# The back-office assistant for small builders and remodelers

By James Grokman, CEO, TapeAndFloat · 2026-10-25 · Canonical: https://gc.tapeandfloat.com/

**TapeAndFloat is an AI back-office assistant for small home builders, GCs and remodelers that watches your inbox and your own Google Sheet and flags unbilled change orders, missing sub paperwork and late draws. It costs about $15 a month; JobTread, one all-in-one option, lists $199 a month ([pricing page](https://www.jobtread.com/pricing)).**
The big construction platforms are good software. They are also built and priced for firms with project managers, an implementation budget and time to train everyone. If you run a few jobs at a time with one person in the office, you need the paperwork caught, not a new system.

## What slips in a small builder's office

- **Change orders agreed by text** that never get signed or billed.

- **Sub paperwork**: expired insurance certificates (COIs), missing W-9s and lien waivers that hold up a draw.

- **Draws and invoices** that go out late or sit unpaid past terms.

- **Clients and subs asking "where are we?"** because updates live in someone's head.

- **Retainage and closeout items** nobody tracks until the last payment stalls.

## How it works

- Forward job emails (or CC a project address) to the assistant. Screenshots of texts work too.

- It updates your own Google Sheet: jobs, change orders, sub documents, invoices.

- Each day you get a short list: what is unsigned, unbilled, expired or overdue, plus drafted follow-ups.

- Nothing is sent without your OK. You keep the Sheet if you stop.

## TapeAndFloat vs the big platforms

Prices below are what each vendor's own pricing page showed on October 25, 2026. Where a vendor does not publish a price we say so.

| Option | Price (checked Oct 25, 2026) | Built for | New app to learn? | 
| **TapeAndFloat** | Free 60-day pilot, then about $15/month per company (planned $10-20) | Small offices: 1-10 people | No: works in your own email and Google Sheet | 
| Procore | [Custom quote, annual contract](https://www.procore.com/pricing) | Mid-size and large GCs | Yes: your team moves its work into it | 
| Buildertrend | [Custom quote (10% off if paid annually)](https://buildertrend.com/pricing/) | Builders with 5+ projects a year, per its pricing page | Yes: your team moves its work into it | 
| CoConstruct | [Pricing page now routes to a Buildertrend demo; see vendor](https://www.coconstruct.com/pricing) | Custom builders and remodelers (now part of Buildertrend) | Yes: your team moves its work into it | 
| JobTread | [$199/month + $20/month per extra internal user](https://www.jobtread.com/pricing) | Builders and remodelers moving to an all-in-one system | Yes: your team moves its work into it | 

If you already run Procore or Buildertrend well, keep it. TapeAndFloat is for the firm that tried one, stopped using it, and went back to email and a spreadsheet. More detail: [Procore and Buildertrend alternatives for small builders](guides/procore-buildertrend-alternatives-small-builders.html).

## Guides for small builders and GCs

- [Tracking change orders across every trade](guides/change-order-tracking-small-builders.html)

- [Chasing sub paperwork: COIs, W-9s and lien waivers](guides/sub-paperwork-coi-lien-waivers.html)

- [Getting paid faster on draws and invoices](guides/get-paid-faster-draws.html)

- [Keeping clients and subs updated without a PM tool](guides/client-sub-updates-without-pm-software.html)

- [Procore and Buildertrend alternatives for small builders](guides/procore-buildertrend-alternatives-small-builders.html)

## Frequently asked questions

### What is TapeAndFloat for general contractors?

An AI back-office assistant for small home builders, GCs and remodelers. It reads the job emails you forward, keeps your own Google Sheet up to date and sends you a daily list of unsigned or unbilled change orders, missing sub paperwork and overdue invoices.

### How is it different from Procore or Buildertrend?

Those are full platforms your team moves into, sold by custom quote. TapeAndFloat adds no new app: it works in the email and Sheet you already use and costs about $15 a month after a free 60-day pilot.

### Which trades does it work for?

Any trade. Framing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, drywall, roofing and finish carpentry all generate the same change orders, invoices and sub paperwork.

### Does it send emails to my clients or subs?

Only drafts you approve. Nothing goes out without your OK.

### What does the pilot cost?

The pilot is free for 60 days with no card. The planned price afterward is $10-20 a month per company.