You hired a bookkeeper. They seem competent. They keep your QuickBooks somewhat organized and file your tax returns. But something feels off — your financials don’t tell you anything useful, your jobs seem less profitable than they should be, and when your banker asked for a WIP schedule, your bookkeeper said “a what?” You’re not imagining things. Most bookkeepers don’t understand construction — and that gap is costing your LA contracting business money every single month.
What a General Bookkeeper Does (and Doesn’t Do)
A general bookkeeper can categorize transactions, reconcile bank accounts, process payroll, and produce a basic P&L and balance sheet. For a retail shop or restaurant, that’s enough. For a construction company, that’s less than half of what you actually need.
The 7 Things a Construction Specialist Does That Your Current Bookkeeper Doesn’t
- Job costing — Tracks every dollar by project so you know which jobs are profitable. A general bookkeeper puts everything in buckets; a construction specialist puts it in projects.
- WIP schedules — Monthly work-in-progress reports that your bank and bonding company need. Most general bookkeepers have never produced one.
- Certified payroll — Weekly DIR filings for public works projects. A general bookkeeper doesn’t know the eCPR system, prevailing wage determinations, or trade classifications.
- Retainage accounting — Proper balance sheet treatment of retainage receivable and payable. General bookkeepers often run retainage through income and expense incorrectly, inflating or deflating your P&L.
- Lien waiver management — Tracking conditional and unconditional waivers by project. A general bookkeeper has no system for this.
- CSLB compliance knowledge — Understanding how your financial records support your contractor’s license. General bookkeepers don’t know CSLB requirements.
- AIA billing support — Providing the cost-to-date data behind your G702/G703 billing applications. General bookkeepers don’t know what AIA billing is.
The Real Cost of the Wrong Bookkeeper
The costs are hidden but real: missed tax deductions (typically $5,000–$20,000/year), inaccurate job costing leading to poor bidding decisions (often $30,000–$100,000/year in lost margin), limited bonding capacity from poor financial presentation (could be worth millions in larger contracts), compliance penalties from improper certified payroll (up to $100/day per worker), and billing errors from poorly documented retainage and change orders. Your bookkeeper may be “cheap” — but the cost of having the wrong one is enormous.
The Solution — Call (818) 679-4451
Bookkeeping Champs serves contractors only. Every client we have is in construction. We know every term, every form, every requirement, and every tax strategy specific to your industry. If your current bookkeeper doesn’t understand construction — call (818) 679-4451 and let’s talk about switching.
Leave a Reply