IndustriesConstruction, HVAC & Elevator
Know which jobs make money while they’re still running.
Contractors and service companies make and lose money one job at a time. We keep job costing current every month, so you can fix a slipping job before it’s finished, not read about it on the tax return.
Monthly job report
Gross margin by open job
What we handle for contractors
- Job costing and WIP schedules set up in QuickBooks and kept current every month
- Revenue recognition on longer contracts, and the tax accounting method that fits your size
- Financial statements your bonding company and bank will accept
- Equipment and vehicle purchases timed and structured for both the deduction and the cash
- New York sales tax on capital improvements, repairs and service contracts
- Service and maintenance contracts tracked as the recurring revenue they are
- Owner tax planning, coordinated with the business every quarter
- When it’s time to bring in a partner or sell, the same records become the sale package
Your service agreements are the first number a buyer will ask about.
Recurring maintenance revenue is worth more than one-off installs. We track it that way from the start, so it shows up in your value when you sell.
Questions owners ask us
Do I need to send 1099s to my subcontractors?
Usually, yes. If your business pays a subcontractor that isn't a corporation for services, and the year's total reaches the annual reporting threshold, you file Form 1099-NEC with the IRS and give the subcontractor a copy by January 31. Congress raised that threshold for payments made in 2026 and later, and it adjusts for inflation after 2026, so fewer small payments need reporting. Payments to corporations are generally exempt, though legal fees and medical services are not. Get a Form W-9 before the first payment: if a subcontractor won't give you a taxpayer ID number, you have to withhold tax from what you pay them. We can review your vendor list before year-end so January filing is routine.
Can you help us get bonded or raise our bonding line?
We prepare the financial statements sureties and banks ask for and keep your WIP schedule current, which is most of what underwriters look at.
Do you work in QuickBooks Desktop or Online?
Both. We set up job costing in whichever version you run today, and we’ll tell you honestly if it’s time to move.
Is New York sales tax due on repair work?
Generally yes. Repairs and maintenance to real property are taxable, while capital improvements are not when you hold a signed Certificate of Capital Improvement (Form ST-124). Where that line falls is where contractors get audited.
Which tax method should a contractor my size use?
Smaller contractors can often use the completed-contract method on jobs expected to finish within two years, which can defer tax on work in progress. Whether it fits depends on your gross receipts and job mix, so we model it first.
Talk to someone who knows the trades.
We’ll look at how your jobs are tracked today and tell you what we’d change. No cost, no commitment.