This issue of the Real Estate Monitor includes the
following articles:
Understanding the Energy Efficient Tax Deduction
Skoda Minotti, along with CLS Facility Services,
invites...
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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:
-
Know the condition of your
lenders
a. If you anticipate needing a line of
credit, apply...
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The recently enacted
Healthcare Reform and 2010 Small Business Jobs Act includes an
assortment of changes for small businesses. It also contains two
significant changes for information reporting by taxpayers. As
indicated below, this includes individuals who own rental property
as a passive investment.
Who is affected by these
changes?
Under the present law, information
reporting (via form 1096 and 1099) is required to the IRS by all
persons engaged in a trade or business who make...
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The American Job Builders Tax Reform Act of 2010 (H.R. 6097) is
a bipartisan bill that was introduced in August 2010 that would be
very beneficial to small contractors if passed into law. The
bill makes a lot of sense for the several reasons. Before I go
into those reasons, I will provide some background on revenue
recognition for contractors under current law.
Under current tax law, a small contractor that has average
annual gross receipts over the past three years of $10 million or
greater must...
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Suggested Course of
Action for Sub-Contractors, General Contractors and
Owners
Coauthored by:
Nick Delguyd, CPA, GACR
Jeff Phillips, CIC, CRM
It is
standard construction industry practice to verify adequate
insurance coverage for contractors through the use of a certificate
of liability insurance, a standard form produced by ACORD
(Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development,)
an insurance organization.
In September 2009, ACORD issued a
new version of the certificate of...
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This issue of
Construction Connections includes the
following articles:
Contractor Roadmap to Improvement
by
Mark Slavik, Cutter Croix, LLC
Most construction contractors got into the business to
work with their hands not manage spreadsheets, computers and other
office-related processes. However, like other types of
businesses, construction companies need basic organizational and
operational processes to...
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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...
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The
Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) will continue to accept
applications from owners of historic buildings for Ohio tax credits
until September 30, 2010. The Ohio Historic Tax Credit Program
provides a tax credit equal to 25% of qualified rehabilitation
expenditures, which generally include construction for the
building's structure and interior that meets the U.S. Secretary of
the Interior's historic rehabilitation standards. The credit
is maxed out at $5,000,000 per project.
To...
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Many executives are curious about cost segregation studies, but
are unsure how they work, or even if their business would benefit
from one.
Basically, a cost segregation study looks at specific components of
your business’ facilities to find which components can be separated
out and depreciated over shorter time periods therefore speeding up
the related tax deductions. The true value of a cost segregation
study is realized by looking at the time value of those tax
deductions - being able to take...
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Based on a recent ruling, taxpayers can now recover the cost of
all newly-installed street light assets more quickly than if they
were classified as land improvements.
The Tax Court recently ruled that street lights may be depreciated
over seven years for federal tax depreciation purposes. This
decision was based on the ruling that typical street light assets,
which include poles, light fixtures, mounting hardware, and bases
that can be relocated, and met the six criteria set forth in
Whiteco...
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Like
many Americans, at one time or another, you’ve probably responded
to a mail-in offer expecting a rebate check in return. Perhaps like
some Americans, you’ve received that check and, for one reason or
another, have left it uncashed. Ever wonder where those unclaimed
funds go?
In
2006, the State of Iowa, joined by 45 other states, instituted an
action against the largest rebate processing company in the country
and three of its largest customers for an amount over $120 million.
This action...
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This issue of
Construction Connections includes the
following articles:
Building Information Modeling - Why
Now?
by Donna L. Cahan, eBlueprint
As one of the most dominant trends impacting the
Construction Industry, Building Information Modeling (BIM) is
frequently discussed and debated among industry
professionals.
While most of us clearly understand the...
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The
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has delayed enforcing its new
Lead-Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting program. The new
program requires contractors to be certified (through lead-safe
training) to perform work that disturbs more than six feet of
lead-based paint in a pre-1978 home, apartment, school, daycare
center, or other facility occupied by a pregnant woman or child
under the age of 6. The final rule implementing the program
originally took effect in April, but will not be...
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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...
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This issue of the Real Estate Monitor includes the
following articles:
What is Deconstruction?
By Joe Rettman & Mark Rabkin, Deconstruction Management,
Inc.
Deconstruction is the comprehensive dismantlement of
building components,...
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Bonding is the lifeblood of any contractor performing work for any
governmental agency, or government-funded project. It is also
becoming a more common requirement for private jobs. However, as
the economy dove headfirst into a recession, the bonding market
tightened. The issue at hand is the nature of bonding. Surety bonds
may not be a secured product, and in the event of a default on the
part of a contractor, the surety companies rarely come out ahead in
the end.
Combine the recession’s effects...
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Advisor Insights
For the past several months, our Real Estate and
Construction Group has been authoring a monthly column in
Builders
Exchange Magazine that offers advice to real estate
and construction professionals.
So far this year, the following topics have been covered:
Keep...
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A Cleveland judge recently fined two South
Carolina real estate companies more than $13 million for their
persistent failure to fix derelict property conditions. This marks
the largest collective fines the court has imposed.
According to this article at Cleveland.com, “The cases involve
major violations at eight properties and less significant ones
at five others. The earliest complaints date to January 2008.
The judge calculated the fines from the number of violations, the
number of days they...
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The
First Time Homebuyer credit has been extended, but not everyone is
eligible to continue to take advantage of this credit. Only buyers
who were under contract prior to the previous deadline of April 30
can take advantage of this extension to close by September 30 and
receive the $8,000 credit.
One of
the main reasons for the extension is that there are a high volume
of short sales under contract but not scheduled to close by June
30th. This is mainly due to short sales requiring seller
side...
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