Plumb Bill Pay

Plumb Bill Pay is an outsourced bill pay and family office accounting firm for high-net-worth individuals, families, family offices and their financial advisors. Plumb was founded in 1996 as an outsourced accounting firm providing fractional controller-level services to companies. It later set up a dedicated bill pay and family office division after noticing that business owners who sold or retired lost the corporate accountant who had handled their day-to-day finances. The firm is headquartered in La Jolla, California, and has an office at 1 Rockefeller Plaza in New York.

Services

• Bill pay: bill payment and recordkeeping, expense tracking, vendor management and a client bill pay app.
• Family office accounting: investment accounting, reconciliation, private equity tracking, consolidated financial reporting, entity bookkeeping, and trust and foundation accounting.
• Planning support: budgeting and cash flow projections, insurance coordination and oversight, and annual tax organizers.
• Technology: a Sage Intacct family office offering and the Plumb Bill Pay app.

For family offices

Plumb works alongside a family's wealth advisor, CPA and other advisors, supplying the transaction data and financial reporting they need. That makes it a practical way for a family, or a lean single family office, to outsource accounts payable and household accounting without hiring in-house staff. Families comparing outsourced accounting providers may also review Aquilance and InfoGrate.

Onboarding, approvals and reporting

Plumb describes a seven-step process with defined objectives and deliverables tailored to the engagement. Onboarding uses a client checklist, tasks and deadlines; the reviewed description does not establish one fixed completion time. Families should agree the accounts and entities covered, who authorises payments, how vendors are verified and which exceptions need escalation.

The bill-pay application includes a dashboard, bill uploads, approvals, financial information and communication with the Plumb team. The advertised 24/7 access refers to client access to account information, not a promise of round-the-clock human support. Reporting frequency and service response times should be confirmed in the agreement.

Accounting and tax boundaries

Plumb's financial statements are unaudited. The firm organises records and financial data for clients, CPAs and other advisers, but explicitly says it does not prepare tax returns, give tax advice or represent clients before the IRS or another tax authority. Annual tax organisers and accounting reports should therefore be understood as inputs to the family's tax professional, not completed tax compliance.

Clients remain responsible for reviewing information for accuracy and completeness before it is submitted to their tax adviser. A family should distinguish bookkeeping and reconciliation from an audit, and agree how the Plumb team, investment adviser and CPA will coordinate.

Considerations and fit

Plumb is a service provider rather than a software vendor, so families get a team plus tools rather than a standalone platform. Numeric fees and implementation duration were not established in the reviewed pages; request an engagement-specific proposal.

Frequently asked questions

When was Plumb founded?

Plumb was founded in 1996 as an outsourced accounting firm and later created its dedicated bill pay and family office division.

Who does Plumb Bill Pay serve?

High-net-worth individuals and families, family offices, and the financial advisors who serve them.

Who leads Plumb Bill Pay?

Robert Scherer is President, and Anneke Stender is Executive Vice President.

• Pay household and office bills
• Track expenses
• Family office accounting
• Consolidated financial reporting
• Budgeting and cash flow projections

• Outsourced bill payment and recordkeeping
• Vendor management
• Plumb Bill Pay app
• Investment accounting and reconciliation
• Private equity tracking
• Entity, trust and foundation accounting
• Sage Intacct family office offering
• Insurance coordination and annual tax organizer

Built for Private Wealth Owners / Principals, Single Family Office (SFO), Multi Family Office (MFO), Advisors / Wealth Advisors (RIA).

HNW families, family offices and advisers needing bill payment, bookkeeping, reconciliation and financial records coordinated with existing wealth and tax professionals.

Plumb team communication and reporting, plus 24/7 client app access. App availability is not a 24/7 human-support promise; confirm reporting and response commitments.

Seven-step process with client checklist, tasks, deadlines and tailored deliverables. Agree accounts/entities, payment authorisation, vendor verification and exception escalation.