Episode Details
Back to EpisodesSeven Commercial Painting Mistakes That Drain Cash
Description
Commercial painting can unlock bigger jobs and steadier revenue, but the cash flow rules change fast and they can punish anyone who treats it like larger residential work. I break down seven common financial mistakes and the simple systems that keep payment delays, retainage, and billing rejections from turning growth into stress.
• commercial work as a different business model under a GC
• no-deposit reality plus 30 to 90 day payment cycles and retainage
• building cash reserves and setting up a business line of credit early
• running accounts receivable with a real tracking and follow-up system
• using AIA billing formats and preventing rejected invoices
• switching from cash basis to accrual accounting for job profitability
• reading the statement of cash flows to explain where cash goes
• preparing for prevailing wage and certified payroll compliance
• keeping a residential repaint mix to fund payroll and overhead
• real-world story of a six-figure job creating cash flow stress and the fixes that made commercial manageable
If you get value from this type of information, grab a free copy of my book, Profitable Painter. Click the link in the description to grab a free copy, just cover the shipping.
This episode was originally recorded as a video for YouTube.
If you hear me say things like “in this video” or reference visuals, don’t worry —
the content still works perfectly in audio form.
And if you ever want to watch the video version, you can find it on the
Profitable Painter YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/@BookkeepingForPainters