How the Model Works
Paid grounds care that funds free yard rescues, with nothing hidden in between
Yard Reboot Project, Inc. is an Austin, Texas based 501(c)(3) public charity and earned-income social enterprise. One crew, two engines: commercial work pays the bills, and its net proceeds pay for the neighbors who cannot.
One dollar, four steps
This is the whole mechanism. There is no clever part we are keeping back.
- 01
A paying client hires our crew
A homeowner, HOA board, or commercial property manager books mowing, a cleanup, drainage correction, irrigation work, or native landscaping. They get a fixed written estimate, licensed and insured crews, and a completion report with photos. It is priced at the market rate, because good work costs what it costs.
- 02
The contract covers real costs first
Crew wages, fuel, equipment, insurance, and the truck. We pay people properly and we keep the machines running, because a charity that cannot finish the job is not much help to anyone.
- 03
Net proceeds move to the relief fund
What is left after costs goes into free property restoration. No middle layer, no grant cycle to wait on, no application window that closes in March.
- 04
A neighbor gets their yard back, free
A senior on a fixed income, a service-connected veteran, or a homebound resident staring down a daily code fine gets the same crew, the same equipment, and the same standard of work. They pay nothing, and we do not ask them to prove they are worthy of it.
Why we built it this way
Donations are welcome, not required
Most charities live or die on the next grant. We built an earned-income engine so the relief work keeps running in a slow fundraising year. Gifts let us move faster and reach further, they do not keep the lights on by themselves.
The books stay separate
Taxable commercial maintenance is billed under Texas Comptroller sales tax rules (34 TAC 3.356, NAICS 561730) at 8.25 percent, and unrelated business income is segregated for IRS Form 990-T. Charitable relief and commercial revenue are tracked apart, on purpose.
You can see where it went
Every free restoration is logged with a date, a service area, hazards cleared, and crew hours. Our impact reporting is public, and our governance documents are posted rather than described.
Pick the door that fits you
Hiring us and nominating a neighbor are the same act from two directions. Both keep the crew moving.