own lines. If you’re registered with the CDTFA (California’s sales-tax agency), we prepare the return. More in our article on sales tax rules for contractor supplies.
Retention timing. California sets deadlines for paying retention: a builder has 10 days after it receives retention to pay you your share, and the owner pays retention within 45 days after the project is completed. We list each job’s retention with its due date.

This is how we book it, not legal advice.

Pricing

What does accounting for a plumbing contractor cost in 2026?

In 2026, bookkeeping for a plumbing contractor starts at $375 a month, books plus the year-end return from $475 a month, payroll from $95 a month, the return alone from $650 for a Schedule C filer or from $850 for an LLC or S-corp with the owner’s personal return included, and a cleanup from $750. 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. If we don’t keep your books, filing your subs’ 1099s starts at $95.

What moves a quote: the mix of service calls and builder jobs and how many run in a month, crew size and how often payroll runs, the number of subs, bank and card accounts, how far behind the books are, and how much parts stock rides on the trucks.

Books

from $375/mo

Reconciliations for every bank and card account
A profit-by-job report in every monthly close
1099s for your subs
Monthly P&L, balance sheet and job report

Books plus the return

from $475/mo

Everything in the books
The year-end return prepared from your own books
Quarterly estimates from real numbers

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
How we prepare a contractor’s return

The quote is the price.

Book my free 30-minute call

How it works

What happens after you book?

The 30-minute call comes first — service calls versus builder jobs, trucks and truck stock, how your builders pay — and the engagement letter, a portal invite and a short checklist follow.

The 30-minute call

About six questions: service and repair calls, new-construction rough-ins for builders, or both; how many plumbers and trucks you run; whether parts ride on the trucks; how builders pay you; QuickBooks or not; how far behind the books are. It ends with one flat price for our work, 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, and the secure-portal invite comes from that 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 certificate. We send a short checklist so nothing is missed.

Behind first, then monthly

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

Filing the return

Half the return’s fee starts the work and the balance is due before e-file. You see the return before anything is filed, and an extension is free if April gets tight.

Communication

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

A question about a draw, a retention balance or a 1099 goes to the team keeping your books — the person who answers can see the retention list and last month’s job report.

The same-day rule

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

Your month, on one page

The monthly note calls out what changed: retention that came due, a job that went over on parts, a sub still missing a W-9.

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 — a notice about a 1099 or a payroll filing, for example — forward it: how we handle IRS letters.

The N&T Tax & Advisory Group team

The same people who code your truck restocks and retention prepare your return, so the year-end numbers come straight from the job reports.

Bookkeeping · Profit by job · Payroll · Tax preparation · Tax planning · 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 plumbing contractors outside California?

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

Builder contracts, draw requests, retention statements and supply-house invoices move through the secure portal, and the monthly job report goes over a call with screen share. If your work falls under another state’s rules, we name that state’s payroll and return filings in your quote. If you also run whole jobs as a general contractor, our page for general contractors covers that side of the business.

Santa Clarita Los Angeles San Fernando Valley Anywhere in the US

What we don’t do

We handle the money side: the books, tracking what each job made, payroll, quarterly estimates, the returns and IRS letters. Bids and estimates, change orders, lien waivers, permits, chasing subs’ insurance certificates, legal advice on contracts or worker status, getting workers licensed or certified, and reviewed, compiled or audited 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 for contractors, in plain language.

Trucks

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

Entity

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

Job costing

How to Book Vendor Credits and Returned Materials Without Overstating Job Cost

FAQ

What do plumbing contractors ask before booking?

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

For payments made in 2026, a sub who isn’t a corporation and is paid $2,000 or more gets a 1099-NEC; for 2025 the line was $600. We prepare the 1099-NECs and file them by February 1, 2027.

Can my helper be paid as a 1099 sub?

Not always. Worker status is a legal question about how the work is run, and in California it also turns on whether the helper holds his own contractor’s license. We check each person’s license and W-9 before the first payment and run payroll for anyone you put on it. This isn’t legal advice; gray cases go to an employment attorney.

How do I keep track of retention builders still owe me?

Give every builder job its own retention balance and look at it monthly. We record what each builder holds on every draw, then show the balance due back when the job finishes and how long it has been outstanding.

Do I charge sales tax on a water heater I install?

In California, the tax is yours as the seller: a water heater is a fixture, so installing it counts as selling it, and on a flat-price job the tax runs on what the heater cost you. We keep fixture sales on their own lines and prepare the CDTFA return when one is due.

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

Yes — that’s a cleanup project, from $750, billed half to start and the balance on delivery. You get reconciled books, a job report, missed 1099s filed for anyone paid as a sub, and the return prepared from those books.

Should a plumbing contractor be an LLC or an S-corp?

Either can fit, because 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 or elect anything. Our entity-selection page shows how the comparison runs.

Ready to hand off the books, the draws and the retention list?

One free 30-minute call about your service calls, builder jobs and crew. You’ll leave knowing what we’d handle and what it costs — whether or not you hire us.