Between bids, change orders, retainage, and compliance, contractor tasks quickly become complex. An Enrolled Agent (EA) is a federally certified tax expert who represents you before the IRS, keeps your job costing precise, your WIP accurate, and your returns reliable. At Henriquez Accounting & Tax Services, we align field operations with bookkeeping, quarterly tax planning, and year-end filings for GCs, subs, and specialty trades. Discover Bookkeeping, Tax Preparation, and Controller/CFO Advisory.

WIP & Job Costing Over/Under Billing IRS Representation

For every contractor, having expert financial guidance is crucial for success. As a contractor, you need to ensure your finances are in order.

Clean books that tie to your estimates, pay apps, and cash—plus proactive tax strategy all year.

Top Reasons Contractors Choose an Enrolled Agent

WIP accuracy: percent-complete, earned revenue, and over/under-billing mapped correctly.
Job costing discipline: labor burden, materials, subs, equipment, and change orders tracked to the job and phase.
1099/W-9 control: collect W-9s, verify vendor types, and e-file 1099-NEC/MISC on time.
Entity/S-Corp strategy: reasonable comp modeling, payroll setup, and documentation.
Sales & use tax mapping: rules vary by state and scope—materials, fabrication, or retail parts.
Notice defense: EAs handle IRS/state letters, audits, collections, and appeals.

Contractor Accounting Essentials (What to Get Right)

Retainage: use Retainage Receivable and Retainage Payable ledgers; tie to contracts and pay apps.
Clearing accounts: Merchant Clearing for credit card/Zelle/ACH aggregators; daily deposits reconcile cleanly.
COI & compliance: certificates of insurance tracked for subs; lien waivers matched to payments.
AIA/Progress billing: schedule of values, change orders, and retainage reflected in AR/AP and WIP.
Payroll & burden: certified payroll/prevailing wage support; burden (taxes/benefits/comp) allocated to jobs.
CapEx vs. repairs: tools & equipment capitalization policy with thresholds and photos/invoices attached.

Expertise in contractor needs: tailored financial strategies that meet the unique challenges faced by contractors.

WIP, Billing, and Cash (How We Keep You Aligned)

Job Costing & WIP

Budget vs. actual by cost code and phase; percent-complete updates.
Recognize earned revenue; book Over/Under Billing properly.
Tie purchase orders, receiving, and vendor bills to the job.

Billing Flows

AIA progress invoices with retainage; change orders tracked to revenue and margin.
Time & material jobs with rate cards and materials markup policies.

Cash Control

13-week cash forecast; draw schedules and milestone funding.
AR collections cadence; AP batching and early-pay discounts where useful.
Project closeout checklist: punch items, final lien waivers, retainage release.

Compliance with a Enrolled Agent

W-9 intake at vendor setup; 1099 e-file in January.
Sales/use tax rules reviewed per state/scope; resale and exemption documentation where applicable.

Our Cadence (Month–Quarter–Year)

Monthly

Reconcile bank/credit/merchant; clear Undeposited Funds and Merchant Clearing.
Close with P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow, and WIP/over-under billing schedule.
AR collections, AP approvals, and 13-week cash forecast refresh.

Quarterly

Tax projections & vouchers; payroll/pay rate and burden reviews.
Job margin review; estimate vs. actual by code; change-order profitability.
Entity & compensation tune-ups (e.g., S-Corp reasonable comp checks).

Annually

1099-NEC/1099-MISC e-file; fixed-asset roll-forward and depreciation.
Business & owner returns; bonding/lender packages with WIP and financials.

Recommended Stack (Construction)

Accounting: QuickBooks Online/Desktop with projects & cost codes.
Job costing: Buildertrend, Knowify, or ProjectPro; PO and time capture integrated.
AP & spend: Bill.com or Ramp with approvals, vendor policies, and COI tracking.
Time & payroll: Gusto/QB Payroll/ADP with job/phase allocations; certified payroll reports as needed.
Docs: Dext/Hubdoc for receipts; lien waivers and COIs stored with vendor/job.

Pro Tip: Track retainage in separate AR/AP accounts and show it on WIP. Your cash forecast and bonding conversations will be far more accurate.

Common (Costly) Mistakes We Fix

Revenue recorded from bank deposits instead of WIP/earned revenue → distorted margins.
No retainage ledger; cash surprises at closeout.
Missing W-9s and late 1099s → avoidable penalties.
Materials and subs not tied to jobs/codes → budget vs. actual meaningless.
Sales/use tax mis-mapping on materials vs. labor where rules differ.

What You’ll Get When You Work With an Enrolled Agent

Clean job costing, WIP, and over/under-billing schedules—every month.
Quarterly tax projections with vouchers and dates.
1099 workflow, W-9 tracking, and notice handling (IRS/state) by an EA.
Owner dashboard: cash runway, job margins, and collections focus list.
Secure portal, e-sign, and documented SLAs.

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Why Every Contractor Needs an Enrolled Agent