Real Estate Investors & Developers Bookkeeping in Texas

Beyond sales tax, Texas imposes the Franchise Tax. Calculated on taxable margin rather than on profit, with a no-tax-due revenue threshold that is adjusted periodically. Even below the threshold there is generally an annual report to file, and missing it puts the entity out of good standing with the Secretary of State. That sits alongside registration with the Texas Secretary of State, and it is the obligation most often missed by businesses who concluded from the absence of a sales tax that Texas asks nothing of them. It is accrued as it builds rather than discovered at year end.

Texas is one of thirteen states with no real estate transfer or deed tax, so a closing here carries fewer line items to classify than in most states. Recording fees and title charges still need a consistent capitalize-versus-expense treatment, and that consistency across years is what actually matters.

The Texas statewide base rate is 6.25%. That sits mid-table nationally, with local rates layered on top and sourced to the delivery address rather than to your own location. Sourcing is where this is won or lost, and with economic nexus set at $500,000 in sales, it becomes your problem the moment that threshold is crossed.

Registering to do business in Texas runs through the Texas Secretary of State, with tax accounts through the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts and employer accounts through the Texas Workforce Commission. Texas treats these as wholly independent, so being in good standing with one says nothing about the others — and the sales tax account is the one that accrues a real balance while you are not looking.