Construction accounting & bookkeeping built for NYC contractors
Most New York City contractors don't lose money on the build. They lose it afterward: retainage that sits uncollected for months, certified payroll that falls behind, and books that aren't ready when the bank or bonding company asks. Between union labor and prevailing wage on public work, DOB permitting that stalls schedules, and high-rise and gut-renovation jobs running on tight, congested sites, the gap between what you bid and what you actually keep adds up fast. A regular bookkeeper isn't set up for construction. We keep the books for NYC builders the way they should be kept: clean job costing, real WIP schedules, retainage tracked to the dollar, and numbers your bank and bonding company trust. We work with general contractors, high-rise and renovation crews, mechanical trades, and commercial builders across the five boroughs.
On the ground
New York City construction accounting
Our contractor bookkeeping services in New York City keep your financial records accurate, reconciled, and ready for CPA review. We handle the high transaction volumes that come with running multiple projects across the five boroughs simultaneously.
Every construction platform claims to have a "QuickBooks integration." Most break the moment your books need to be accurate. Sales tax mismaps, retainage disappears, change orders create duplicates, and job costing reports stop matching project reality. We fix the integration so your software, your books, and your job‑level numbers all tell the same story.
Also work with Foundation, Sage 100, Bill.com, ADP, Gusto, Ramp, and more. See all platforms we integrate →
NYC construction projects range from multi-story residential towers to commercial office fitouts and mixed-use developments. We build job costing structures that capture costs across multiple phases, floors, and trades so you know exactly where every dollar goes on every project.
Accurate WIP schedules are critical for NYC contractors bidding on large projects and maintaining bonding capacity. We prepare Work in Progress reports that give banks, sureties, and CPAs a clear picture of your project-level financial position at any point in time.
NYC public works projects, city-funded developments, and many affordable housing projects require prevailing wage compliance. We track wage rates set by the NYC Comptroller and NYS DOL, prepare certified payroll reports each pay period, and ensure your records withstand audit scrutiny.
New York City contractors face a layered tax environment including federal income tax, NYS corporate or personal income tax, NYC unincorporated business tax, MTA mobility surcharge, and NYC commercial rent tax for certain office locations. Our construction tax planning services align your accounting with each obligation to minimize liability and prevent surprises at filing time.
NYC construction companies managing multi-million dollar project portfolios need financial leadership beyond basic bookkeeping. Our controller services and CFO services provide the strategic financial oversight that growing contractors need to scale operations, increase bonding capacity, and make informed decisions on bids and project selection.
They didn’t just record transactions and call it a day. They built a custom chart of accounts around how a remodeling company actually runs, did a full catch-up on years of bookkeeping inside QuickBooks Online, and now stay on top of my monthly bookkeeping and payroll. Every step, they broke it down in simple terms instead of burying me in accountant talk.
FinTruction rebuilt the whole thing from the ground up, with real job costing, work in progress, and retainage. They didn’t just hand me reports and disappear; they walked me through my numbers until I understood them.
Sahil and his team handle the bookkeeping and job costing for my painting business. They cleaned up my books and set up integrations that give me accurate, timely job costing with solid weekly data. Reliable, detailed, and genuinely invested in getting the numbers right.
FinTruction is the only bookkeeping team we’ve found that truly understands construction accounting and WIP reporting. They aligned our income and costs across 21 jobs and gave us full, monthly transparency. Fast, accurate, and an indispensable partner.
When I came to FinTruction I had no financial structure. No job costing, no WIP tracking, books behind. They did a full cleanup and rebuilt job costing and WIP tracking in QuickBooks. Now I know what’s billed, what’s owed, and where every job stands.
A couple of minutes from a contractor we support, sharing what working with FinTruction has been like and what changed once their numbers finally made sense.
Construction companies in New York City face a unique combination of regulatory complexity, high project volumes, and aggressive timelines. Standard small-business bookkeeping cannot keep up with the financial demands of NYC construction.
New York City is the largest construction market in the United States. Billions of dollars in construction permits are issued each year across the five boroughs, spanning commercial office towers, luxury residential developments, mixed-use projects, affordable housing, hospital expansions, school construction, and public infrastructure upgrades.
Manhattan remains the epicenter of commercial high-rise construction, with continuous demand for new office space, hotel development, and residential towers. Brooklyn and Queens have seen explosive growth in mixed-use and residential construction, transforming neighborhoods with new developments that require large general contractors and networks of specialty subcontractors. The Bronx and Staten Island continue to see investment in healthcare facilities, schools, and residential projects.
Infrastructure spending in New York City adds another layer of complexity and opportunity. The MTA's capital program funds billions in subway station renovations, signal upgrades, and new rail connections. City agencies invest heavily in bridge rehabilitation, water and sewer infrastructure, park improvements, and street reconstruction. Contractors working on these projects face strict prevailing wage requirements, MWBE participation goals, and detailed certified payroll reporting obligations.
FinTruction understands the financial intensity of operating in this market. Our construction accounting services are designed for NYC contractors who manage multiple active projects across boroughs, coordinate large subcontractor teams, navigate complex billing and change order workflows, and need financial reporting that satisfies lenders, bonding companies, and city agencies.
A general bookkeeper can record transactions. Construction accounting is a different job.
| What you need | Generic local bookkeeper | FinTruction |
|---|---|---|
| Job-level costing | Lumps all jobs into one P&L | Cost codes and margin per project |
| WIP & revenue recognition | Cash-basis, no WIP schedule | Monthly WIP with over/underbilling |
| Retainage tracking | Buried in AR/AP, often missed | Tracked receivable & payable by contract |
| Bonding & lender packages | Not equipped to produce them | Bonding-ready statements and backlog |
| Construction software | QuickBooks set up like a retail shop | QuickBooks + integrations tuned for contractors |
Our construction accounting services in New York City support contractors and specialty trades across every borough. From high-rise general contractors in Manhattan to residential builders in Staten Island, we build financial systems that match the scale and pace of NYC construction.
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NYC Department of Buildings Compliance: The NYC DOB regulates all construction activity in the five boroughs, from permit applications and plan approvals to inspections and certificates of occupancy. Contractors must track DOB fees, violation penalties, and inspection costs at the project level. FinTruction integrates these compliance costs into your job costing system so nothing falls through the cracks.
NYC Unincorporated Business Tax: Sole proprietors, partnerships, and LLCs not electing corporate treatment face a 4 percent NYC unincorporated business tax on net income derived from business activity in the city. Construction contractors must allocate income properly between NYC and non-NYC projects. Our accounting systems track revenue and expenses by project location to support accurate UBT calculations.
Prevailing Wage on City Contracts: All contractors and subcontractors on NYC public works projects must pay prevailing wages as established by the NYC Comptroller's office. Wage rates, benefits, and overtime rules vary by trade classification. Certified payroll reports must be filed each pay period. FinTruction tracks prevailing wage rates and prepares certified payroll documentation that meets NYC compliance standards.
Lien Law Article 3-A Trust Funds: NYC contractors receiving construction payments must treat those funds as trust assets under New York Lien Law Article 3-A. Given the size and volume of NYC projects, maintaining separate trust fund accounting is critical. FinTruction tracks trust fund receipts and disbursements at the project level to protect contractors from personal liability claims.
MWBE Participation Requirements: NYC public construction projects carry Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise participation goals. Prime contractors must document subcontractor payments to certified MWBE firms and submit utilization reports. Our accounting systems tag subcontractor payments by MWBE certification status and generate compliance reports aligned with city agency requirements.
We specialize exclusively in construction accounting and understand the specific demands of operating in New York City.
FinTruction provides construction accounting in New York City that integrates with the project management, payroll, and accounting platforms NYC contractors rely on. We connect your systems to eliminate manual data entry and deliver real-time financial visibility across all active projects.
We configure QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop for New York City construction companies. Our setup includes multi-borough project tracking, NYC-specific tax configurations, retainage management, and progress invoicing workflows that match the billing pace of NYC projects.
Need QuickBooks Setup for Your NYC Construction Business?
NYC contractors use a variety of construction management platforms to handle estimating, project tracking, and field operations. We integrate these tools with your accounting system so financial data flows automatically and accurately.
Our construction accounting services ensure seamless data flow between your field operations and financial reporting systems.
Labor is the single largest cost category for most NYC construction companies. With union and non-union crews, prevailing wage projects, and multi-site labor allocation, payroll accounting in New York City demands precision. We integrate payroll data directly into your job costing system.
With integrated construction accounting systems, NYC contractors gain instant access to the financial data they need to manage projects and grow their business:
FinTruction builds financial systems that help NYC contractors make faster, better-informed decisions.
New York City has its own Department of Buildings with strict permit and compliance requirements, an unincorporated business tax that applies to sole proprietors and partnerships, prevailing wage mandates on city-funded projects, and unique insurance and licensing rules that do not apply elsewhere in New York State. Contractors in NYC need accounting systems that track these city-specific obligations alongside standard job costing and financial reporting.
The NYC unincorporated business tax is a 4 percent tax on net income earned by sole proprietors, partnerships, and LLCs operating in New York City. Construction contractors structured as pass-through entities must file a separate NYC UBT return and pay this tax in addition to federal and state income taxes. Proper expense tracking and job costing help reduce the taxable base.
Yes. Contractors and subcontractors on city-funded public works projects in New York City must pay prevailing wages as set by the NYC Comptroller. This includes base hourly rates, supplemental benefits, and overtime calculations that vary by trade. Certified payroll reports must be submitted each pay period to document compliance.
The NYC Department of Buildings regulates construction permits, inspections, safety requirements, and contractor licensing in all five boroughs. From an accounting perspective, contractors must track DOB permit fees, insurance certificate costs, safety training expenses, and penalty payments as project-level costs. FinTruction builds these tracking categories into your job costing system so nothing is missed.
High-rise projects involve extended timelines, large subcontractor networks, complex change order management, and significant retainage balances. We set up multi-phase job costing structures, track retainage at the contract and subcontract level, manage AIA billing schedules, and prepare WIP reports that satisfy bonding companies and lenders reviewing large-scale project financials.
Yes. New York Lien Law Article 3-A applies to all contractors in New York City who receive construction payments. We maintain separate trust fund tracking at the project level, document all disbursements from trust funds, and ensure your records demonstrate compliance if audited. This is especially critical in NYC where the volume and value of projects increase exposure to trust fund violations.
FinTruction serves construction companies across all five boroughs of New York City including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Our services are fully remote, so we work with contractors regardless of which borough their office or projects are located in.
New York City has a combined state and local sales tax rate of 8.875 percent on taxable purchases. Construction materials are generally taxable unless purchased for a qualifying capital improvement or government contract. We track taxable and exempt material purchases within your job costing system and maintain proper exemption certificates to reduce audit risk.
Yes. We work with contractors involved in MTA subway station renovations, bridge rehabilitation, water and sewer infrastructure, and other public works projects in New York City. These projects require prevailing wage compliance, certified payroll reporting, MWBE tracking, and detailed job costing that our accounting systems are built to handle.
Most NYC contractor onboardings are completed within two to four weeks. We assess your current accounting setup, clean or restructure your chart of accounts, configure job costing for active projects, set up retainage tracking, and establish monthly reporting workflows. We handle the transition with minimal disruption to your billing and payment cycles.
FinTruction provides construction accounting services across major cities in New York. Select your city below to learn more about our contractor bookkeeping and job costing services in your area.
We also run day-to-day construction bookkeeping for NYC contractors: reconciliations, AP/AR, and job-cost coding every month.
Construction Bookkeeping in New York City
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If you are searching for construction accounting in New York City, contractor bookkeeping services, prevailing wage compliance support, or job costing for high-rise projects, FinTruction is ready to help your construction business gain financial clarity and profitability control across all five boroughs.
Looking for professional construction accounting in New York City? Fill out the short form below and our contractor bookkeeping team will contact you within 24 hours.
