Bookkeeping for architects and interior designers
Monthly QuickBooks bookkeeping for Los Angeles architecture firms and interior design studios. Retainers tracked, reimbursable costs billed back, and a clear view of what each project earned.
Design work is paid in stages. A retainer comes in before anything is drawn, fees follow the phases of the project, and along the way you pay structural engineers, renderers and other consultants, plus printing, permits and travel that the client should reimburse. A single project can run for a year or more.
When the books do not follow that rhythm, the picture gets distorted. A big retainer makes one month look like a windfall and the next like a loss. Reimbursables slip through without being billed. And nobody can say which projects made money until long after they are over.
Larchmont Bookkeeping focuses on service businesses with small teams, including architecture and design studios. We are a QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor practice in Larchmont, close to Hancock Park, West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, and we work remotely with studios anywhere in the US. See how monthly bookkeeping works, or start with a QuickBooks cleanup if the file is behind.
The problem
Where studio books usually go wrong
- Retainers recorded as income the day they arrive, so monthly results swing wildly.
- Printing, permits, travel and consultant costs paid but never billed back to the client.
- Consultants paid all year with no W-9 on file before 1099 season.
- No way to see what a project actually earned after consultants and expenses.
- Project deposits and operating cash mixed together in one account.
What we handle for studios
Retainers tracked separately
Retainers and deposits are kept apart from earned fees, the way your CPA wants them reported, so you always know how much of the cash in the bank is already spoken for.
Reimbursables billed back
Printing, permits, travel and consultant costs are marked billable when they come in, so they reach the client's invoice.
Consultants and 1099s
W-9s collected up front and consultant payments tracked all year, so 1099-NEC filing is ready before the January 31 deadline.
Profit by project
Fees and direct costs tagged by project, so you can see what each one really earned. The tools available depend on your QuickBooks Online plan.
Every account reconciled
Operating, savings and credit card accounts matched to their statements every month.
One report by the 10th
What you billed, what is still owed, what you spent, and a short note on what changed. One page.
Who this fits
Architecture firms and interior design studios with roughly 3 to 20 people, earning design fees. If you also buy and resell furniture, fixtures or other goods for clients, tell us in the consultation. Sales tax and product costs make that a different kind of file, and we will be straight about whether we are the right fit.
Questions
How do you record client retainers?
We keep retainers and deposits separate from fees you have earned, and move them across as you bill against them. How they are reported for tax is your CPA's call, so we set it up the way they want it.
Can you track profit on each project?
Yes. We tag fees, consultant costs and reimbursable expenses by project, so you can compare what each one earned. The exact tools depend on your QuickBooks Online plan, and we will tell you what yours supports.
Do you work with firms that purchase furniture or products for clients?
Tell us about it in the consultation. Buying and reselling goods brings sales tax and product costs into the books, which is a different kind of work. We would rather tell you honestly if we are not the right fit.
Do you prepare 1099s for our consultants?
We keep consultant payments and W-9s tracked all year and prepare the 1099-NEC information in QuickBooks Online ahead of the January 31 deadline. Your CPA still prepares the business tax return, from a clean file.
How much does bookkeeping for a design studio cost?
One flat monthly fee, with no hourly billing and no contract. It depends on your transactions, accounts, projects and people, so we quote it after a free consultation once we have seen your books.
We also work with marketing and creative agencies and therapy group practices.
See what every project really earned.
Start with a free consultation. We look at your books and tell you honestly what needs doing. Nothing to sign.
Schedule a free consultation