See Which
Contracts
Actually Make You Money
Overall turnover tells you almost nothing about which jobs are profitable and which are quietly losing money on labour, materials, or subcontractor overruns. Our contract-level job costing systems track every cost against every job in real time, so you price your next tender on data, not guesswork.
- Contract-Level Profitability Specialists
- Margin Tracking
£3.1m+
CIS Recovered
100 %
HMRC & MTD Ready
50+
Five-Star Reviews
Construction
Tax EXPERTS
Fixed Fee
No hidden charges
HMRC Compliance
Who We Are
Accountants who track profit contract by contract, not just year by year
Construction businesses run multiple jobs simultaneously, each with its own labour, materials, plant, and subcontractor spend, but most bookkeeping lumps everything into a single ledger. We build job-costing systems structured by contract and subcontractor from the outset, so margin erosion is visible while a job is still live, not months later at final account.
Job costing structured by contract, phase, and cost type
Real-time margin visibility, not just year-end reporting
Tendering on Real Data
Price your next job using what the last one actually cost
Businesses without contract-level costing routinely tender based on estimated margins that bear little relation to what similar jobs actually delivered. Once your job costing is properly structured, every completed contract becomes a benchmark for the next tender, letting you price competitively without guessing at your own margin.
We build reporting that compares estimated versus actual cost by category on every closed job, so your next quote reflects real historical performance rather than assumption.
100%
CIS Compliance Rate
Contract-Level Margin Tracking
Know your true margin on every live job
A contract that looks profitable on invoiced value can be losing money once labour overruns, plant hire, and subcontractor costs are properly allocated against it. We set up your cloud accounting software so every cost — labour, materials, plant, and subcontractor spend — is tagged to the specific contract it belongs to, giving you an accurate margin figure while the job is still running, not after it’s too late to act.
Cost allocation across labour, materials, plant & subcontractors
Margin alerts before final account, while corrective action is still possible
Common Pain Points
Why Construction Businesses Lose Sight of Contract Profitability
Without proper job costing, profitable-looking turnover can hide loss-making contracts until it’s too late.
No Visibility Until Final Account
Many businesses only discover a contract lost money once it’s finished, when nothing can be done to recover the margin.
Costs Lumped Into a Single Ledger
Without contract-level tagging, labour and material costs across multiple live jobs blur together, making it impossible to isolate which job is underperforming.
Subcontractor Overspend Going Unnoticed
Subcontractor costs on a specific job can run over budget for months without anyone flagging it against that contract’s original estimate.
Tendering Based on Guesswork
Trades juggling site work and admin often fall behind on invoicing and expense records, leading to rushed, inaccurate year-end returns.
Plant and Equipment Costs Not Allocated Correctly
Shared plant used across multiple sites is often expensed generally rather than split proportionally across the jobs it actually served.
Missed Gross Payment Status Opportunity
Established trades that have grown past the turnover threshold often haven’t applied for gross payment status, leaving 20% deducted unnecessarily every month
Free Consultation
Let’s talk about your construction accounting challenges
Book a 30-minute call with our specialist accountant for construction business. We’ll look at how your business is set up and flag quick wins you can act on straight away.
- CIS and VAT reverse charge handled correctly
- Deep expertise in contractor, subcontractor tax rules
- Forward-looking advice, not just year-end filing
- Transparent fixed fees, no surprises
Our Services
Complete Job Costing and Profitability Reporting
We build the systems that show you exactly where your margin is made and lost.
Job-Costing System Setup
We structure your cloud accounting software by contract, tracking labour, materials, plant, and subcontractor costs against each job individually.
Real-Time Margin Reporting
We provide ongoing visibility into contract profitability while jobs are live, not just at completion.
Estimated vs Actual Cost Analysis
We compare original budgets against actual spend by category, flagging overruns as they happen.
Subcontractor Cost Tracking
We monitor subcontractor spend against budget on every contract to catch overruns before they erode margin.
Tender Pricing Support
We use historical contract data to help you price new tenders based on evidence rather than estimate.
Multi-Contract Dashboard Reporting
We consolidate performance across all live contracts into a single, clear view for management decision-making.
Switching Accountants, Step by Step
Four stages from enquiry to full onboarding
Moving to a new accountant mid-contract feels risky, so we have built a process designed to protect your CIS records, VAT position and ongoing site work throughout.
Initial Consultation
A free 30-minute call to walk through your current contracts, subcontractor arrangements and any outstanding CIS or VAT issues.
Custom Fee Proposal
Within 48 hours, you receive a fixed-fee proposal built around your actual contract volume and subcontractor headcount, not a generic package.
Coordinated Transition
We contact your current accountant directly to transfer CIS records, VAT history and working papers without any gaps in compliance.
Continued Support
Once onboarded, our accountant remains your single point of contact for every contract, HMRC query and financial decision going forward.
Client Stories
Real feedback from real construction businesses
Over 60 verified five-star reviews from subcontractors, contractors and developers across the UK.
★★★★★
“I’d been under-claiming CIS repayments for two years without realising it. They found and recovered £14,000 within weeks of taking us on. Nobody had ever explained the scheme to me this clearly before.”
★★★★★
“We had no real idea which contracts were making money until they built us a proper job-costing system. Now we price the next tender based on actual data, not guesswork.”
★★★★★
“Every site brings its own VAT and SDLT questions, and they have never once been slow to answer. Switching from our old firm was the easiest financial decision we have made in years.”
Why Choose US
Why choose Construction Tax Accountants
Dedicated Accountant
Your dedicated accountant already knows your subcontractor list, your live contracts and your VAT position, so every call picks up exactly where the last one left off.
ACCA Qualified Team
Registered as Chartered Certified Accountants, providing you with expert advice you can rely on and trust completely.
Transparent Fees
You will never receive an unexpected invoice. All fees are fixed, all-inclusive and agreed upfront, with no hourly rates and no extra charges for additional advice or HMRC queries.
Repayments Chased, Not Just Filed
We do not wait for HMRC to process your CIS repayment in its own time. We track every claim and follow up until it is paid.
Cloud Systems Built for Site-Based Businesses
We work across Xero, QuickBooks and FreeAgent, integrated with CIS and job-costing tools so your figures are accurate whether you are in the office or on site.
Beyond the Numbers
We connect clients with invoice-finance providers, contractor-insurance brokers and CITB levy specialists as part of the relationship, not as an upsell.
FAQS
Commonly Asked Accounting Questions about
Job Costing & Contract Profitability
What is contract-level job costing?
Why does overall turnover not tell me if I'm profitable?
Turnover shows total invoiced value but says nothing about the cost incurred to deliver each job; a high-turnover contract can still be loss-making once true costs are allocated correctly.
How often will I see margin data on live contracts?
As often as your accounting data is updated — most clients get real-time or weekly visibility rather than waiting until the job closes.
Can job costing help with pricing future tenders?
Yes. Historical contract data on actual versus estimated cost is one of the most reliable inputs for pricing new tenders accurately.
Is job costing only useful for large contractors?
No. Even a single subcontractor juggling two or three jobs simultaneously benefits from knowing which one is actually profitable.
Why choose Construction Tax Accountants for job costing?
We build job-costing systems exclusively for construction businesses, so the cost categories and reporting structure reflect how contracts in this industry are genuinely priced and paid.
Still have questions?
Our construction accountants are ready to answer any questions about your specific tax situation with no obligation for an initial conversation.
- Mon–Fri, 9am–5:30pm