Construction Accountants

The 3 percent withholding provision for contractors, which was scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2013, cleared its first hurdle for permanent elimination.  On October 13, 2011, The House Ways and Means Committee overwhelmingly supported the repeal of the withholding provision and passed the measure.  Leaders from the House of Representatives have said the repeal of the bill will get a floor vote by the end of October.  Repealing the measure has been widely supported by contractors and...

“Go Green!”  There is a big push in our office to work in an environmentally-friendly manner – from turning out the lights after leaving an area, to recycling pop cans, to our Real Estate and Construction niche group members obtaining Green Advantage Commercial/Residential (GACR) certifications.  Regardless of whether global warming is a real or make-believe phenomenon, the concept of making more efficient use of the resources that we currently have will only continue to grow as the world’s...

Job Description:

The Controller provides both operational and programmatic support to the organization.  .  The Conroller reports directly to the President and is responsible for all strategic and tactical matters as they relate to budget management, cost benefit analysis, forecasting needs and the securing of new funding.

Our client provides survey, energy analysis and design of lighting systems to companies across the U.S.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assist in performing all tasks necessary to...

In May of 2006, Congress enacted the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005. The two most notable pieces of the bill were the extension of the reduced tax rates on capital gains and dividends as well as the extension of the alternative minimum tax (AMT) reduction. For government contractors and individuals, such as farmers and medical professionals, another important part of the bill was the 3 percent withholding on payments made to government contractors, and for Medicare, farm,...

First Energy, along with other electrical power generation companies throughout Ohio, is offering a significant rebate program called Energy Save Ohio.

This program offers incentives on the purchase of high efficiency equipment and other energy-saving measures. The main benefit is a pre-qualified, pre-approved rebate program, where by a lighting contractor will come in to your facility, perform an inspection of your current fixtures and bulbs, perform an analysis of the overall energy savings,...

CFO Job Description:

The Chief Financial Officer (CFO) provides both operational and programmatic support to the organization.  The CFO supervises the finance unit and is the chief financial spokesperson for the organization.  The CFO reports directly to the President and is responsible for all strategic and tactical matters as they relate to budget management, cost benefit analysis, forecasting needs and the securing of new funding.

CFO Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assist in performing all tasks...

• Fourth Annual Survey of Northeast Ohio Real Estate and Construction Industries
• Significantly Reduce Your Not-for-profit Audit and Tax Expenses
• Stay Within Charitable Deduction Boundries
• Roth IRA Conversions: Time to Decide
• New Estate-tax Relief: It's Complicated
• Aurum Capital Markets Summary and New Web Site
• Does Your Business Have an Ohio Use Tax Account
• April Audio Group - Audio Book Club Meeting
• College Planning...

CLEVELAND – Skoda Minotti is pleased to announce the launch of its fourth annual survey of the Northeast Ohio real estate and construction industries. The goal of the survey is to provide professionals in the real estate and construction industries in Northeast Ohio with invaluable insight into their industries.

“We received record participation in our 2010 survey and are looking to improve on that number once again in 2011,” said Roger Gingerich, CPA/ABV, CVA, partner-in-charge of Skoda...

I feel completely surrounded – like the Spartans did in Battle of Thermopylae, chronicled in the movie “300”. Rather than being encircled by Xerxes’ Persian army, however, my plight is much more benign (and much less bloody). I’m bombarded by the amount articles discussing the convergence of U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Exposure drafts for revised standards developed jointly by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International...

According to the code section 179D, the designer primarily responsible for designing the energy efficient aspects of government buildings (including new construction and rehabilitation) may be able to take the federal energy efficient commercial property tax deduction for doing so instead of the owner of the property. This deduction is passed to them from the government agency for which the building was designed as the government agency does not pay tax and therefore would not get the benefit...

This issue of the Real Estate Monitor includes the following articles:

• Understanding the Energy Efficient Tax Deduction
• New Requirements for Asbestos Surveys from the Ohio Department of Health
• Housing: Affordability of Home Ownership
• Deductions: Passive Losses
• Mortgage Loans: New Rules
• Housing: Residential Ground Leases
• Securities: No Liability Under Securities Exchange Act
• Cleveland Market Overview

Understanding the Energy Efficient Tax Deduction

Skoda Minotti, along with CLS Facility Services, invites...

Many general contractor (GC) owners think of litigation as of the cost of doing business.  This is especially true now that economic times are difficult.  Banks are more carefully reviewing draw requests, GCs are asking more questions of their subs, accounting firms are monitoring their cash flows, and everyone is trying to cut costs.  Here are a few steps to take to minimize potential pain from litigation:

1. Know the condition of your lenders
   a. If you anticipate needing a line of credit, apply...

This issue of the Real Estate Monitor includes the following articles:

• Survey of Northeast Ohio's Construction & Real Estate Industries
• Communicating the Value of Development Projects Through Economic Impact Analysis
• The Outlook for Construction and Real Estate
• Commercial Real Estate: How Will Refinancing Take Place?
• Proposed New Accounting Rules
• Due Diligence: Purchase With Care
• Leases Checking: Property Tax Invoices 
• Upholding a Letter of Intent
• Cleveland Market Overview

Survey of Northeast Ohio's...

With no foreseeable end to the decline in construction volume, general contractors (GC) should recognize the potential for increased subcontracting defaults and take steps to prevent or reduce their impact. 

When the industry was booming, the concern about subcontractors was whether they could meet project specs and timelines, whether they employed enough skilled workers; or how skyrocketing material prices would challenge successful project completion. 

Now-a-days, here are several ways to...

Situation/Opportunity

After being in business for about five years, a local roofing contractor contacted us because they felt they had outgrown their current CPA. They were doing well and wanted to take their business to the next level. In order for the Company to realize its maximum potential, management concluded that they needed to surround themselves with an advisory team to assist them in understanding all of the financial factors that impact operations.

Skoda Minotti Solution

Many departments...

This issue of Construction Connections includes the following articles:

• Improving Your New Business Pipeline
• National Outlook

Improving Your New Business Pipeline
By CutterCroix

For many construction companies, today’s marketplace seems harder than ever to survive, let alone thrive.  There are many external challenges impacting the company’s ability to achieve its business goals.  Some of these external forces include the lack of available credit to support new projects, cost increases in equipment,...

The Tax Court has held that, under the regs, a land surveying firm is treated as performing engineering services even though it employed no engineers. As a result, the Tax Court found that the firm was a qualified personal service corporation subject to a flat 35% tax rate.

Background. C corporations generally are subject to tax at graduated rates on their taxable income. (Code Sec. 11(b)(1)) The benefits of the graduated rates phase out after taxable income reaches a specified amount. By...

This issue of Construction Connections includes the following articles:

• 2010 Construction Outlook
• Ten Steps to Safety
• Lost Productivity Damages
• Surety Market Update

The construction market ended 2009 in as bad a shape as it has been in for almost two decades, with non-residential construction plummeting and housing construction at record post-World War II lows. For the overall economy, however, the year ended with a host of indications that recession was morphing into...

With the current state of the economy, real estate owners and developers are faced with many major issues as current tenants are going out of business and the pool of new tenants is shallow.  Although these issues are unfortunate, they also provide opportunities for tax savings. 

When a tenant leaves, a landlord is left with the question, “what can be done with the finished space that the tenant left behind?”  Since the introduction of the Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System (MACRS), the...

With the current economy as it is, cancellation of debt (COD), which is reported on Form 1099C, is going to be a more common occurrence to both individuals and companies. In general, when a debt is canceled or forgiven and it is not a gift, it must be included in income. However, the amount of income to include and where on the return to report it may vary. Reviewing this type of transaction and minimizing the tax related to the cancellation of debt is a service we can provide. 

Treatment of...