Midland, Texas
Bookkeeping services for Midland small businesses
Midland bookkeeping: oilfield job costing, per diem and fuel tracking, boom-and-bust cash management and equipment depreciation for Permian Basin companies.
The short answer
- Midland's economy is dominated by oilfield service companies, and their books need job costing by well or contract, not a generic services chart of accounts.
- Per diem and fuel are two of the largest cost lines for an oilfield service company and need to be tracked against jobs to know if a contract actually made money.
- Boom-and-bust cycles mean cash reserves built during high-activity periods matter more here than in almost any other Texas market.
- Equipment depreciation and financing are large line items; a service company's balance sheet is often more important to lenders than its income statement during a slowdown.
- Texas has no personal income tax, but most Midland entities still file a franchise tax report, and Midland County property tax bills go out in October.
What is different about Midland books
Midland runs on the Permian Basin. Oilfield service companies — trucking, rig support, equipment rental, water hauling and related trades — make up most of the small business economy, and their books look nothing like a typical service business because activity and cost swing hard with the rig count.
- Per diem paid to crews needs its own tracking, separate from wages, for both job costing and tax treatment
- Fuel cost should be tracked against jobs or trucks, not lumped into a single overhead account
- Equipment purchases, loans and depreciation schedules need to stay current since equipment is often the largest asset on the balance sheet
- Cash reserves built during high-activity stretches need a plan, since a slow quarter can arrive with little warning
Job costing by well or contract
A service company billing by the job, the day or the load needs every cost — labor, per diem, fuel, equipment time — attached to that job. Without it, a busy quarter with a few underpriced contracts can look profitable overall while quietly losing money.
Boom-and-bust cash management
Permian Basin activity moves with commodity prices, and revenue can drop sharply within a quarter. We build a rolling cash view and a break-even revenue figure so reserves get set aside during strong months instead of spent as if they were permanent.
Equipment depreciation and financing
Trucks, pumps and other field equipment are usually financed and depreciate over several years. Loan payments need to be split between interest and principal, and depreciation needs to be current, because lenders and equity partners look at the balance sheet closely, especially heading into a slower stretch.
Franchise tax and Midland County property tax
Most Midland entities file a Texas franchise tax report based on total revenue in the books. Midland County property tax bills are mailed in October and commonly paid by the end of January; oilfield equipment can also be subject to business personal property tax, so an accurate asset list matters.
Typical results we see
Midland oilfield service job margin
19%
After equipment maintenance reserve, mid-cycle
Fuel cost as share of job revenue
14%
Trucking and hauling operations
Recommended cash reserve
3–4 months of overhead
Given historical rig count swings
A Midland water hauling company's job, per diem and fuel isolated
- Contract revenue
- $92,000
- Driver wages
- $21,400
- Per diem (previously mixed into wages)
- $8,600
- Fuel
- $16,300
- Equipment depreciation and maintenance
- $11,700
- Job margin, corrected
- $34,000 (37.0%)
What this tells you: Per diem had been recorded as wages, which inflated payroll tax calculations and made labor cost look higher than it was. Separating it also revealed the job's true margin was strong enough to justify adding a second truck.
What you see inside LedgerDude
How your Midland numbers look once the books are closed each month.
Real example
Oilfield service company caught off guard by a slowdown
Where they started: A rig support company had grown fast during a high-activity stretch, spent close to every dollar of profit on new equipment, and had no cash reserve when activity dropped the following quarter.
What we did: We rebuilt job costing by contract, set up a monthly break-even revenue figure, and put a cash reserve target in place tied to a percentage of monthly revenue during strong months.
How it ended up: The next slowdown was managed from reserves instead of a high-rate loan, and equipment purchases going forward were tied to a debt-to-cash-flow test before approval.
$68,000
Cash reserve built in one strong quarter
$142,000 / month
Break-even revenue identified
Yes
High-rate borrowing avoided
What changes for Midland owners
In Midland the books have to survive a boom and a bust in the same eighteen months, which means per diem, fuel and equipment have to be exact.
Per diem and fuel tracked by crew
Crew costs are coded to the job so a busy month with thin margin is caught while you can still reprice.
Equipment depreciation kept current
Financed and purchased equipment is on a real schedule, so your tax picture is not a year-end surprise.
Cash reserve built during the boom
We show the months of payroll your cash actually covers, so a slowdown is a plan instead of a panic.
Your next step in Texas
See the price
What bookkeeping costs in Midland
Permian operators with crews and multiple units usually need a plan that includes job costing and forecasting.
Bookkeeping prices for Midland businessesSee the proof
Real businesses, real numbers
Read a Permian Basin example where reserve planning carried an operator through a price drop.
Bookkeeping case studies with real numbersSee what you get
Bookkeeping done for you
See the full service, including how we handle receipts and per diem from the field.
Outsourced bookkeeping services in MidlandQuestions from Midland owners
How do you handle per diem for Permian crews?
Per diem is coded to the crew and the job, so a busy month with thin margin is caught while you can still reprice the work.
Can you help me plan for a downturn?
Yes. We show the months of payroll your cash actually covers and build a reserve target during the strong months.
Is equipment depreciation kept up during the year?
Yes. Financed and purchased equipment stays on a real schedule, so there is no year-end surprise.
Businesses we see most in Midland
Questions people ask
Do I need a bookkeeper in Midland, TX?
Not one sitting in an office downtown. What matters is understanding oilfield service job costing, per diem, fuel and equipment depreciation. LedgerDude works remotely through QuickBooks Online, which fits a business with crews in the field.
How should per diem be recorded for oilfield crews?
Separately from wages, in its own account. Mixing per diem into wages inflates payroll tax calculations and makes true labor cost per job harder to see.
How much cash should an oilfield service company keep in reserve?
Given how sharply Permian Basin activity can swing, most of the companies we work with target three to four months of fixed overhead in reserve, built up during high-activity stretches rather than spent as if the pace were permanent.
Why does equipment depreciation matter so much for a Midland service company?
Equipment is usually the largest asset on the balance sheet and is often financed. Lenders and partners look at that balance sheet closely, especially before or during a slowdown, so depreciation and loan schedules need to stay current.
Do Midland businesses pay property tax on oilfield equipment?
Business personal property, including field equipment, can be subject to county property tax and is reported from your fixed asset list, so keeping that list accurate matters for the filing as well as for your own books.
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Our bookkeeping services
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Bookkeeping prices for Midland businesses
Flat monthly plans based on your revenue.
Bookkeeping case studies with real numbers
What changed for businesses like yours.
Outsourced bookkeeping services in Midland
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Want your books handled for you?
We read your receipts, match your bank activity, and close your books every month. You get one short list of questions and a dashboard that always tells the truth.