Hospitality industry
Tax and advisory for hotels, resorts, and food & beverage groups
A hospitality-industry CPA works with hotels, resorts, restaurants, and event venues to file occupancy and lodging taxes, prepare USALI departmental statements, complete cost segregation studies, and structure ownership and management agreements.
What the specialist does
What a hospitality industry specialist actually handles
- Annual hospitality tax planning and entity structuring
- USALI departmental statements and owner reporting
- Cost segregation and bonus depreciation studies
- Occupancy, lodging, and tourism assessment compliance
- Franchise, royalty, and management-agreement accounting
Common tax issues
Tax issues this specialist handles every year
Generic firms miss most of these. A specialist surfaces them in planning conversations, not on the next IRS notice.
Cost segregation and bonus depreciation
Most hotels haven't been studied — meaningful 5-, 7-, and 15-year property is sitting in 39-year buckets.
Opportunity Zone hospitality investments
Hotels in QOZs can defer and reduce capital gains with the right structuring.
Section 163(j) interest expense limits
Hospitality groups with significant debt should annually evaluate the real-property trade or business election.
Sales, occupancy, and food & beverage tax audits
Hospitality is one of the most audited industries — proper reconciliations and exemption certificates matter.
Tip credit and service-charge classification
Misclassification triggers DOL and IRS exposure simultaneously.
Bookkeeping requirements
- USALI-aligned chart of accounts
- Departmental allocations and consolidations
- FF&E reserve and capital improvement tracking
- Manager fee and incentive accruals
- Inter-property transfers and shared services
Payroll issues
- Multi-state and multi-property labor reporting
- Union and prevailing-wage compliance where applicable
- Service charge vs tip pay structures
- Workers' comp by class (housekeeping, kitchen, banquet)
- ACA and benefits compliance
Software used
The tools a real specialist works in
Pricing ranges
What you should expect to pay
Real market ranges from active engagements. Fees scale with complexity, location, and firm size.
Tax-only engagement
$3,500–$25,000/yr
Entity returns, owner K-1s, planning meetings.
Outsourced accounting
$3,000–$15,000/mo
Full back-office with USALI reporting.
Cost segregation study
$8,000–$30,000
Engineering-based; results often 8–15x ROI in year 1.
Advisory hourly
$275–$550/hr
Deal structuring, refinancing, owner transitions.
Featured professionals
CPA for the hospitality industry — vetted pros accepting new clients
Verified specialists appear here as profiles are claimed and reviewed in United States.
Questions to ask
- What's your hospitality client roster — branded, independent, or both?
- Have you completed cost segregation studies in our market?
- How do you handle franchise audits and brand reporting?
- Can you help us model a refinance or sale?
- Do you have a network of hospitality attorneys and lenders?
Red flags
- !Generalist firm with one or two hotel clients
- !Never produced a USALI departmental statement
- !No cost-seg or bonus-depreciation experience
- !Doesn't understand FF&E reserves or PIP capitalization
- !Slow to respond during peak season (a hospitality dealbreaker)
Local provider links
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FAQ
About cpa for the hospitality industry
What's the difference between a hospitality CPA and a restaurant CPA?+
Hospitality CPAs work across hotels, resorts, and F&B; restaurant CPAs focus on standalone food and beverage operations. Many CPAs do both, but make sure your firm's lead engagement partner has direct experience in your segment.
Do I need a hospitality CPA if I only own one boutique hotel?+
Yes — cost segregation, occupancy tax, and PMS reconciliation alone usually justify a specialist. The fee delta is small vs the tax savings.
Can hospitality CPAs help with refinancing or selling?+
Yes. Experienced firms provide trailing twelve-month USALI packages, deal-quality of earnings, and owner-level tax modeling for refis and sales.
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