Fractional CFO for Plumbing Contractors
Service calls, drain cleaning, new construction, remodels — each has different margins, different cash cycles, and different pricing dynamics. We make sure you see all of it.
The Plumbing Problem
Plumbing companies grow fast. Profit doesn't always keep up.
Emergency calls feel profitable but after truck rolls, callbacks, and warranty work, many plumbing shops lose money on their fastest-growing service line. Each callback costs $150-350 in labor with $0 revenue. At 20 callbacks a month, that's $5,000+ in pure loss buried in your dispatch log.
New construction projects tie up cash for months while you wait on draws, retainage, and punch-list approvals. The industry DSO is 45-60 days, but every 10-day reduction on $100K in receivables frees ~$2,740 in working capital. Meanwhile, 93% of your invoices are on NET 30 — you're financing your customers' projects for free.
Plumbing technicians vary wildly in productivity. Your top tech might complete 738 visits in a year while your average tech does 400. The target is 75-85% billable hours — but 16.5% of timesheet hours are non-billable (admin, drive time, training). That's 1 in 6 hours generating zero revenue.
From the plumbing subreddits
What plumbing owners actually say (when nobody's selling them anything)
We pulled these verbatim from r/Plumbing and adjacent trade subs. Not surveys. Not testimonials. Just the financial conversations owners have with each other at midnight.
“Did the burdened rate math last night and got $311/hour. Either I'm doing it wrong or every plumber in town is broke.”
r/Plumbing owner
What this is really about: The math is usually right; the assumption that competitors are pricing correctly is wrong. Most independent plumbers underprice by 20-40% and subsidize from owner take-home. The full breakdown is in our burdened rate post.
“Got a $65K commercial job. GC pays in 90+ days. My supplier wants Net 30. I'm $20K out of pocket before I see a cent.”
r/Construction subcontractor
What this is really about: Subs finance GC working capital for free. We model the cash hole on every commercial job and either reprice for the float, restructure terms, or steer toward direct-to-property-owner work.
“We grew 40% last year and somehow have less cash than ever. My CPA says we're profitable. The bank account disagrees.”
r/PlumbingBusiness owner
What this is really about: Profit and cash flow diverge for legitimate reasons (AR growth, retainage, inventory). Without a 13-week cash forecast, growth feels like crisis. Our cash flow forecasting builds the bridge.
“Service work prints money. Construction work feels like prestige. We can't tell which one is actually keeping the lights on.”
r/Plumbing owner
What this is really about: Almost every mixed plumbing shop subsidizes one line of business with another. We separate margins by service vs. project vs. maintenance so you can decide where to push and where to retreat.
Analyzed with the CLEAR Framework
Cash · Labor · Earnings · Accounts · Risk — the five pillars we evaluate for every business.
Plumbing Industry Benchmarks
How do the best plumbing businesses perform? Data from our analysis of 2,200+ service businesses.
Median Bill Rate
$79/hr
Top quartile: $111/hr. Top 10%: $148/hr.
SA Gross Margin (Median)
37.9%
Median service agreement gross margin across 259 contractors in our benchmark.
Collection Rate
80.8%
Top quartile: 90.6%. Commercial plumbing collections lag residential.
Billing Speed
7 days
Real median excluding progress billers. Top quartile uses progress billing.
Billable Hour Ratio
97.1%
Top quartile: 100%. Drive time and unbilled callbacks kill this number.
Quote Conversion
73.9%
Top quartile: 83.2%. Are you following up within 48 hours?
What Level Does for Plumbing Businesses
Service vs. Project Margin Analysis
Plumbing companies often subsidize low-margin project work with high-margin service calls without realizing it. We separate the two so you can price and staff each line independently.
Cash Flow Forecasting for Mixed Revenue
Service revenue is daily. Project revenue comes in draws. Retainage holds can freeze $50K+ for months. We build forecasts that account for all three cash cycles so you know exactly when money arrives.
Technician Productivity Tracking
Revenue per tech, callbacks per tech, average ticket size, drive time ratio. We track the metrics that separate your top performers from your overhead burners — so you can coach, train, or restructure routes.
Flat Rate vs. Time & Material Analysis
Should you move to flat rate pricing? For which services? We model the revenue impact of pricing changes before you make them, using your actual job data and cost structure.
Collections & Retainage Management
Commercial plumbing jobs have retainage, slow-paying GCs, and change order disputes. We set up AR aging dashboards, automated follow-ups, and retainage release tracking so nothing sits uncollected.
Growth & Exit Readiness
Plumbing companies with clean books and recurring revenue sell at premium multiples. We prepare your financials for PE buyers, lenders, or your eventual exit — even if that's 5 years away.
Bookkeeper vs CPA vs Level
| Capability | Bookkeeper | CPA | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Record transactions | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| File taxes | — | ✓ | — |
| Job-level profitability | — | — | ✓ |
| Cash flow forecasting | — | — | ✓ |
| Benchmark against industry | — | — | ✓ |
| Monthly strategy calls | — | — | ✓ |
| AR aging & collections tracking | — | — | ✓ |
| Crew utilization analysis | — | — | ✓ |
| Exit readiness preparation | — | — | ✓ |
| Understands plumbing operations | Rarely | Rarely | ✓ |
Record transactions
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
File taxes
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Job-level profitability
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Cash flow forecasting
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Benchmark against industry
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Monthly strategy calls
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
AR aging & collections tracking
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Crew utilization analysis
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Exit readiness preparation
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Understands plumbing operations
Bookkeeper
CPA
Level
Your bookkeeper and CPA handle critical functions. Level fills the strategic gap between recording transactions and filing taxes.
We connect to the tools you already use
15-minute setup. Read-only access. Your data stays secure.
From clients
What plumbing operators say after working with us.
“Commercial plumbing was killing us on AR — three GCs were sitting at 75+ days and we kept selling them more work. Sam set net-30 hard limits and stopped credit on the worst one. They paid in 11 days when we said no. Recovered ~$210K of working capital in two months.”
“Service side was running on flat rates we hadn't touched since 2022. Sam ran a per-call profitability report — drain calls were profitable, repipes were break-even, water heaters were losing money once we added in callbacks and re-trips. Repriced everything in 30 days. Average ticket up $180.”
“New-construction plumbing has 8-month cash cycles and we were factoring everything to keep payroll going. Sam built a 13-week cash forecast so I could finally see the trough coming and front-load billing. Killed factoring, saved ~$95K in fees the first year.”
Simple pricing
Three tiers, one ladder.
$99/mo
Books
Clean monthly books, tax-ready year-end. Same flat rate for catch-up.
$1,500+/mo
Fractional CFO
Cash forecasting, profitability analysis, monthly strategy calls.
$3,000+/mo
CFO + Operations
Dedicated CFO, AI-native workflows, dashboards, and integrations.
Book a call
Book a free 15-min Plumbing audit.
We'll review your plumbing numbers, benchmark them, and tell you what to fix first. No commitment.
Or have us reach out instead.
Drop your info and we'll review your plumbing financials within a few hours. Free audit included.
No commitment. Real numbers, not generic advice.