What We Deliver
Every business faces different challenges. Here's how we've helped our clients solve theirs.
General Contractor Bidding Blind and Leaving Money on the Table
The Problem
A general contractor with a growing crew was winning jobs consistently but couldn't figure out why the bank account never reflected the work volume. He bid projects based on experience and gut feel. All expenses were lumped together with no way to know which jobs made money and which ones drained it.
Tax time was a scramble every year. His previous preparer filed returns based on whatever receipts he could gather, and he suspected he was missing deductions he was entitled to.
What We Did
We set up job costing in QuickBooks so every material purchase, subcontractor payment, and labor hour tied to a specific project. We cleaned up two years of books and categorized expenses properly to establish a baseline.
We also implemented year-round tax planning rather than waiting until April. We identified deductions he had been missing, including vehicle use, equipment depreciation, and home office expenses for his back-office work.
The Result
Within three months, he could see that residential remodels were his most profitable work while small handyman jobs barely broke even after accounting for drive time and setup. He adjusted his bidding and stopped taking on work that looked busy but didn't pay.
His tax bill dropped significantly the following year. Not because of any aggressive strategy, but because we captured deductions he had been leaving on the table for years. He now reviews job profitability with us quarterly and makes pricing decisions based on actual data rather than guesswork.
Restaurant Owner Dreading Every Tax Season
The Problem
A restaurant owner in Boise was working seventy-hour weeks keeping the kitchen running but ignoring the back office. Tip reporting was inconsistent, food costs were unknown, and every April meant a last-minute scramble to get something to the CPA.
She suspected she owed less than she paid but had no way to prove it. The books were always a year behind.
What We Did
We caught up the bookkeeping backlog and set up proper tip tracking and payroll compliance. We separated food costs, labor, and overhead so she could finally see where the money was going.
We took over monthly bookkeeping and implemented a quarterly review to discuss the numbers and plan for tax liabilities before they became surprises.
The Result
Her food cost percentage was running higher than industry average because she hadn't adjusted menu prices in two years while suppliers raised theirs multiple times. Once she could see the numbers, she updated pricing on her lowest-margin items.
Tax season stopped being a crisis. Her CPA received clean, organized books with time to spare. We also identified several tax credits she had never claimed, including the Work Opportunity Tax Credit for employees she had hired. She now understands her numbers monthly instead of discovering problems a year later.
Real Estate Investor Flying Blind Across Eight Properties
The Problem
A real estate investor owned eight rental properties but tracked everything in a single checking account mixed with personal spending. He had no idea which properties were cash-flow positive after repairs, management fees, and mortgage payments.
His lender was asking for accurate financials before approving a loan for his next acquisition, and he couldn't produce them.
What We Did
We separated his finances completely and set up class tracking in QuickBooks so every expense, rent payment, and repair bill tied to a specific property address. We reconciled two years of transactions and produced proper financial statements.
We also reviewed his tax situation and found he hadn't been taking full advantage of depreciation and had missed deductions on travel to manage his out-of-area properties.
The Result
Two properties turned out to be consistent money losers once repairs were properly allocated. He sold one and raised rent on the other to market rate.
The lender approved his financing within two weeks of receiving the cleaned-up financials. He closed on a duplex the following month. His tax bill dropped the next year through proper depreciation scheduling and deductions he had missed for years. He now evaluates new purchases using real numbers from his portfolio instead of back-of-napkin math.
Manufacturing Shop with Inventory They Couldn't Trust
The Problem
A small manufacturing shop had grown from a garage operation to a real production facility, but the accounting hadn't kept up. Inventory was tracked on a whiteboard. Cost of goods sold was calculated once a year when the CPA needed it for taxes.
The owner was pricing jobs based on old assumptions about material costs that no longer reflected reality. He thought he was making money, but margins felt thinner every year.
What We Did
We implemented proper inventory accounting in QuickBooks with regular physical counts reconciled to the books. We set up cost of goods sold tracking so every job reflected actual material usage.
We also reviewed his pricing against his real costs and showed him where margins had eroded due to material price increases he hadn't passed on to customers.
The Result
His actual cost of goods sold was twelve percent higher than he had been estimating. He raised prices on standard products and started quoting custom work more accurately.
His year-end tax filing was faster and cleaner because inventory was already reconciled. He also discovered he could take advantage of the Section 199A deduction for manufacturing income, which his previous preparer had missed. The combination of better pricing and proper tax treatment added meaningful dollars to his bottom line.
Trucking Company Drowning in Multi-State Complexity
The Problem
A small trucking company was struggling with the tax complexity of operating in multiple jurisdictions. IFTA filings were always late. The owner wasn't sure if he was calculating fuel tax correctly, and he had never done a proper nexus analysis to understand his state tax obligations.
His drivers were owner-operators, and he wasn't confident the 1099 arrangements were set up correctly.
What We Did
We took over the IFTA filings and set up a system to track fuel purchases and mileage by state. We conducted a nexus analysis and registered the company in states where it had filing obligations it had been ignoring.
We reviewed the owner-operator arrangements and corrected the 1099 process to ensure proper classification and documentation.
The Result
The company went from chronically late and stressed about compliance to filing on time every quarter. We caught an overpayment on fuel tax that resulted in a credit the following period.
We also identified per diem deductions and equipment depreciation strategies the owner had never utilized. His tax bill dropped meaningfully the first year, and the ongoing compliance work now runs smoothly instead of being a source of constant worry. When an IRS notice arrived about a prior year filing, our Enrolled Agents handled it directly and resolved it without penalties.
Consultant Who Outgrew Her Sole Proprietorship
The Problem
A consultant had started a side business that grew faster than expected. She was still operating as a sole proprietor, paying self-employment tax on every dollar earned, and running business transactions through her personal checking account.
She knew she needed to get organized but wasn't sure where to start or what entity structure made sense for her situation.
What We Did
We analyzed her income, expenses, and growth trajectory. We recommended an S-Corp election and walked her through what that meant for payroll, tax filings, and quarterly obligations.
We set up QuickBooks, opened a dedicated business checking account, and established a reasonable salary so she would save on self-employment taxes without triggering IRS scrutiny.
The Result
Her self-employment tax burden dropped by several thousand dollars the first year simply by restructuring. The S-Corp election paid for itself many times over.
More importantly, she now has clean books from the start and understands her numbers monthly. When she hired her first contractor six months later, the system was already in place to handle it properly. She went from anxious about finances to confident about the foundation of her business.
The Treasure Valley's Tax and Accounting Team
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