Generic bookkeeping categorizes a contractor's transactions and stops there; trade businesses need more, and this guide is written by a licensed Florida CPA (#AC62625) who does the monthly books and the year-end return. Job costing ties every cost — materials, subcontractors, and labor — to the job that incurred it, including labor burden (a $25/hour worker costs $33-$38 once payroll taxes, workers' comp, and benefits are loaded in) and overhead allocation, so per-job profitability is real instead of a company-wide guess. Getting paid correctly means tracking work-in-progress (overbilled vs underbilled), booking retainage (the 5-10% a customer holds until sign-off) as its own receivable, and posting progress draws against contract value. Worker classification — 1099 subcontractor vs W-2 employee — turns on control, not preference: collect a W-9 before the first check, track payments all year, and file the 1099-NEC on time. Equipment depreciation (Section 179, bonus, standard, or standard mileage) is a five-figure tax decision that has to be made before year-end, while you still have options. Once net profit clears roughly $80,000-$150,000, an S-Corp election usually becomes the biggest tax lever, splitting profit into a reasonable salary and distributions to cut the 15.3% self-employment tax. Monthly CPA-managed bookkeeping starts at $500/month flat with year-round tax planning included and the bookkeeping software built in-house — no separate QuickBooks subscription.