When it comes to business taxes and bookkeeping, there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

Different industries have special nuances.

In Florida, for example, folks in the construction field are busy practicing their craft year-round due to our balmy weather. It's fast-paced, and always the right time for framing houses, renovating an office building or adding some masonry features to a space. But people who work in construction - whether architects, engineers, consultants, carpenters, electricians, installers or project managers - have special considerations when it comes to their business accounting.

Done correctly, these considerations offer a construction-company owner a true picture of the health of their business. The importance of this cannot be overstated; an accurate, overall assessment is needed for future decisions, after all.

Figuring the cost of goods sold, for example, can get tricky. Inventory for a building company consists of lots, houses and materials such as insulation, girders and joists. An experienced accountant will know how to move inventory from a balance sheet to a profit-and-loss statement.

In building, it's not unusual to have multiple vendors, contracts and invoicing at play, along with use of equipment of vehicles that may or may not be owned by the company. Even with all this going on, an experienced accountant will give construction clients their profit margins with the overhead already factored in, as it should be.

A skilled accountant can figure out an administrative fee that will adequately cover overhead for construction companies. Otherwise, how do you really know if you're making money?

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