In this live call segment of the Home Service Millionaire show, a small‑business owner (Speaker A) who runs Mike Andes Truck Tuning explains that he has not paid sales tax for about five years, resulting in roughly $45,000 of state tax debt and a hold on his truck registrations. He cannot register new trucks and is forced to consider buying a new vehicle in his wife’s name to avoid the hold. The host (Speaker B) walks through possible remedies: consulting a bankruptcy attorney, negotiating a payment plan (the state is now asking for a $20‑$25K lump‑sum to restart a plan), and estimating a $1,000 monthly payment. Because the owner lacks that cash, the host suggests a short‑term cash‑flow strategy—offer existing customers a discount for paying for a year’s worth of maintenance up‑front, thereby raising the $25K needed to clear the tax debt and fund the monthly payments. The conversation also touches on the business’s financial picture (about $250K annual revenue, trucks valued at $4‑5K but unsellable due to the hold) and the risks of continuing to hide from the government. The segment ends with a plug for the Home Service Boardroom, a members‑only space for higher‑earning service entrepreneurs to get one‑on‑one coaching.
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So I haven't really been paying my sales tax. I can't register my trucks. Like, within a month, I'll get another one and register it in my wife's name because I can't— if anything is in my name, they will put me on the hold and I'll be in the same situation.
I will say this. I would not recommend running from it. Like, the whole registration thing, bouncing around, this is going to become a cloud over your head. I'll come back to try and solve this, but just to be blunt, have you considered bankruptcy? I don't like going that path, and I do think there's ways to solve this problem still. What's the monthly payment if you were to go back on the plan? Or they're not offering the plan anymore. It's like, hey, you crossed that line and now we want $45K. If you pay up front for the next 12 months, some percentage, 15, 20% of people will take you up on it. And so what I would highly recommend, this is going to be crazy, but it's going to be the thing that potentially gets you out of this.
So I had this one, because I've been in business for like almost 8 years. And I have, um, uh, so I haven't really been paying my sales tax.
Okay.
All right. I made payments, but I owe, you know, maybe like, uh, I don't know, $45,000 on it. And, um, yeah, that's just— I just don't know. And now, uh, I can't register my trucks. Right. And, um, Yeah, they're just, they're just coming out there. They're trying to come up or they're trying to get me to pay the money back. So that's really my— how do I get out of this situation of owing this much money to the state? So first off, I can't drive my trucks. I mean, I have, but without registration because they don't allow me to re-register. Right. So now I have to get a new vehicle. Yeah.
How much revenue did you do?
Yeah.
How much revenue do you plan to do this year?
Plan like $250,000. Well, yeah.
And so I assume it's been several years that they're going back and trying to get all your sales tax.
Yeah, about the past 5 years.
Okay.
So, and I make payments here and there, but there's just money to have them.
Yep. And what kind of payment plan have they proposed? Have they given you any sort of payment plan offering?
Yeah. So that's the thing. I went on a payment plan 2 years ago, did well, and then it wasn't. So I wasn't— I don't know what— I don't even remember what happened, but I couldn't make the payments. Can't. Right. So I didn't make the payments because, you know, sales tax is charged to the customer. Right. Yeah.
I'll come back to trying to solve this, but just to be blunt, have you considered bankruptcy?
Uh, what kind of bankruptcy?
Well, like dissolving everything. And like, have you talked to like a divorce— or not divorce, but a, uh, a bankruptcy lawyer at all? No, I, I don't like going that path, and I do think there's ways to solve this problem still, but like it might be worth talking to them. The alternative is we put our heads down we grow this business and we make it really profitable and grind for 12 months. But like, what's the monthly payment if you were to go back on the plan? Or are they not offering the plan anymore? It's like, hey, you crossed that line and now we want $45K.
Yeah. So now they're telling me that I can give them $20K and then we can get on the plan. Or now it's probably like $25K.
Okay, so $25K.
But I don't have that amount of profit on me.
Right.
I got you.
Yeah.
So $25K. And then what would you think the monthly payment would be if you had to guess?
Probably like $1,000 or so.
And on the $200,000 in annual revenue, has that been consistent the past few years?
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
Okay, and what services are you offering?
Basic maintenance, Mike Andes, Mike Andes Truck Tuning, just the basics.
Okay, and do you have your trucks paid off right now?
Yes.
Okay, and what's the value of those trucks?
Maybe like $4,000 or $5,000. Okay. But the thing is that because they have a hold on the registration, I can't sell it. No one can register it. So I'm forced to get a new vehicle, which is going to happen like, you know, like within a month I'll get another one and register it in my wife's name. 'Cause I can't, if anything is in my name, They will put me on the hold and I'll be in the same situation. Okay.
I would recommend talking to a bankruptcy lawyer, mostly because he's going to have a better understanding of your state's legal parameters of what you can and can't do. I will say this, you— I would not recommend running from it. Like the whole registration thing, bouncing around, this is going to become a cloud over your head. And the worst thing that can happen is you become successful and you just know you can't do it all legitimately and everything's hidden. Um, and at the end of the day, we're talking about $25,000, which is, I understand, a lot of money. It's also what you make per month in revenue. And if you can somehow sweep that and then get $1,000 of payments. And so what I would highly recommend, this is going to be crazy, but it's going to be the thing that potentially gets you out of this, is giving an offer to your customers to pay upfront for services. And getting a whole bunch of cash up front. But I mean, you got to be ready to deliver on that work and the money won't be coming in because you would have given it to the government and you're going to work your brains out.
Yeah, I'm already there. Okay.
Like if you went to your customers right now and said, hey, for the next 12 months, you know, last 12 months you've paid me $2,000. If you— if I'm giving 20% off, if you pay up front, for the next 12 months for the services that we— here are those services, and I'm going to get $1,800 from one person, $1,500 from another person, $1,000 from— if you can do that. Now, keep in mind, you're not going to get that money over the next 6 to 12 months. You're going to be working extra hours to make up for it. But the objective is to get the $25K so that you can— because you can afford $1,000 a month. You can afford that.
Just a quick heads up, and that is for the confession booth for the live call-in show. We're going to be moving that to the Home Service Boardroom. So if you're inside of the school community, then you'll have access to these live calls. The reason we're doing that is because when I do these live calls, sometimes there is 20, 30 people that are calling, they're blocked from coming inside the call queue, and I usually only get to about 5 to 15 calls. And so I'm kind of rushed, whereas inside the Home Service Boardroom, when you're doing one-on-one calling with me, I can take my time, 10, 15, 20 minutes, really get to the, the ground level of what your struggles are. And this is the Home Service Millionaire channel, and so I want to be able to catered towards those that are doing already 7 figures plus in annual revenue. So if you're interested in actually being on these calls, just join Home Service Boardroom. Link is in the description.
I would highly recommend being vicious and violent with this, and that is immediately going to your customers. If they're on maintenance and recurring revenue and you can look back at the last 12 months and say, hey, you spent X amount, we're now offering this discount if you pay up front for the next 12 months, some percentage, 15, 20% of people will take you up on it. And that's all you need, about 20% of your revenue or 20% of your customers to say yes to this for you to be able to get that enough revenue to capture the $25K and start on these monthly payments. And then you're going to have to put your head down and grind for the next 12 months of performing on work that all that money's going to go to the government. But I would much rather you build a business where you're not constantly running from the government, putting things in people's names and licensing and registration, and then people are coming after you and then you can't buy this piece of equipment, then you can't get a lo— like, That's a messy way to live life. It's a messy way to run a business. And the best case scenario is you somehow outsmart them for a couple of years, but they eventually find you out. And so, first off, huge kudos to him for calling. This is why we have the confession booth. There's no way in the world they're going to call in and say your name if this is the type of thing. And I will say this, if you are currently underreporting your sales tax, this is a very short-term thinking strategy that you are currently experiencing. There is no big business that is doing this. Like, oh, this one competitor in my local area— there is no company that is running hundreds of millions of dollars that is legit, that lasts for decades, that is underreporting on sales tax, not trying to get around employees' tax. Like, for us, if it's a gray area, it's like, great, make them W-2, pay a little extra taxes. I will sleep better at night, and by me sleeping better at night, I'll be able to deploy discretionary effort and energy and ideas towards growing the business instead of running away from the government. Bad strategy. So kudos to him. I highly recommend just tackling it head on. It'll be 12 months of pain, but make an offer that customers cannot refuse. Collect the cash up front, pay off the $25K, start making the monthly $1,000 a month payments. You're gonna be working Saturdays, you're gonna be working Sundays, you're gonna be working evenings, and you're gonna need your wife to get bought in on this because she's not gonna see you very much 'cause you're gonna be doing a whole bunch of extra work to be able to make this up over the next 12 months.
