How to Prepare for 2026 Bidding Season Without Burning Out Your Team
Every contractor knows the cycle — quiet months turn hectic overnight once bid requests start rolling in. The 2026 bidding season will be no different, but this year, higher material costs, tighter margins, and new compliance requirements in Maryland and Virginia will make preparation even more critical.
Whether you run an HVAC, construction, or landscaping business, planning ahead now can help you win more bids and protect your team’s sanity in the process.
1. Review Last Year’s Projects and Profit Margins
Before diving into new opportunities, look backward. Pull financials from your 2025 projects and examine which jobs were truly profitable after overhead and labor.
Ask yourself:
- Were material markups consistent across projects?
- Did change orders eat into your profit?
- Were there hidden costs like overtime, rental equipment, or late fees?
A CPA experienced with contractor accounting can help you spot red flags you might miss — like underbilled hours or untracked travel costs — that quietly reduce profit margins. Once you identify these weak points, you can price smarter this season.
2. Update Your Job Costing System
Accurate job costing is the foundation of a solid bid. Yet many DMV contractors still rely on outdated spreadsheets or generic accounting software.
This year, invest in software tailored for construction or field services that tracks:
- Labor hours and crew efficiency
- Material orders and delivery timing
- Equipment usage
- Subcontractor invoices
When you know your true costs in real time, you can bid competitively without guessing — and avoid the financial stress of underpricing.
3. Build a Prequalification Checklist
Not every bid deserves your time. Before going after every opportunity, evaluate whether the project fits your capacity, expertise, and financial bandwidth.
Your prequalification checklist should include:
- Project scope: Is it realistic for your team size?
- Timeline: Do you have crew availability to meet deadlines?
- Payment reliability: Have you vetted the client or GC’s payment history?
- Cash flow requirements: Can you fund materials and payroll before payments start coming in?
Turning down low-margin or high-risk bids protects your bottom line — and your crew’s morale.
4. Strengthen Your Financial Cushion
Even winning bids can strain cash flow, especially when payments are delayed. Before you start chasing contracts, build a financial buffer to cover 2–3 months of expenses.
This could include:
- A line of credit to bridge slow pay cycles
- Reviewing accounts receivable to collect past-due invoices
- Setting up job-specific budgets with weekly reviews
If your margins were tight in 2025, your CPA can help you explore better tax planning, entity restructuring, or cost segregation to free up working capital.
5. Invest in Crew Efficiency, Not Just Headcount
Burnout often comes from overloading your top people while juggling new bids. Instead of hiring reactively, focus on improving your existing team’s productivity.
Try these strategies:
- Cross-train crew members to handle multiple tasks
- Incentivize quality and efficiency with performance bonuses
- Outsource administrative or accounting work so your project managers can focus on operations
This way, your team enters bidding season motivated, not exhausted.
6. Don’t Wait Until January to Talk to Your CPA
Too many contractors call their CPA after the year’s over — when it’s too late to fix mistakes or optimize deductions. Schedule a pre-season planning meeting now.
Discuss:
- Equipment purchases you can time for tax advantages
- How to manage 2025 profits before filing season
- What to change in your bookkeeping for better project tracking
Proactive planning now means fewer surprises when bids turn into actual contracts.
Final Thoughts
Strong bids start with smart numbers.
Talk to Shahbaz & Associates CPAs to prepare your books, your bids, and your team for a profitable 2026.