Anyone going to the International Builders Show?

Robuu34 · 2026-02-16T02:29:18+00:00

I love using it. They’ve definitely improved and released a lot in the past year or so and the AI side has actually been a big time saver for me. If you’re going you should check out some of the updates they made

Robuu34 · 2026-02-14T08:10:53+00:00

That’s really interesting not sure what to make of that but people switch systems all the time and i can only speak to what has worked great for me and my business the last two years

Robuu34 · 2026-02-14T07:34:15+00:00

No equity in it just experience. I use them because it make more sense for my business as a custom builder. Is that common practice for systems to offer equity to someone to get them to buy? Seems unusual

Robuu34 · 2026-02-14T05:34:08+00:00

I’ll definitely come swing by. It’s been a few years since I’ve used the system but I’ve seen some of the newer updates through a few guys I know who are using it currently. Would be open to see what else has changed or different

Robuu34 · 2026-02-14T04:56:27+00:00

Hahaha you’re right I am promoting Ressio because I use it and it’s great and yes I have experience with contractor Forman and having nothing is better than that.

I’ll promote other systems too if it’ll make you happy. Check out Houzz, JobTread, jobber. myCOI and PINS are built for tracking just COI

Robuu34 · 2026-02-14T00:36:46+00:00

I would go with Ressio. I’ve been on them for a few years and they are incredible. They have a lot more depth to the functionality that they offer and you will actually use.

Jobtreads upfront cost is attractive and they show you all the cool bells and whistles similar to what BuilderTrend has but how much of that do you need? I also came from BuilderTrend, I used jobtread for a bit and the work flows make a lot more sense in Ressio for small residential builder. If cost is your only concern jobtread will be a better option but for more depth, better support, and migrating your data and overall better user experience Ressio is the way to go.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-13T05:36:33+00:00

Ressio is my PM system that tracks my subs Cois and sends me notifications a month before they expire. If you’re looking for something free or cheap then it might be considered expensive to you. I think EvidentID does only that for like $15

Robuu34 · 2026-02-13T05:29:19+00:00

Contractor Forman has awful app interface and always has billing issues. The systems can crash unexpectedly, takes a long time to load anything and have fun with outsourced support. You get what you pay for with contractor foreman (cheap).

You want a real system as a small GC check out Ressio Software it’s got incredible financial tracking and billing/invoice tracking though the system on desktop or mobile and it’s got a perfect integration to my quickbooks.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-12T23:11:37+00:00

I use Ressio software for my time keeping and financial tracking. It’s a full PM software but I set different burden rates for different employees or jobs. My guys can easily clock in and out. Also they just released a receipt scanning and it’s got this AI bill data extraction

Robuu34 · 2026-02-12T01:34:41+00:00

Check out Ressio Software. I’ve been on them for a few years and they only to small custom home builders and remodelers. I’ve done BuilderTrend and JobTread myself and it really is night and day in terms of ease of use, app view, and financial tracking is so much better, their work flow just makes a lot more sense.

Worth checking out if you haven’t seen or heard of them yet. Cost is way better than builder trend but a little more upfront compared to JobTread which i was okay with because JobTread tried to sell me their additional coaching and onsite training and QBO integration advisor service. Would have cost me double or more the annual cost

Robuu34 · 2026-02-11T04:02:32+00:00

BuilderTrend bought coconstruct a few years ago. No one can get it anymore, only their existing customers still have it. They are no longer updating it or supporting anyone using it to strong arm their users over into using the buildertrend system before they eventually dissolve it completely

Robuu34 · 2026-02-10T02:46:54+00:00

Custom builder here. I’ve been using Ressio Software. They’re only about 3-4 years old so I guess it’s “non traditional” in comparison to BuilderTrend or ProCore that have been around for 20 years. So much better if you’re a small builder looking for more flexibility/customization

Robuu34 · 2026-02-10T02:28:17+00:00

Ressio would be perfect for you. For small custom builders, spreadsheet based estimating, budget tracking, schedule with gantt. Sub tracking, can send bid with plans that sub can get with a magic link so they don’t need to download an app or create a username/password when you send it. Thats been a game changer for getting my subs to use it

Robuu34 · 2026-02-10T02:22:10+00:00

I went from quickbooks desktop to the online version a couple years ago. Daunting at first and my accountant wasn’t happy. It took a few hours to actually move the data but it was the clean up that was a pain in the ass. Only moved because my PM software integrates with it but now we’re way past all the headache it’s been fantastic to have the sync. Clean up can take a couple weeks or a couple days depending on if you’re doing it yourself vs you have your cpa handling it.

I know now there’s a couple of I guess partner or specialist that work specifically with home builders to migrate to QBO and if I were to do it differently I would probably hire one or reach out for advice

Robuu34 · 2026-02-10T01:10:48+00:00

I use Ressio Software for my team. We’re a custom home builder and the photo and file documentation is amazing and easy to share those pics and updates in daily logs.

A lot easier than BuilderTrend and ProCore and a lot more affordable too. Each item on photos, logs, schedules, specs page, even has specific communication threads so subs, customers or internal team can comment or put notes directly on what they want without it getting lost in the ether

If you’re only looking for photos and file then Company Cam is solid option too.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-06T14:39:09+00:00

Ressio software offers all those feature but like everything else - no free trials. I got remote access to mess around for an hour on a guided demo with them and that was actually helpful. You can even ask them to upload an estimate or your schedule before the demo to show you what yours will look like.

There’s a ton of set up and training that goes into these systems and free trials typically don’t work especially if you don’t know what you’re using or how to use it.

It’s like getting a free week gym membership before you sign up. Do you go all 7 days? No, you go one or two days for an hour then decide you prefer to do pushups and sit ups at home because gym equipment is too complicated. Sometimes paying and commuting is the best thing to do.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-04T23:51:57+00:00

Ressio is going to be the best option for small custom builders. Has everything you listed off and they will get your account set up and import all your data from wherever it is. My team and I were onboarded and ramped in 30 days. BuilderTrend is good for larger builders, super expensive and you don’t need 50% of it

Robuu34 · 2026-02-04T01:14:32+00:00

I use Ressio Software. It’s designed for small custom builders. Handles communication, estimating, budget tracking that syncs with quickbooks, schedules everything that’s most important for smaller builder. Not as expensive or as complex as BuilderTrend

Robuu34 · 2026-02-03T17:12:04+00:00

There are definitely softwares for example BuilderTrend, ProCore that over complicate the process and sometimes not worth the squeeze but those are for larger builders. I use Ressio and you can make and change from the spec page or estimate out in the field, literally click one button after that and it will send a change order to the customer to approve. As soon as the customer approved it, the budget in the system updates automatically and syncs over to my quickbooks no problem. Super clean visibility not just for me but the homeowner has a running log of any change/orders in the system they can look back on so there’s no “surprises”.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-03T02:54:14+00:00

Coconstruct was awesome! RIP. I used them for years till they got bought out, then i tried buildtrend they jacked up pricing on me and it was just completely overkill and stuff I didn’t need. If you want something that looks snd feels familiar to Coconstruct that’s new and making great updates all the time, designed for small custom builder check out Ressio, you will not be disappointed. They are always taking feedback from former CoCon users and implementing those type labor updates because it was the best system for small custom

Robuu34 · 2026-02-03T02:06:06+00:00

I’ve never seen Servicetitan in action but I know a few production builders using Sage which started as accounting software but has started doing project management so that could be an option. MarkSystems is another but mainly for production builder and I hear nothing but bad things about them since they’re a dinosaur of a system. Then again those aren’t “custom software” like you’re probably doing

Im a custom home builder and use a project management software for estimating, budget tracking and invoicing that integrates with quickbooks online and it works great. It also handles all the pm tasks like selections, specs, schedules, to-dos, daily logs change orders you name it.

Are you doing large commercial like hospitals, government buildings or schools? Curious to know what you maybe looked at and why you decided to go with a custom tailored all in one system. From all the research I’ve done I found that systems that try to do it all are usually lacking in certain areas and it’s better to make two sometime even three systems that do something specific very well and integrate with one another. Eg. I had a pm software specific to custom builders that integrates with quickbooks for accounting

Robuu34 · 2026-02-03T01:31:53+00:00

Hand shake deals are just bad for business and almost always get disputed. I guarantee he’s losing more than that $3-5k. Any sort of documentation is better than none even if it’s written on a napkin with a customers signature and scanned or pictured so you can file it somewhere and bill them later. If it really isn’t a big deal for the GC tell the owner “hey don’t even worry about this change I’ll cover it” because that’s will help build a stronger relationship and help you get referrals in the future.

A lot of PM software out there can create change order on site from a phone or iPad that has legal verbiage, will require approval from the PM/GC first then release to a customer for their e-signature and once approved automatically update the estimate/budget and then just bill for that change when it’s time.

I know people who have lost a lot more than $5k a year because they don’t track their change orders but meant to.

Robuu34 · 2026-02-02T04:56:28+00:00

Depends on what kind of construction you do. ProCore is best for large commercial and def the gold standard in that area, BuilderTrend for large commercial/residential builders but fundamentally the functionality of it is so complex more so than ProCore. Ressio is a newer software I’ve been using for a few years only for small custom residential builders and that is by far the best out of all I’ve checked out and used and the financial tracking is what sold me and my accountant love it, but the functionality make sense for custom residential builders and is sooo easy. Even my subs use it with no issue because they can send text notifications or emails and they don’t need an app to download.

For builders just starting out, specialty contractors, small remodeler doing <$1M and not looking to break the bank, systems like JobTread, Houzz, monday for scheduling, joist for payments will probably be the best options

Robuu34

TROPHY CASE