How a Construction Firm Automated Job Costing with Finntree

The Job Costing Black Hole

Apex Builders is a residential construction firm in Denver handling 12-15 projects per year, ranging from $80,000 kitchen remodels to $450,000 custom homes. Owner Mike Holloway had a persistent problem: he never knew if a job was profitable until weeks after completion.

Job costing was tracked in spreadsheets that the project managers updated sporadically. Material receipts sat in truck dashboards. Subcontractor invoices arrived weeks late. By the time Mike assembled the final cost picture, the next three projects had already started.

The Real Problem

3 out of 14 projects in the previous year lost money, totaling $67,000 in losses
Change orders were tracked on paper and often not billed to clients
Material overage on one project averaged $4,200 before anyone noticed
Subcontractor costs frequently exceeded estimates by 10-15% with no early warning

Finntree's Project-Based Approach

Mike imported all company bank and credit card statements into Finntree and tagged transactions by project. The AI quickly learned vendor patterns: payments to specific lumber yards, concrete suppliers, and subcontractors were automatically assigned to the correct job.

Real-Time Cost Tracking

For the first time, Mike could see each project's actual costs accumulating in real time compared to the original estimate. When material costs on a bathroom remodel hit 80% of budget at only 60% completion, Finntree flagged it immediately.

Early warning: Finntree detected that the Henderson kitchen project was tracking 22% over budget with 3 weeks remaining. Mike adjusted the scope and negotiated a change order that recovered $8,400.

Results After One Year

Metric	Before Finntree	After Finntree
Projects losing money	3 of 14 (21%)	0 of 15 (0%)
Average profit margin	14%	22%
Cost visibility	Post-completion	Real-time
Unbilled change orders	$23,000/year missed	$0 missed

Better Bids, Better Margins

With historical cost data organized by project type, Mike now creates more accurate bids. He knows exactly what a kitchen remodel costs based on real data, not estimates. His win rate improved because he bids competitively on projects he knows are profitable and passes on jobs with thin margins.

Try Project-Based Tracking

If you are in construction and guessing at job costs, start your free Finntree trial. Real-time cost tracking starts the moment you upload your first statement. See all features built for project-based businesses.