IRS Increases Standard Business-Use Mileage Rate
If you’re like many residential construction professionals, you use a personal car, truck, or van for business use.

Some people find it easier to record the miles they drive for business and then use the Internal Revenue Service’s standard mileage rates to figure the business vehicle-usage deduction for their tax returns. Others prefer to track and tally actual business vehicle expenses like fuel, tolls, maintenance, insurance, etc, to calculate the vehicle-usage deduction. 

Here’s something you may not know: The first year a car you own is available for business use, you must use the standard mileage rate to calculate your business vehicle-usage deduction. In later years, you can use the standard mileage rate or actual vehicle expenses. If you decide to use the standard mileage rate for a car you lease, you must use it for the entire lease period.

On November 17, 2004, the IRS released the optional standard mileage rates to use for 2005 in computing the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical, or moving expense purposes.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2005, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (including vans, pickups, or panel trucks) will be:

• 40.5 cents a mile for all business miles driven, up from 37.5 cents a mile in 2004;
• 15 cents a mile when computing deductible medical or moving expenses, up from 14 cents a mile in 2004; and
• 14 cents a mile when giving services to a charitable organization.

The three-cent increase in the business mileage rate was the largest one-year rise ever. The primary reasons were higher prices for vehicles and fuel during the year ending in September 2004. The charitable standard mileage rate is set by law.
 
The standard mileage rates for business, medical, and moving purposes are based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. An independent contractor, Runzheimer International, conducted the study for the IRS.
 
A taxpayer may not use the business standard mileage rate for a vehicle after using any depreciation method under the Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System (MACRS), after claiming a Section 179 deduction for that vehicle, for any vehicle used for hire, or for more than four vehicles used simultaneously.
 
For more information on standard mileage rates and other tax issues, visit the IRS Web site: www.irs.gov.

Get your business in order with the PRO Builder Business Plan Guide, which features step-by-step exercises that walk you through the process of developing your own business plan. It offers a specialized tool not found anywhere else—an electronic spreadsheet on a CD for developing the financial section of your plan. Before you know it, you’ll be well on your way to increased profitability and smoother operations. Call 1-800-223-2665 or visit www.builderbooks.com to order this book now.

Become the Ritz-Carlton of Builders
The Ritz-Carlton’s fine-toothed focus on customer service is what draws consumers to the company’s luxury hotels and resorts and keeps them coming back—to the tune of $100,000 per guest over the guest’s lifetime.

You can earn the Ritz-Carlton’s type of brand loyalty, too, whether you build entry-level or high-end homes. Select this link to learn some customer service-focused business strategies from the 2004 Custom Builder Symposium. [return to top]

Does Your Business Measure Up?
Get your copy of the 2004 Cost of Doing Business Study and you’ll instantly see how your financial performance stacks up against the rest of the industry. The publication gives home builders a rare glimpse at other builders’ books by providing data about profitability, cost of sales, and expenses from hundreds of home builders across the country.
 
In this 2004 edition, you’ll learn how to develop cost control systems and get tips on cutting cycle time. Start working more profitably by ordering it today.
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Your Guide to Business Management Resources from NAHB
When you need guidance on business management issues, turn to NAHB’s Business Management Resources. Whether you need a little help with QuickBooks®, want to download the NAHB Chart of Accounts, want to learn how to get your own copy of a “must-have” publication like the Residential Construction Performance Guidelines, or want information on educational sessions on critical management reports, diversification, or customer service, you’re bound to find a resource that can help.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could look at all these resources in one place?  Well, at the 2005 International Builders’ Show, you can. Just pick up a copy of the Business Management Trek. Look for it in Business Management Education Sessions or at the BuilderBooks.com Store located in C Hall Lobby, West Building.  Not going to IBS, or want these business management resources now? Print out your own copy of the Business Management Trek at: http://www.nahb.org/generic.aspx?genericContentID=33631.
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Struggling with IT and Software Issues?
NAHB’s Business Management & IT Committee started hearing from builders about the need for resources and information on selecting software to help them run their businesses more efficiently. To address this need, the committee created Builder Technology Forums.

Brand-new at the 2005 International Builders’ Show, these forums are moderated panels of builders and software vendors who’ll give you the low-down on what you need to know about selecting software solutions for your home building company. These are not sales presentations.

“This is a great opportunity to hear from everyone—people who produce and sell business software and builders who use it—about what works and what doesn’t,” says John Barrows, a custom builder in Wainscott, NY who helped plan the forums. Panelists will tell you about pitfalls to avoid and the best way to use technology to increase your profits.

The three Builder Technology Forums at the 2005 International Builders’ Show will cover these software areas:

• Financial Control (Job Costing & Purchasing) Software
• Project Management Software
• Sales Automation Software

For a schedule of Builder Technology Forums at the 2005 International Builders’ Show, go to http://www.nahb.org/techforum.
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Get a Piece of a Booming Market
You won't want to miss “Designing for the Active Adult,” a newly developed education course NAHB’s Seniors Housing Council is sponsoring at the 2005 International Builders' Show. Realizing that by 2010, there will be 100 million people aged 50 and older in the United States, many builders are looking at ways to increase their business by designing homes and communities to better meet the needs of this growing market.

You can get ahead of the game by signing up for this one-day overview of design considerations for active-adult single- and multifamily housing on Wednesday, January 12 at the Orange County Convention Center. The cost is $150 for Seniors Housing Council members, $175 for NAHB members, and $225 for non-members. The course earns you continuing education credits toward your CAPS, CGA, CGB, CGR, GMB, MIRM, or CMP professional designation. Register by calling 800-368-5242, x8338 or by going online at www.nahb.org/preIBS. To schedule the course at your local HBA, contact Tara Occhipinti at 800-368-5242, x8153.
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Kick Your Sales Into High Gear
Don’t miss the “Sales Management Summit,” a must-attend educational session at the 2005 International Builders’ Show. It takes place Friday, January 14, 2005 from 1:00 to  5:30 p.m. in the Linda W. Chapin Auditorium (Room 320) in the Orange County Convention Center,

Join the best and brightest in a fast-paced, hard-hitting summit on sales management. Take away specific ideas to improve performance and profitability. This high-energy session features 40 inside strategies from sales management experts. Developed for builders and new-home sales professionals, it’s co-presented by NAHB’s National Sales and Marketing Council and the Business Management & Information Technology Committee.
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IBS Registration and Housing Deadline Is December 17th!
Save money and beat the crowds—Register at http://www.BuildersShow.com/Register today!

The FINAL Advance Registration and Housing deadline for the 2005 International Builders’ Show is December 17, 2004!

If you register before this date you will:

• Save $25 off on-site registration fees.
• Have access to discounted hotel rates through the NAHB Housing Block.
• Receive your registration credentials in the mail before you leave for the Show!
• Breeze right onto the show floor!
  

Member Advantage: Discounts from Viking
With Viking Office Products, NAHB members receive an additional 10% discount on office products already discounted up to 69%. Other advantages include fast overnight delivery, same-day delivery in major cities nationwide, free delivery on orders as small as $25 (continental U.S. only), one-year guarantee on everything, complete delivery (virtually no backorders), and friendly, courteous, sales representatives.
 
Call 800-421-1222, fax 800-762-7329 or click on www.vikingoffice.com. Mention code “HB” or enter in the promo field online to get your extra 10% member discount.

For the most up-to-date details on the Member Advantage discount program and all of the participating companies, go to http://memberadvantage.nahb.org. Or visit www.nahb.org to explore the full range of benefits associated with membership in your local, state, and national home builders associations.
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