Accounting for Land Investors 2025
The $12,500 Mistake That Nearly Cost Me My Business
When my first CPA tried to book my land sale profits all in year one, I knew something was off. My accounting degree told me there had to be an installment method for deals like this, and there was.
The problem? Most CPAs don’t use it. They default to what they know: cash or accrual accounting. Neither fits the land business. And if you follow their lead, you’ll get hammered on taxes.
Let Me Show You the Pain
You sell a property for $20,000 on terms.
- You bought it for $5,000
- You sell it with $500 down, $325/month for 60 months
- That’s a $15,000 profit — spread over five years
But your CPA treats the full $15,000 as income this year. Now multiply that:
- Five deals × $15,000 profit = $75,000 in reported income
- At a 25% tax rate = $18,750 owed
- But what have you actually collected?
- $2,500 total (just the down payments: 5 × $500) – okay, slight more because of some monthly payments.
You’re paying taxes on money you haven’t received. That’s not a bookkeeping error. That’s a business-killer.
Why Does This Happen?
Because most CPAs don’t specialize in land. They overlook the IRS-approved installment method, even though it’s been around for decades.
This isn’t a loophole. It’s tax law. They just don’t apply it. And when they get it wrong, you’re the one writing the check.
The Good News?
There’s a simple fix, and it’s 100% IRS-approved. The installment method lets you pay taxes only as you receive payments. No more phantom profit. No more writing checks with money you haven’t collected. That’s why I built Accounting for Land Investors.
It’s the exact system I use to manage thousands of land deals, and the one I wish I had before I nearly wrecked my business.
The Wake-Up Call That Cost Nearly $100,000
Years ago, when Mark Podolsky, The Land Geek, had just started his business, he had just wrapped a strong year. Ton’s of deals. Solid margins. Predictable cash flow from his note portfolio.
Then his CPA dropped the bomb: “You owe nearly six figures in taxes.”
Why? Because they treated all of his owner-financed profits as income in year one, not over the life of the loans. Hesitant, Mark wrote the check.
It wasn’t until the following year, after switching CPAs, that he found out the truth: The installment method was available the whole time.
It could’ve cut his tax bill in half, or more. But his original CPA didn’t apply it.
I Knew Something Was Wrong — And I Fought to Fix It
When my first CPA tried to book my land deals the same way, I caught it immediately. I have an accounting degree. I knew the installment method should apply. But I also knew I couldn’t just assume, I needed proof.
So I dove into IRS publications, researched tax court cases, and had my tax attorney verify every detail.
And I was right.
That validation didn’t just save my business, it showed me how many land investors were walking straight into the same trap. That one correction became the foundation of a system that now powers the accounting behind 5,000+ land transactions, and protects every dollar of cash flow along the way.
Most investors don’t catch the mistake in time.
That’s why I built Accounting for Land Investors.
Battle-Tested. CPA-Approved. Built for Land.
This isn’t theory. It’s not a spreadsheet band-aid. It’s the complete framework for setting up your books the right way, from deal one to deal 500.
- Craig Cody, my CPA, took the class and sends his entire bookkeeping team through it
- Jeff Dettmer ran the method by a Big Four accounting partner — who confirmed it’s exactly right
- Sarah M. emailed to say it saved her $28,000 in taxes — just by correcting how her installment deals were recorded
Most people don’t find out until tax season. This is how you get ahead of it.
The Bottom Line
This course gives you the exact framework I use to set up land investor books, and keep them clean, compliant, and scalable.
- No more overpaying
- No more arguing with CPAs
- No more tax bills that gut your cash flow
Just a system that works, and keeps working, as you grow.
The Solution: Stop Overpaying. Start Accounting Like a Land Investor.
You don’t need to become a CPA to protect your profits. You need a system built for land, one that actually prevents the $12,500 mistake most investors make.
That’s exactly what this course delivers. Accounting for Land Investors is the only program designed specifically to help land investors:
- Pay taxes only as you collect payments (not all upfront)
- Track profits accurately without getting blindsided at tax time
- Build a scalable, audit-proof accounting system that grows with you
What’s Inside the Course
This isn’t theory. It’s the exact method I use to manage the books behind 5,000+ land deals — step-by-step.
✅ Set Up Your Accounting System the Right Way
Prevent six-figure tax bills and eliminate year-end panic.
- Land-specific chart of accounts (not just a “real estate” template)
- Proper setup for terms deals, land flips, and arbitrage
- Built in Xero, easily transferable to QuickBooks or others
✅ Record Deals With Confidence
Avoid misclassifying income and protect your cash flow.
- Installment sale method broken down line-by-line
- How to correctly book down payments, monthly payments, and interest
- Real-world examples you can copy and apply
✅ Automate What Matters
So your books don’t fall apart when you scale.
- Monthly workflows to handle payments, commissions, and reconciliations
- Templates and examples included
- Built for growth, not one-off fixes
✅ Handle What Most CPAs Miss
Because their mistakes cost you money.
- Dealer vs. investor classification made simple
- How to legally book 0% interest deals
- Tax traps that apply only to land — and how to avoid them
Why This Isn’t Just Another Accounting Course
This is built for land investors, period.
Most accounting advice online is for house flippers, rental portfolios, or small business owners. It doesn’t apply to the land business model.
This course does.
That’s why:
- Craig Cody, CPA, took the course and sends his whole bookkeeping team through it
- Sarah M. said it saved her $28,000 in unnecessary taxes
- Jeff Dettmer had it verified by a Big Four accounting partner — who confirmed it’s spot-on
What It Costs — and What It Saves You
The full course is $997.
That’s less than the cost of having a CPA fix your books. And a fraction of what you’ll lose if your tax filings are wrong. Most investors only discover these mistakes after it’s too late. This course is how you catch it now, and fix it forever.
Your Risk-Free Guarantee
If the course doesn’t save you more than $997 in the next 12 months, just email us the details for a full refund. No fine print. No CPA jargon. Just results.
The Bottom Line
This isn’t about learning accounting. It’s about protecting your business.
You’ll go from worrying about phantom profit taxes to confidently taking on more seller-financed deals, knowing every transaction is protecting your cash flow, not destroying it.
The choice is simple: Pay $997 now to protect your next $100,000 in profit, or wait until the IRS sends the bill.
Grab the system that land investors are already using.
Click below to get started instantly.
Still On the Fence?
Here’s what might be holding you back — and why it shouldn’t.
❌ “I already have a CPA.”
Perfect. This course helps make sure they don’t cost you $100,000.
You’re not questioning their competence, you’re giving them land-specific guidance they’ve likely never received.
This is exactly the mistake that almost cost Mark Podolsky six figures. Most CPAs default to traditional real estate accounting, flips, rentals, standard cash flow. This course gives you the clarity to steer them the right direction before they misfile your deal.
❌ “Can’t I just figure this out myself?”
Sure, if you want to spend weeks doing what I already did.
I went down that rabbit hole: IRS publications, tax court cases, confusing CPA opinions, and endless forum threads. You could recreate it.
But why reinvent the wheel when I’ve already built and battle-tested it across 5,000+ land deals? This course gives you everything, clean, step-by-step, without the overwhelm or guesswork.
❌ “I’ve already been doing it wrong.”
You can still fix it, and it won’t take months.
Many students have used this course to clean up multiple years of incorrect books. Depending on how long you’ve been investing, cleanup might take a few hours or a weekend, but it’s infinitely faster (and cheaper) than paying your CPA to unravel it later. We show you exactly where to start and how to course-correct with confidence.
❌ “$997 feels like a lot to spend on a course.”
And $12,500 is a lot to lose to the IRS, every single year.
This course costs less than most CPAs charge to fix a single year of books. It’s a one-time investment that protects every deal you do moving forward. And if it doesn’t save you more than it costs in the next 12 months?
You get a full refund.
Accounting for Land Investors Reviews
“Very helpful course and saves me quite a bit of time in research and having to monkey around in xero to find things. One question. Is there an accounting or legal reason why you pay the property taxes instead of forwarding the invoices to the terms buyer and having them pay the taxes directly to the county? Or is it that you want to make sure the taxes get paid and don’t want to rely on the terms buyer to do it? Also one suggestion. It would be interesting and helpful to see what automation/zaps you have set up with xero, as I’m always looking for more ideas. Thanks.
By gary wilson
“I hesitated a year in taking this class as I didn’t have the money in the business starting up. That was a big mistake. I am now going through a painful migration between accounting systems to put in place the installment method. Lesson learned upfront investment in education would have saved a lot of effort now. I would definitely recommend this class to anyone who does not have accounting figured out. This course spells it out really well.”
By James Wollmer
Consistant with expectations from previous classes like Flight School. It has been worthwhile.
By LaMar Bunts
This was my second time and I’d pay for it again. You do a great job Scott! Very helpful even for accountants. 🙂
By Amy Breazele
I found the class to be very helpful. Full of great information on not just the correct accounting for land transactions but also tax tips. I would definitely recommend this class to other land investors. I got exactly what I wanted out of this class, it met all expectations I had going in. Thanks Scott!
By Jesse Ashbrook
The class provided critical information for getting the most out of your business. One takeaway – If you don’t set up accounting right in the beginning, you will end up with a large tax bill at the end of the year. Then you will go back and rework all your accounting to show that you didn’t really receive all that money yet (especially with terms sales). It will be a lot more work and very confusing to figure out… or you can just take the class and do it right the first time. Invaluable information if you intend to continue in this business. Thanks Scott for this and all the other instructions you provided!!!
By Stephanie Naquin
I thought the class was very beneficial and I am very glad that I took it. I am not sure how long or painful it might be if we didn’t take this class but I imagine it would be significant? I really appreciated that it was broke out into five separate sessions. I can see some real value there just because it is just so much information and it would be too much all at once. I appreciate the value of the facebook group as well for questions as we move forward, so overall I just think it is an incredibly valuable class and very necessary quite frankly if you want to have things in order from the start. I really liked the flow and content of the class so thank you very much. Great job, thanks so much for putting it together!
By Adrian Petrillo
Ready to Stop Overpaying on your Taxes?
If you’re selling land on terms, the question isn’t if your books will create a tax mess — it’s when.
Accounting for Land Investors gives you the system to:
- Pay taxes only when you actually receive the money
- Set up your accounting to scale, not scramble
- Avoid the $12,500 mistake before it costs you your momentum
This is the same system used to manage the books behind 5,000+ land deals. It’s been reviewed by CPAs. Validated by Big Four partners. And trusted by investors just like you.
One-time investment: $997
Risk-free guarantee: 12 months