Accounting for general contractors and home builders
Builders deal with tax rules most contractors never see: HST on the sale of a new home, HST after a major renovation, and rebates on rental buildings. ARC CPA handles them for builders and general contractors across Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI.
Builders have rules nobody else has
A trades company has its books and its CRA filings. A builder has those, plus the tax rules that come with selling and renting property. The first sale of a new home carries HST. So can the sale of a home after a major renovation. And a building put up to rent comes with its own HST rules and rebates.
Get it right and there is money to recover. Get it wrong and the HST bill lands on you.
Where the money sits
HST on new builds
The first sale of a new residential build carries HST, and the rebates that go with it have to be handled properly.
Major renovations
Renovate enough of a home and its sale can carry HST as if it were new. Where that line sits is not obvious.
Building to rent
Rent out a building you built and you can owe HST on it as if you had sold it to yourself. The rental housing rebate can bring most or all of it back.
The rental housing rebateJob costing on every build
Labour, materials and subcontractors tied to each build, so you know what each one made.
“Working with Clem at ARC has been an absolute game changer for our business. Their team is incredibly hardworking, efficient, and always available whenever we need support or answers.”
Trent Scarfe & Sarah HaydenYour questions, answered.
Do you work with general contractors?
Yes. They take more setting up than a trades company, but we work with them and would take on more.
I am building an apartment building to rent. Is there an HST rebate?
Possibly a large one. The rental housing rebate.
Building homes or rental units?
Tell us what you build and how the books are kept today. We will come back to you and set up a call.
- 01
You send us a note
A couple of lines about the business and what you are dealing with is plenty.
- 02
We come back to you
Usually with a question or two, so the call is not spent on the basics.
- 03
We set up a call
A proper conversation about how the business runs and what your accounting actually needs.
- 04
You get a plan
What we would look after, how it would run month to month, and twelve months of pricing set out up front.
Send us a message
More for contractors
Behind on HST
Late HST returns, a CRA letter, books months behind. Caught up, then kept current.
Read moreStatements for the bank
Statements prepared by a CPA firm, the kind lenders ask for before a loan or a line of credit.
Read moreStarting a construction company
HST, payroll remittances, invoices, receipts and workers comp set up right from the start.
Read moreRental housing rebate
The HST on a new apartment building of ten units or more can come back.
Read more