Construction Accounting job-level truth, every month.
Construction accounting for Northern California contractors and trades who want to know which jobs make money while there is still time to act.
In construction, the company-wide profit and loss tells you too little, too late. The real answers live at the job level: estimated versus actual cost, billings against progress, retainage still held, and change orders still unsigned. TreeStar brings construction accounting, payroll, tax, and advisory into one team working from the same job data. We set up job costing in QuickBooks Online, prepare work-in-progress schedules, run payroll that codes labor to each job, and plan taxes around the accounting methods available to contractors. Whether you build homes, run a trade shop, or bid public work, you get numbers you can manage by.
Where it gets complicated
- 01 Profit hides in jobs
A healthy overall margin can mask two jobs that are losing money. By the time it shows in the annual numbers, the crew has moved on.
- 02 Billing and cash gaps
Progress billings, retainage, and slow-paying owners stretch the time between doing the work and getting paid. Payroll and suppliers do not wait.
- 03 WIP under scrutiny
Sureties and banks read your work-in-progress schedule closely. Over and under billings that cannot be explained can affect bonding capacity and credit.
- 04 Payroll with many moving parts
Multiple pay rates, prevailing wage jobs, union fringes, and workers' comp classes make construction payroll harder than most.
- 05 Method choices for tax
Long-term contracts generally follow the percentage-of-completion method, with an exception for smaller contractors that meet a gross receipts test. The method you use changes when income is taxed.
Explore Construction & Trades
For general contractors who need a WIP schedule, retainage records, and subcontractor files ready when the surety or bank asks.
→ specialty_contractors Specialty Contractors
For electrical, plumbing, HVAC, roofing, concrete, and other trade contractors who run service work and project work out of the same shop.
→ job_costing Construction Job Costing
Construction job costing for contractors who want every hour, invoice, and change order tied to a job, with estimate-to-actual reports while the job is still open.
→ payroll Construction Payroll
Construction payroll for contractors who pay different rates on different jobs, bid public works, and need labor coded to every project.
→ tax_planning Construction Tax Planning
For contractors who want their accounting methods, equipment purchases, and entity structure working together before year-end.
→How TreeStar helps
We structure jobs, phases, and cost codes in QuickBooks Online so labor, materials, subs, and equipment land on the right job.
→ monthly_close_reporting Close and report monthlyWe close the books each month and produce job reports and a WIP schedule while jobs are still open.
→ payroll Run construction payrollWe process payroll by job and pay rate and handle the reporting that comes with it.
→ tax_services Plan contractor taxesWe review your contract methods, equipment plans, and entity structure before year-end.
→What you can expect
Job profitability you can see monthly
A WIP schedule you can explain
Payroll and taxes that fit how you work
Common questions
Do you prepare work-in-progress schedules?
Yes. We prepare WIP schedules from your job cost data each month or quarter, showing contract values, costs to date, estimated costs to complete, and over or under billings.
Can you work with our surety or bank?
We prepare the job reports and financial information they request and walk you through it first. If your surety requires reviewed or audited statements, we work alongside the outside firm that prepares them.
Do you work with contractors outside Chico?
Yes. With offices in Chico, Garberville, Sacramento, and San Francisco, we work with contractors across California and in other states, sharing documents through a secure client portal.
Need a referral?
We work alongside the attorneys, consultants, and other specialists your industry relies on. Tell us what you need and we will make an introduction.
Bonding capacity, bid bonds, and performance bonds.
→ request_referral Construction attorneyContracts, liens, disputes, and licensing questions.
→ request_referral Contractor insurance brokerGeneral liability, workers' comp, and builder's risk.
→ request_referral Contractor licensing consultantLicense applications and classifications.
→Construction & Trades insights
A contractor's guide to California public works: DIR registration, prevailing wage rates, certified payroll, eCPR filing, apprentices, and clean books.
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How a WIP schedule is built, what over and under billings signal, why sureties and banks read it closely, and a monthly routine to keep it current.
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