How Builder Bookkeep Helps Custom Home Builders Take Control of Their Finances

Custom home building is a tough business. Between managing subcontractors, juggling payments, and trying to keep projects moving, most builders don’t have time to stay on top of their books and many don’t even realize how much it’s costing them.

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That’s where Builder Bookkeep comes in.

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Founded by Miller Bradford, a former construction company Controller, Builder Bookkeep offers specialized bookkeeping and financial operations support designed specifically for the challenges custom home builders face. I sat down with Miller to talk about his journey, what makes construction accounting so different, and how Ressio and Builder Bookkeep work together to help builders run smarter businesses.

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Why Construction Financial Management Is So Different from Other Industries

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Miller didn’t come from a traditional accounting firm background. He got his start in 2020 working as the Controller for his brother’s construction company in Birmingham, Alabama. It was a crash course in the financial realities of building homes, from handling cash flow crunches to managing sub payments and navigating tense homeowner negotiations.

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“I know what it’s like to have subs banging on your door for payment while homeowners are holding onto checks,” Miller says. “I saw how messy things can get, and I realized there were a lot of builders out there who needed better financial systems.”

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That realization led him to launch Builder Bookkeep in 2022. Today, he helps builders and remodelers across the country get out of the financial weeds and back to doing what they love: building.

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Common Bookkeeping Mistakes Builders Make (And How to Avoid Them)

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According to Miller, one of the biggest misconceptions about bookkeeping is that it’s one-size-fits-all. “Generalist firms just don’t cut it in construction,” he says. “There are too many moving parts.”

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Accounts Payable is a common pain point. Most builders sub out a ton of work, which means managing a constant flood of bills. “If someone doesn’t know how to properly apply vendor credits or bundle payments, it creates a giant mess,” he explains.

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Another critical (and often ignored) area is Work-in-Progress (WIP) reporting. Without adjusting for over- or under-billings, financial reports can give builders a completely inaccurate picture of profitability. “You might think you’re ahead,” Miller says, “but you’re really just ahead on invoicing and not actual profit.”

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Construction Bookkeeping Software Built for Builders

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Builder Bookkeep is more than a bookkeeping service. It’s a fully integrated financial system, designed specifically for builders.

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At the heart of it is their custom-built app, which helps builders track receipts, approve bills, and most importantly, job cost everything in real time. “You can see all your job costs in one place, with a clear view of what’s missing or needs approval,” Miller says. “It’s all about making transaction management easy and accurate.”

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Behind the tech is a team of dedicated construction accountants. “We don’t do restaurants or ecommerce. We only do construction. That’s our world.”

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Why Clean Books Are the Foundation of Better Project Management

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Good books aren’t just about staying compliant at tax time. They’re the foundation for growth.

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“If you’re a forward-thinking builder, you can’t afford to wait until the end of the year to understand your numbers,” Miller says. “You need clean, insightful reports monthly (sometimes weekly) to manage cash flow, hire with confidence, decide what to charge, and track whether you’re actually hitting your margins.”

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How Builder Bookkeep and Ressio Streamline Construction Project Management

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Builder Bookkeep and Ressio work hand-in-hand for many shared clients. With Builder Bookkeep pushing transactions into QuickBooks Online, and Ressio syncing those expenses into budgets and invoices, builders get a real-time, accurate financial picture across both tools.

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“Ressio is honestly the perfect complement to what we do,” Miller says. “It has one of the best QBO integrations out there, and the UI is just so clean. You can tell the team really cares about making the product usable.”

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Among his favorite features: the ability to choose between burdened and charge rates for time tracking, and generating cost-plus invoices from actuals all with just a few clicks.

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Upgrading Your Construction Bookkeeping System Doesn’t Have to Be Hard

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Many builders hesitate to switch systems because it feels daunting. Miller gets it. But he’s also seen how transformative it can be.

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“For a few hours of focused work, you could save 10–15 hours every week going forward,” he says. “If you don’t have visibility into your numbers, you might be making decisions based on completely inaccurate data. That’s a huge risk.”

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Learn More About Bookkeeping Services for Custom Home Builders

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If you’re a custom home builder looking to clean up your books, get a handle on job costing, or stop losing time to messy financial systems, check out builderbookkeep.com.

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And if you’re already using Ressio, reach out! We’d be happy to make an introduction to Miller and his team.