Two illustrated guides for running a construction business: contracts, change orders, getting paid, markup, payroll, insurance and safety, then the job itself from takeoff to closeout. One idea a page, each one drawn.
Real pages from both guides. One idea a page, drawn.
The Contractor's Business and Running the Job. 150 pages, one idea each.
The idea, the picture, the costly mistake and one line to remember. Read it in a minute.
Phone-sized PDFs for the truck or the job site, yours to keep. Nothing to cancel.
You know the work. Nobody taught you the paperwork.
Most of the money a new contractor loses is lost on paper: a change done on a verbal yes, a bid priced wrong, a deadline missed. Every one of them has a page, and every page names the mistake.
Where new contractors lose money:
A drawing is easier to check between jobs than a paragraph. That's why every page in the kit has one, and one line to keep.
Every page has the same parts, so you always know where to look. Here is Book 1, page 19, The change-order flow, with its lines quoted from the guide.
Every change gets a written price and two signatures before anyone picks up a tool.
You moved the wall on a Tuesday because the client asked. At the final bill, they say it was part of the job.
Doing the work on a verbal yes. Without a signed price, the extra work is a gift.
No signature, no hammer.
Quoted word for word from Book 1, page 19, The change-order flow. Every page carries these parts plus the drawing, and where a rule changes from state to state, a "Varies by state" note that says so.
The law and money side of the business, one idea a page. Nine parts: Your business and license, Contracts that hold up, Changes and disputes, Getting paid, Money, People, Insurance and bonds, Safety, and Public work and your state. Start with what is costing you money.
From the drawings to the final payment, in the same layout. Nine parts: Reading the plans, The takeoff, Estimating, Bidding, Scheduling, Subs, suppliers and inspections, The site, The client and closeout, and The first five years.
Total value: $70
One-time payment. No subscription. Keep the files forever.
Digital guides (PDF), in English. We email your library link right after purchase, and you can download the files again anytime. Plus sales tax where applicable.
Construction Made Simple is an independent guide for people running a construction business. It is not legal, tax or accounting advice and does not replace your lawyer or accountant. Rules vary by state, so check yours.
You've framed, wired, painted or remodeled for someone else for years, and now the jobs are under your name. Book 1 opens with the license, the setup and the contract, so the first job starts on paper that holds up.
The calendar is full and the bank account isn't. Markup and margin, overhead, paying yourself, job costing and cash flow each get a page, with the numbers worked on one example job you can check against your last bid.
Employee or sub, payroll taxes, workers' comp, insurance and the paperwork on the first day. Book 1 walks the first hire step by step, and Book 2 covers the subs, suppliers and inspections that come with bigger jobs.
No gimmicks. Public federal rules and standard construction practice, drawn clearly, with the source named on the page where it matters.
The federal pages follow OSHA's construction standards, the IRS, the U.S. Department of Labor and the FTC's three-day cancellation rule. Every page was checked against its named sources before release, and where a page leans on a rule, the page names it.
Lien deadlines, deposit limits and licensing rules change from state to state. Those pages say "Varies by state," show labelled example states, and point you to where your state's rule lives. No example is passed off as the rule everywhere.
The money pages work one example job all the way through, so you can see where each number comes from and swap in your own costs, rates and prices. The examples are examples, not a price list for your market.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by OSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor, the IRS, NASCLA, the Construction Specifications Institute, the AIA, ConsensusDocs or any state contractor licensing board. We answer to the person running the job.
Use the kit for 7 days. If it isn't for you, email us and you get 100% of your money back. No fine print, no hassle.
Right after purchase we email you a link to your library, where you download both guides as PDFs. You can come back and download them again anytime.
One-time payment of $27. No subscription, no recurring charges, and nothing to cancel. Both guides are yours to keep.
Every state. The guides teach the rules that work the same way everywhere: contracts, change orders, markup, payroll, insurance and safety. Where a number changes by state, like a lien deadline or a deposit limit, the page says so, shows labelled examples, and tells you where to look up yours.
Anyone running their own construction business, in their first five years or about to start: remodelers, framers, general contractors, electricians, plumbers, painters, roofers and handymen. The guides are about the business and the job, not the trade skills you already have.
No. Construction Made Simple is an independent guide for people running a construction business. It is not legal, tax or accounting advice and does not replace your lawyer or accountant. Rules vary by state, so check yours. The guides explain the rules in plain words and drawings, so you know what to ask.
No. The kit is complete on its own.
At checkout there is one optional add-on, The Estimating & Markup Workbook: six jobs priced from takeoff to bid (a bathroom, a kitchen, a deck, a reroof, a backyard cottage and an office build-out), a markup and margin table and four blank sheets to copy, 31 PDF pages, for $7.90. It is unticked by default.
Both. The pages are portrait and phone-sized, so you can check one in the truck between jobs, and the PDFs print if you want a page on the office wall.
We don't promise that, and we'd be wary of anyone who does. The guides show you how each piece works and the mistake that costs money, with the numbers worked on example jobs. What you charge and how you run the job is still your call.
Email us within 7 days of purchase and we'll refund 100% of your money. Details on the refund policy page.
No. Construction Made Simple is an independent guide built on public rules, which are named on the page where they are used. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by OSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor, the IRS, NASCLA, the Construction Specifications Institute, the AIA, ConsensusDocs or any state contractor licensing board.
Spotted an error, or a rule that works differently in your state? Email [email protected]. A real person reads every message, and fixes go into the next version.
Every job you run teaches you something about the business side, and the expensive lessons come with a bill. You don't need another forum thread or another template from some other state. You need the page for this job, with the idea drawn and the mistake named.