Job costing

This video covers job costing: a job's budget against what it has cost, by cost type, where the budget comes from, what counts as committed and paid, the warnings, the report across jobs, and who sees the costs.

The Budget tab

Open a job and click the Budget tab. Budget vs actual starts with four numbers: Sold for, the contract plus signed change orders; Budgeted cost, with the margin planned; Cost so far, with the share of the budget used; and Projected profit, with its margin against the plan.

By cost type

Below, the costs split five ways: Materials, Subcontractors, Your crew, Permits and fees, and Other costs. Each row shows Budget, Committed, Paid and what's Left, with a bar. Past its budget, Left turns red and says how much over. Your crew's row also shows hours logged.

Where it comes from

The budget is what the deal's signed quotes counted as cost, as they were saved when signed. Today's Price Book never re-prices it. Your crew's part comes from the quote, or from the crew time typed on the job, and the rest of the labor counts as subcontractors.

Budget lines

Owners and admins can add to it. Click Add to budget, pick the kind of cost, say what it's for, and type the amount; less than zero takes some off. A line can't be edited: take it off and add it again. Each change goes in the audit log.

Committed and paid

Committed is what the job owes: materials bought, with shipping and tax, each sub's labor sheet, your crew's logged hours at payroll rates, and expenses filed on the job. Paid is the part paid out. Expenses land by category: job materials under Materials, permits under Permits and fees, the rest under Other costs.

Orders and purchase orders

A material line counts once it's ordered. A purchase order counts when it's sent, not while it's a draft. Materials, estimate vs actual, puts each line's quote estimate beside what it cost, with the supplier and PO number, and says what's still to order.

Change orders

A sub's change orders on the labor sheet raise what's committed. A client's signed change order adds to Sold for, and shows no cost yet until you click Add its cost. Leave What it's for empty to use the change order's name. Credits need no cost.

Projected profit

Until the job is finished, a cost type under its budget is projected at its budget, and one over it at what's committed. A finished job is projected at what it cost. So Projected profit drops as soon as a cost type runs over.

The warnings

Warnings sit at the top, and the tab shows how many: a cost type over budget, a cost with no budget, a signed change order with no cost yet, or a job with no budget at all. With none, it says every cost type is within its budget so far.

Across jobs

To compare jobs, open Reports, then Profit per job. The Budget column shows each job's budget and the share used, in red past a hundred percent. Click a row, then Open the budget, to go to that job's Budget tab.

Who sees costs

The Budget tab shows only to people who open Reports: owners, admins, and anyone the company picks under Who sees Reports. Nobody else sees the tab, and nothing loads for them. Only owners and admins add or take off budget lines.

Look at the Budget tab each time a purchase order goes out or a labor sheet changes: each one moves Committed. Next: The job schedule.