A type of accounting used to identify costs associated with the physical costs of building residential homes or additions. Construction accounting utilizes either the completed contract or the percentage of completion to accurately report financial results.
Every construction project has costs beyond the direct costs and the contractor wants to earn a profit. To cover these costs he must have an appropriate markup. The contractor must give consideration to many variables and circumstances to calculate the best markup for a construction project. To determine the best markup percentage on costs, the contractor should consider his indirect costs, overhead, taxes, and final profit desired.
In construction accounting, the percentage of completion method is the preferred tool to account for revenues and direct costs of construction. If you are an owner of a contracting business, this is the best method of accounting.
Bankrolling any startup business is difficult enough. Capitalizing a new home builder operation is a leap forward in required funds. Typically, small businesses can be capitalized on a shoestring budget, for a new home contractor, just a little bit isn’t going to work.
When a builder constructs a house without a contract, it is known as a spec house or a speculation home. There are several advantages to the builder to build a spec house including timing, financial gains and workforce retention. There are advantages to the buyer to purchase a spec house as well. These include no delay in moving in, an overall lower price, and a simpler contract.
A construction draw schedule is a financial tool used by contractors in identifying percentage of completion points in the project for the bank to advance proceeds to the contractor. The construction draw schedule is instrumental in keeping the project moving along.
This section covers the three traditional trades that require a license from their respective state. This is your HVAC installer, the electrician and the plumber. In some contractor may wish to include the septic tank and water well installer. However, I prefer these two be included in the site development phase as they do impact the site and there is only one connection to the main builder for these two particular trades.
The most effective form of a financial feedback loop in residential construction is phase accounting. Phase accounting is a subset of cost accounting and generates accurate information in the world of new home and residential additions for small contractors building up to 20 houses per year.
