If you’re leading a growing real estate or construction business, the in-house versus outsourced question will surface sooner or later.
It’s easy to frame it as a practical decision about control, efficiency, or cost. In reality, it typically stems from a deeper instinct: the desire to take back control as your business accelerates or changes.
From our experience working with hundreds of growing real estate and construction companies, the same three reasons tend to surface when owners consider bringing their accounting in-house:
- Growth
- Proximity (someone “down the hall”)
- Cost
Each of these reasons is understandable. But none of them, on their own, make a strong case for going in-house.
It’s worth looking closer at what’s really behind that instinct, and what many owners learn once they follow it, so you can make the right call for your needs and circumstances.
Playing the long game
When a stock performs well, a common impulse is to sell; to take control, to lock in gains, to “do something.”
But a seasoned investor will tell you: don’t sell a winning stock just because it’s rising. The smart move is to stay invested, because what’s working is what’s driving the growth.
The same is true with your business’s financial operations.
When your company is scaling, the urge to bring key functions in-house (especially something as foundational as accounting) can feel like safety.
In reality, it’s closer to selling your best-performing investment simply because it’s performing. Growth doesn’t mean the system needs to be changed. It means the system is working.
But the business is growing, so the team should grow too, right?
In short, yes, there’s good reason to think this way. However, unless it’s physical labor, it’s worth checking if this need has been inspired by tradition (a bustling team in one office) instead of necessity.
Today, functions like marketing, accounting, HR, recruitment, and project management can be handled more efficiently through outsourcing. The advantage is these tasks become the focus of a dedicated team rather than one individual, and the work can be shared across multiple specialists.
You can still grow your team, just without everyone under the same roof.
Closer doesn’t always mean faster or cheaper
Recently, a real estate client decided to bring their accounting in-house. Their business is fast-paced, seasonal, and complex, so having someone “right there” felt like a logical move.
But in a business that moves quickly, proximity can seem like efficiency. They wanted to walk down the hall, hand over a file, and say, “book this.”
What felt like speed soon revealed hidden costs.
Instead of a team spread across categories of expertise, they had to rely on one person. They were paying a full-time salary plus benefits, and the leadership team was now spending valuable hours managing, reviewing, and rebuilding the oversight they once had.
The result was more time spent on accounting, not less, and for more money.
True efficiency doesn’t come from proximity. It comes from having the right systems, expertise, and visibility to move at speed confidently.
The hidden costs of saving
Another client temporarily reduced their outsourced scope to bring certain services in-house, aiming to manage costs more directly.
In practice, however, they quickly recognized what they had gained in perceived savings came at the expense of oversight and control, precisely the capabilities they needed most as they prepared to scale fivefold and build a long-lasting business.
Their experience highlighted that cost alone isn’t the right measure; maintaining systems, expertise, and reliable processes is what enables sustainable growth.
(Today, they’ve expanded their partnership with Nimbl beyond the original scope, ensuring they have both the efficiency and the support required to scale as they planned.)
Structure that evolves with you
We’ve guided many businesses through the shift from fully outsourced to a hybrid approach. In fact, we often initiate that conversation ourselves when we see the signs that a client may be ready.
When that time comes, here’s what we work through together:
- Why in-house support might make sense now
- How to design the role and set priorities
- What to expect from the transition
- The right questions to ask in hiring
- Which responsibilities should remain outsourced
Once your new team member is onboard, we can also meet with them directly to share your company’s financial position, walk through our systems, and set a rhythm for the year ahead.
Explore your next step with confidence
If you’re starting to wonder if now’s the time to bring accounting in-house, book a free chat with Dylan, our Real Estate and Construction Lead. Together you can explore whether you require a change in scope, more clarity, or a new team member.
Most importantly, he’ll help you make the call that’s right for you and your business.
