Can I keep waterproofing separate from the finish work?

Yes. Give it its own cost code and its own budget line. When the moisture change order lands, the extra cost sits where it belongs and the finish budget stays readable.

The plumber found the sewer line higher than expected. How do I record the ejector pump?

Put the sub's quote into the job's forecast review as remaining to spend the day you accept it, write the change order to the client the same day, and confirm the invoice when it arrives. The expected final cost counts it from day one.

Does Obra handle permits and inspection fees?

As costs, yes: photograph the receipt from the permit office and confirm it to the permits code. Obra does not track inspection scheduling.

What if my crew buys materials for two basements on one receipt?

Split it when you confirm the draft: two entries, two jobs, one attached receipt. The categories and amounts stay honest per project.

Obra for Basement finishing contractors

Job costing for basement finishing contractors: egress, moisture and the surprises under the slab

Expense tracking for basement remodelers, where the estimate meets the foundation. Sample finished-basement budget, cost codes, and the change orders that keep margin.

Start free See the sample budget

A basement is a fixed-price estimate written about a space nobody has fully seen. The slab, the sewer line, the moisture behind the old paneling and the inspector's reading of the egress code all arrive after the contract is signed. A basement finisher's margin is decided less by the bid than by how fast each surprise becomes a written change order instead of a quiet absorption.

Obra gives each basement its own ledger: the contract, the change orders on top of it, the sub quotes entered in the forecast as remaining to spend on the day they're accepted, the field receipts from the crew, and an expected final cost that includes all of it while there's still time to talk to the client.

The order of operations on a surprise

The plumber finds the sewer line above the new bathroom's drain. Ejector pump: $2,400.
You add the $2,400 to the job's remaining to spend in a forecast review that afternoon.
You write the change order to the client with the plumber's quote attached and send it from your phone.
When the plumber invoices, the receipt is confirmed and the $2,400 moves from remaining to recorded; nothing is counted twice.

Do it in that order and the job's expected margin dips for an afternoon, then recovers when the client signs. Skip step 3 and the dip is permanent. The committed costs guide explains why the forecast has to count step 2 before step 4.

Receipts from a crew below grade

Basement crews buy small things constantly: fasteners, tape, a replacement blade, another bag of mortar. The receipts come back as photos in a text thread, and half never reach the job. With Obra, the crew sends the photo to a WhatsApp number or forwards the email; the receipt is read into a draft on the job, and a reviewer confirms it in seconds. Everyone captures; nobody in the field needs a seat on the books.

What Obra leaves to other tools

Moisture testing, egress design, permit scheduling, client selections: not Obra's job. It is the money on the job, kept current from the field, in English and Spanish, with clean exports for the accountant at the end.

Sample budget

Finished basement with bath, 900 sq ft, Maple Street

Line item	Budget
Framing and insulation	$9,800
Egress window and well	$6,400
Electrical (sub)	$7,200
Plumbing and ejector pump (sub)	$8,900
HVAC extension (sub)	$3,600
Drywall and ceiling	$7,100
Bathroom finishes	$6,300
Flooring and paint	$6,800
Permits and inspections	$1,100
Crew labor	$9,400
Direct cost budget	$66,600
Contract value	$94,000
Gross margin budgeted	$27,400

Illustrative figures in US dollars for a fictional project; use them to see the shape of the budget, not to price a job.

The cost codes this trade actually uses

01 Demolition and prep
02 Waterproofing and drainage
03 Framing and insulation
04 Egress and windows
05 Electrical
06 Plumbing and pumps
07 HVAC
08 Drywall and ceilings
09 Bathroom finishes
10 Flooring and paint
11 Permits
12 Crew labor

The change orders that eat the margin

Water where the drawings said dry: A stained corner becomes a French drain, a sump and a week of delay. It's the most common basement change order and the one most often eaten because it was found on a Saturday.
The code requirement nobody priced: The inspector wants a second egress, a fire-rated ceiling under the furnace room or an ejector pump alarm. Each is a change order the day it's required, or it's your cost.
Ceiling height and the ductwork detour: Soffits, rerouted ducts and a dropped ceiling section are hours the framer and HVAC sub bill you for. They reach the client only as a written change order.

Questions people ask

Can I keep waterproofing separate from the finish work?: Yes. Give it its own cost code and its own budget line. When the moisture change order lands, the extra cost sits where it belongs and the finish budget stays readable.
The plumber found the sewer line higher than expected. How do I record the ejector pump?: Put the sub's quote into the job's forecast review as remaining to spend the day you accept it, write the change order to the client the same day, and confirm the invoice when it arrives. The expected final cost counts it from day one.
Does Obra handle permits and inspection fees?: As costs, yes: photograph the receipt from the permit office and confirm it to the permits code. Obra does not track inspection scheduling.
What if my crew buys materials for two basements on one receipt?: Split it when you confirm the draft: two entries, two jobs, one attached receipt. The categories and amounts stay honest per project.

Free download

Not ready for an app? Start with our free Excel template.

A ready-made spreadsheet to track costs and income per project — with categories and the totals already set up.