A remodeling chief financial officer manages cash, job costs and taxes for a company that takes deposits, bills in stages and pays trade partners on every job. They forecast cash against signed work and show the CEO which kinds of jobs and prices make money.
By the HireBus team · Updated · Pay data: BLS, May 2025
Median pay, residential builders and remodelers · BLS, May 2025
The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) plays a critical role in steering the financial direction of our remodeling division, ensuring robust financial health through strategic planning, budgeting, forecasting, and comprehensive oversight of financial operations. This role directly contributes to optimizing our company’s financial performance and supporting sustainable growth in a dynamic home services environment.
2. Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Oversee all financial operations, including budgeting, forecasting, and risk management.
Collaborate with senior leadership to develop and implement strategic financial initiatives that support remodeling projects.
Ensure compliance with financial policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements.
Provide timely and accurate financial reports with actionable insights to drive informed decision making.
3. Key Tasks / Daily Activities
Develop and review daily financial dashboards and reports to monitor performance.
Review project-specific budgets and identify opportunities to enhance cost efficiency.
Communicate regularly with internal teams and external stakeholders regarding financial performance and forecasts.
4. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Budget Variance: Maintain deviation at less than 3%.
Net Profit Margin: Achieve a minimum improvement of 12%.
Forecast Accuracy: Attain over 95% precision in financial projections.
Cash Flow Efficiency: Sustain a positive cash balance on a monthly basis.
5. Required Qualifications and Skills
Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, or a related field.
CPA, CMA, or equivalent certification preferred.
Minimum of 8 years of progressive experience in financial management.
Strong analytical skills with proven experience in strategic planning and effective communication.
6. Preferred Experience
Experience in the remodeling or construction home services industry.
Demonstrated success in managing financial operations in fast-paced, growth-oriented environments.
Familiarity with project-based budgeting and financial forecasting specific to remodeling projects.
Previous exposure to advanced financial software and enterprise resource planning systems.
7. Physical Requirements
Ability to work effectively in a traditional office environment.
Occasional lifting of materials or documents up to 25 pounds.
Extended periods of sitting and working at a desk.
Adequate vision and hearing to monitor financial software systems critically.
8. Work Environment and Schedule
Typical work hours: 40 hours per week in a standard office setting.
Office-based role with occasional on-site visits to remodeling projects.
Flexibility to work extended hours during financial closing periods and peak reporting times.
Limited travel required for industry conferences, meetings, and business events.
9. Compensation and Benefits
Base salary range: $150,000 - $200,000 per year.
Eligibility for performance-based bonuses.
Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.
401k plan with company match and additional fringe benefits.
10. Company Culture and Overview
At [INSERT COMPANY NAME HERE], we believe in creating a collaborative and innovative work environment that drives both personal and professional growth. Our culture is defined by integrity, a commitment to customer satisfaction, and a clear focus on excellence. We invest in our people by offering continuous learning opportunities and clear career advancement paths, ensuring that every team member is empowered to contribute to our mutual success.
11. How to Apply
If you meet the above criteria and want to be part of a growth-oriented company focused on customer satisfaction, please send your resume to [INSERT EMAIL HERE] or apply online at [INSERT WEBSITE LINK HERE].
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What's different about a CFO at a remodeling company
Money in remodeling moves in stages. A deposit comes first, then payments as the work hits milestones, with change orders in between. The CFO turns that into true job costs, clean tax filings and a cash plan.
Most remodels can skip percentage-of-completion
Federal tax rules call a job a home construction contract when the company expects at least four-fifths of its costs to go to dwelling units, in a building with four units or fewer, or to work at those homes. Those contracts don't have to use the percentage-of-completion method. Have the CFO check with your tax advisor which method each kind of contract uses. The choice moves taxable income from one year to another. Source: eCFR: 26 CFR 1.460-3, long-term construction contracts.
Financing offers carry a federal notice
Say you send homeowners to a lender, or have a business deal with one, and take the loan money as payment. The FTC's Holder Rule says you can't take that money until the loan papers include a notice the rule spells out. It lets the homeowner raise the same claims and defenses against the lender that they could raise against you, up to what they paid on the loan. Have the CFO check each lender's contract for it before sales offers the plan. Source: eCFR: 16 CFR 433.2, preservation of consumers' claims and defenses.
In Kentucky, you pay tax on the materials
Kentucky taxes sales of building materials, fixtures and supplies to contractors at the time the contractor buys them. So build the tax on cabinets and tile into each estimate, not onto the bill as sales tax. A freestanding refrigerator you sell and deliver is different: you buy it for resale and charge the homeowner sales tax. Out-of-state suppliers that don't collect Kentucky tax leave you to pay use tax directly. Source: Kentucky Administrative Regulations: 103 KAR 26:070, contractors.
Cabinet orders set the cash curve
The biggest bills on a kitchen or bath job can arrive early, when cabinets, counters and tile are ordered weeks before install. Forecast cash week by week from each job's order dates, not its start dates, so a run of kitchen starts doesn't drain the account before install.
Unpriced change orders leak margin
Extra work agreed on site and billed later is a common place for remodeling profit to vanish. Ask project managers for a signed, priced change order before the work starts. Then have finance bill it with the next scheduled payment, not at the end of the job.
How much remodeling chief financial officers make
The closest BLS group for remodeling chief financial officers is chief executives. Chief executives who work for residential builders and remodelers earned a median of $213,510 a year ($102.65 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s about the same as the $213,990 median for chief executives in all industries. About 520 of the 204,350 chief executives in that survey work for residential builders and remodelers.
Pay is a base salary, and the bonus usually follows profit and cash goals. BLS groups CFOs with chief executives, and the template's salary range sits below this industry's median for that group.
Residential builders and remodelers
$213,510$213,510 median Middle half $157,070–$315,530 10th–90th $91,200–$392,560
All industries
$213,990$213,990 median Middle half $129,540–$356,200 10th–90th $75,700–$507,730
10th–90th percentileMiddle halfMedianAnnual pay, May 2025. Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
Annual pay by percentile
Group
10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
Residential builders and remodelers
$91,200
$157,070
$213,510
$315,530
$392,560
All industries
$75,700
$129,540
$213,990
$356,200
$507,730
BLS reports remodelers and home builders together. Post a real range for your market in the ad.
The pay line in the template above is an example from our Role Blueprint. Set yours from these figures and what local companies pay.
Skills to hire for, and what you can teach
Hire for these
Keeps a rolling cash forecast tied to signed jobs and their payment dates
Ties estimates, purchase orders and payroll to each job
Knows how sales and use tax works for contractors in your state
Explains margins to designers and project managers in plain words
Puts controls on deposits, supplier payments and change orders
Teach these on the job
Your estimating and project management software
Your contract terms and payment schedule
Your lender and financing partner programs
How your trade partners bill
Look for skill with an accounting system that tracks job costs, plus the estimating and project tools your team uses. A strong remodeling CFO can trace a purchase order in one system to its job cost line in another.
Two of the 6 questions we'd ask, and what a strong answer sounds like. Ask every candidate the same questions, and rate each answer on your own before you compare notes.
Situational · Finding margin problems
Mid-year, gross margin on bathroom jobs is well below estimate while kitchens are on target. What do you look at first?
A strong answer: Compares estimate to actual by cost code, checks labor hours, unbilled changes, allowance overages and subcontractor pricing, then talks with estimating and production before changing prices.
Behavioral · Making controls stick
Tell me about a time you put a financial control in place that field staff pushed back on. How did you make it stick?
A strong answer: Explained the reason, kept the step simple (such as job numbers on every supplier bill), trained people, showed results and adjusted after feedback.
How should a remodeling company set its payment schedule?
Tie each payment to a step the homeowner can see, like the cabinet order, a passed rough-in inspection or set countertops. Collect enough up front to cover special-order items you can't send back. Tie the last payment to the punch list so the homeowner has a reason to sign off. Check your state's rules on deposits and contract terms first.
How much does a remodeling chief financial officer make?
Chief executives who work for residential builders and remodelers earned a median of $213,510 a year ($102.65 an hour) in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The middle half earned between $157,070 and $315,530 a year. Pay also depends on your local market, experience and bonus terms.
How should a remodeling CFO price change orders?
Price a change order with the same markup as the original job. Add time for the delay it causes, like a crew waiting on a new fixture. A minimum charge for small changes keeps project managers from giving them away. The CFO sets the rules, and project managers use them on site.
Should a remodeler offer its own financing or work with a lender?
Working with a lender is the simpler path. The lender approves the homeowner and pays the company. That keeps loans off your books, but the lender's fees come out of your margin, so price for them. Carrying the loans yourself makes you a lender, with its own federal and state rules. Get legal advice before you try it.
Which jobs should a new remodeling CFO review first?
Start with open jobs that have pending change orders, jobs running over their estimate, and any job where deposits taken are larger than the work done so far. Those lists show where cash and margin are at risk. Then compare estimates on recently closed jobs with their final costs to find the estimating habits to fix.
What does the remodeling CFO template mean by lifting, vision and hearing?
It means carrying a box of files or a laptop bag to a site meeting. It means reading reports on a screen and following calls with lenders, auditors and project managers. A site visit means walking through a home under construction. Describe them that way in the posting, and say you'll discuss reasonable accommodations.
