Bonding Ready in 72 Hours: How Contractors Can Quickly Clean Up Their Books for Surety Approval

Gannon Thiel • July 28, 2025

When a big job comes up and bonding is on the line, contractors don’t have the luxury of time. Yet, many construction businesses find themselves scrambling to produce accurate financials that meet surety standards.


At Groundwork Financial, we understand that speed and precision are critical, especially when your next project depends on it.

Why Clean Financials Matter for Bonding

Surety underwriters rely heavily on your company’s financial statements to assess your creditworthiness and capacity to perform. Sloppy books, outdated reports, or incomplete schedules raise red flags and can delay or derail approval.


Key financial documents required for bonding typically include:

  • Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet
  • Work-in-Progress (WIP) schedules
  • Accounts receivable/payable aging reports
  • Job cost detail


If these reports are inaccurate or missing, it can cost you the bid.

Common Issues That Cause Delays

Many contractors experience the same hurdles when trying to get bond-ready:

  • Revenue not tied to specific jobs
  • Retainage amounts not tracked properly
  • WIP schedules missing or manually updated in spreadsheets
  • Owner distributions or personal expenses mixed with business finances
  • Inconsistent or missing job cost data


These issues not only confuse underwriters, but they also make it difficult to tell the financial story of your business.



Groundwork's 72-Hour Clean-Up Process

We specialize in rapid-response financial clean-up engagements that get your books in shape fast. Our streamlined 72-hour process includes:

  1. Document Intake: We review your existing books, identify gaps, and request only the data we need.
  2. Clean-Up & Catch-Up: We fix coding errors, align revenue and cost to jobs, and reconcile accounts.
  3. WIP and Financial Package Creation: We build or update your WIP, generate bond-ready financial statements, and ensure the full package is surety-compliant.


We work directly with your surety agent or bonding company to ensure expectations are met.


Who This Is For

Our clean-up engagements are ideal for:

  • Contractors applying for their first bond
  • Companies renewing bonding lines with outdated financials
  • Firms experiencing rapid growth but lagging behind in accounting


We don’t just make your numbers look good, we make them make sense. Our team understands how underwriters think, what they look for, and how to present your financials in a way that builds trust.


Be Ready Before the Bid Drops

The best time to clean up your books is before bonding becomes urgent. But when timelines are tight, Groundwork Financial is built to respond.


Need clean, bond-ready financials fast? Let’s get to work.

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