Construction is the most-misunderstood small-business segment in tax practice. Vehicle elections, equipment depreciation, worker classification, Section 179 timing, Texas franchise tax — all of it has construction-specific quirks that generalist CPAs guess at. We don't guess. We've audited dozens of construction returns where the math left $10K–$25K/yr on the table.
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GCs and trades owners come to us with the same three problems: vehicle / equipment elections that were never modeled, worker classification getting attention from the IRS, and S-corp structures that exist on paper but were never operationally set up.
"My CPA puts my truck on Schedule C every year. Same one for five years now. I've upgraded twice. Nobody's modeled vehicle election or accountable plan."
GC · $480K rev · Apr 2026
"I have eight guys on payroll and twelve sub-contractors. My bookkeeper can't tell me who's W-2 versus 1099 anymore. The IRS sent a letter about misclassification."
Concrete sub · $1.1M rev · Mar 2026
"We've been an S-corp for three years. Nobody set reasonable comp. I take whatever I need as a draw. My CPA says it's fine. I'm pretty sure it isn't."
Custom builder · $850K rev · Feb 2026
Construction = trucks. The election (actual expense vs. standard mileage) gets locked in year-one and matters for the next 5+ years. For an F-250 or similar over 6,000 lbs GVWR, Section 179 + bonus depreciation can deduct most of the cost in year one — but only if the election is right. We model it and document the business-use percentage.
Heavy equipment (skid steers, lifts, excavators, concrete tools) is depreciation gold if timed right. We map your equipment purchase calendar against your income calendar — push purchases into high-income years, time the Section 179 election, model bonus depreciation phase-down impact.
Owner-operator trades clearing $150K+ net typically save $10K–$20K/yr on S-corp election. Reasonable comp gets benchmarked against trade-specific wage data (BLS construction-trades data, regional cost-of-living adjustment). Documented and defensible.
Construction is one of the most-audited industries for worker classification. We map your crew + sub structure against the IRS 20-factor test, fix any misclassified workers, file the right corrections (Section 530 relief where applicable), and document going-forward policy.
Texas franchise tax, Public Information Report, and (if applicable) sales tax on parts vs. labor. Most out-of-state CPAs miss these. We file them cleanly and surface the no-tax-due threshold so smaller GCs don't pay when they don't have to.
Owner-operators almost always pay for tools, fuel, phone, and out-of-town travel personally and never get reimbursed properly. An accountable plan reimburses you tax-free from the business and deducts at the entity. Templates + documentation chain provided.
Vehicle election restructured (both trucks Section 179'd in year of purchase, going forward standard mileage), late S-corp election filed retroactive to January, reasonable comp set at $115K. Year-one savings $14.8K, recurring.
IRS letter answered with Section 530 safe-harbor position. Eight workers reclassified correctly. Section 530 relief preserved for prior years. Going-forward 1099 vs. W-2 policy documented and trained.
Reasonable comp set at $145K (was $0 — pure draws). Officer payroll set up through Gusto. Accountable plan built for truck + tools + phone. Owner-distribution policy documented. Year-one savings $11.2K, audit-defensible.
3-year scope · vehicle + equipment election review · S-corp + reasonable comp analysis · worker classification audit · Texas franchise / PIR compliance · accountable plan build · ranked next-step list.
Owner-operators with one truck + no payroll: Standard ($2.5K). Multi-state operators or builders with 3+ entities: Strategic ($10K).
Texas is our home market but we work with construction owners nationwide. Texas-specific compliance (franchise tax, PIR) only applies to TX-domiciled or TX-doing-business entities — for clients outside Texas, we handle their state's equivalent.
Yes. Section 530 safe-harbor is the right defense in most cases — if you've been consistent in your treatment, filed 1099s timely, and have a reasonable basis for the classification. We've handled multiple IRS audits in this lane and the firm has clean wins.
For builders running long projects (custom homes, commercial), GAAP percentage-of-completion accounting may be required. We coordinate with Kick on the bookkeeping side and handle the tax-method elections on our side. For smaller GCs doing short jobs, cash-basis is fine.
No — that's a specialty in its own right. We coordinate with bonding agents and insurance brokers who specialize in construction risk. We handle the tax side of premium deductions and the bookkeeping side of insurance reserves.
Bring your truck count, equipment list, crew + sub count, and (if Texas) your franchise-tax history. We'll quote the right tier and timeline before any work begins.
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