Back office help for subcontractors: what it covers and what it costs.
A lot of subs run their office with an estimator, a part-time bookkeeper, a drafter they call when they need one, and the owner covering the rest at night. We run all of it as one team. The estimate feeds the drawings, the drawings feed the POs, and the POs land in the books.
Back office help for subcontractors means one outside team runs your office work: estimating and bids, bid management, shop drawings, purchasing, and bookkeeping. Axentra Solutions offers it on three plans, Starter at $2,500, Pro at $5,000, and Full Office at $7,500 a month. You keep your prices, your approvals, and your customers.
The foundation behind every project.
Here is the whole office on one page: what we take and what stays with you.
| Desk | We take | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| Estimating and bids | Takeoffs, quantities, itemized proposals | Prices, markup, and the final send |
| Bid management | Invite log, due dates, addenda, follow-ups | Which jobs to bid |
| Shop drawings | Layouts, seams, cutouts, elevations, revisions | Sign-off before submittal |
| Purchasing | POs from approved drawings, quote comparison, delivery tracking | Approval on every PO |
| Bookkeeping | Coding, reconciliations, AP/AR, invoicing, job costing | Your QuickBooks file and your CPA |
| Project management | Submittals, schedules, change orders, closeout | Your GC relationships |
Your plans, pricing, and books stay confidential and are used only for your work. You work with a local US team, backed by a dedicated production team.
Project management
From award to closeout.
- Submittals and approvals tracked
- Scheduling and coordination with the GC
- Change orders documented
- Closeout paperwork done
- Included in the Full Office plan
From blueprint to bottom line.
- 01
Win the job
Invites logged, takeoffs measured, and itemized bids back in 24 to 48 hours, ready for your prices. See estimating and bid management.
- 02
Get it approved
After award, the takeoff becomes the shop drawing. You approve, then it goes to the GC. See shop drawings.
- 03
Buy, bill, get paid
Approved drawings drive the slab and material POs. Every cost is coded to the job. See purchasing and bookkeeping.
- 04
Bid the next one sharper
Job-cost actuals show what the job really took, and that goes into your next estimate.
What back office help costs, line by line.
| Plan | Per month | What is inside |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $2,500 | Up to 5 bids a month, bid management |
| Pro | $5,000 | Up to 8 bids, bid management, purchasing, bookkeeping (up to 150 transactions), 4 shop drawing sheets |
| Full Office | $7,500 | Up to 12 bids, everything in Pro, job costing and WIP, 10 shop drawing sheets, project management and scheduling coordinator |
| Premium add-on | $1,500 | Dedicated point of contact, weekly call, rush turnaround up to a monthly cap, senior second review on every bid |
Single-service rates
- Bids $350 / $500 / $800 / from $1,200
- Shop drawings $150 a sheet, $175 to $195 complex
- Bid management $750/mo
- Bookkeeping $750 to $1,100/mo
- Purchasing: ask us
Outsourced back office vs. hiring office staff.
Median pay is the cleanest public number to compare. In May 2025, the BLS put median pay for cost estimators at specialty trade contractors at $80,330, and for bookkeeping clerks in construction at $54,890.
| Compared | One estimator + one bookkeeper (median pay only) | Full Office plan |
|---|---|---|
| Per year | $135,220 | 12 x $7,500 |
| Per month | about $11,270 | $7,500 |
| Also covers | Two desks | Bids, bid management, shop drawings (10 sheets), purchasing, bookkeeping with job costing and WIP, project management |
| Not included above | Payroll taxes, benefits, software, desk space, hiring and training time | Nothing extra unless you add Premium or go over your plan |
Hiring takes time as well. In the AGC and NCCER 2025 Workforce Survey, 77% of firms with estimating openings had trouble filling them, and 40% of firms with accounting openings did.
Median pay is a national middle. Your market may run higher or lower, so run your own numbers on the call.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Cost Estimators (median pay, May 2025) (opens in a new tab)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks (median pay, May 2025) (opens in a new tab)
- AGC and NCCER, 2025 Workforce Survey, national results (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
Pay figures are national medians, before payroll taxes and benefits. They are not Axentra Solutions prices.
Every service in your back office.
Win the job
01Estimating & takeoffs
Quantities and itemized bids, back in 24 to 48 hours.
Learn more02Bid management
Every invite and addendum logged.
Learn moreGet it approved
03Shop drawings
Drawn for submittal and approval.
Learn more04Project management
Award to closeout.
Learn moreBuy, bill, get paid
05Purchasing
POs from approved drawings.
Learn more06Bookkeeping
Books that show what each job made.
Learn moreBuilt for countertop, cabinet, and stone shops, plus tile and flooring. Countertops · Cabinets · Tile · Flooring
Back office help questions.
What does back office help for subcontractors include?
At Axentra Solutions it includes estimating and bids, bid management, shop drawings, purchasing, bookkeeping with job costing, and project management support. Estimating is one service inside the back office, not a separate offer.
How much does back office help cost?
Back office plans are $2,500 (Starter), $5,000 (Pro), and $7,500 (Full Office) a month. Premium adds $1,500 a month. Single-service rates are listed on the pricing page.
Is an outsourced back office cheaper than hiring?
Median pay alone for one estimator at a specialty trade contractor and one construction bookkeeper is $135,220 a year, about $11,270 a month, based on May 2025 BLS data. That is before taxes and benefits. Full Office is $7,500 a month.
What do I keep control of?
Your prices and markup, which jobs to bid, sign-off on every bid, drawing, and PO, and your QuickBooks file. We do the work and you make the calls.
Who does the work?
A local US team, backed by a dedicated production team. Our team ran one subcontractor's entire back office for six years, sending out 10 to 12 bids a month.
Do you visit job sites?
No. We work from your plans, specs, and addenda, and from the field dimensions your team sends.
Hand us the office. Keep the jobs.
On a back office call we map what your office does today, which desks to hand off first, and what plan fits.