Resale Certificate for Flooring Stores: Buy Flooring Materials Wholesale Tax-Free
Flooring is a high-dollar category. A single residential job uses $2,000 to $10,000 in materials. A commercial project can run $50,000 or more. A mid-size flooring retailer purchasing $30,000 to $80,000 in wholesale materials per month saves $25,200 to $67,200 per year at 7% tax with a resale certificate.
The flooring industry has a specific tax complexity: the relationship between the material sale and the installation service. Whether you are a flooring retailer that sells material and subcontracts installation, or a flooring contractor who supplies and installs, the tax treatment of your purchases differs.
Flooring Retailer vs. Flooring Contractor
Flooring retailers sell materials to customers. The customer buys hardwood, tile, or carpet from your showroom. Whether you also offer installation or the customer hires their own installer, the material sale is a retail transaction. Your resale certificate covers wholesale material purchases because you are buying for resale.
Flooring contractors who provide materials as part of an installation contract are treated differently. In many states, a contractor who furnishes and installs flooring is the end consumer of the materials. The installation contract is a service, and the materials are consumed in that service. In those states, the contractor pays tax on material purchases and does NOT use a resale certificate.
However, some states treat flooring contractors as retailers of materials if the contract separates material cost from labor. The distinction between "lump sum" and "separated" contracts matters enormously for flooring businesses. Check your state's specific rules.
Hybrid businesses (showroom retail plus installation services) are the most common model. Materials sold to walk-in customers are retail sales covered by the resale certificate. Materials furnished as part of an installation contract may or may not be covered depending on your state and contract structure.
What You Can Buy Tax-Free (Retail Inventory)
- Hardwood flooring (solid, engineered, bamboo, cork)
- Luxury vinyl plank (LVP) and luxury vinyl tile (LVT)
- Ceramic and porcelain tile
- Natural stone (marble, travertine, slate, granite tile)
- Carpet and carpet tile
- Laminate flooring
- Underlayment (sold to the customer as part of the flooring purchase)
- Transition strips and molding (sold to the customer)
- Grout and thinset (sold to the customer)
- Carpet padding (sold with carpet)
- Adhesives (sold to the customer, not consumed by your installers)
- Area rugs (retail sale)
- Floor care products sold at retail (cleaners, sealers, polish)
What You CANNOT Buy Tax-Free
| Item | Why It Is Taxable |
|---|---|
| Floor sanding machines | Business equipment |
| Carpet stretcher and knee kicker | Installation tools |
| Tile saw and cutting equipment | Business equipment |
| Installation hand tools | Business tools |
| Delivery truck | Business asset |
| Showroom displays and sample racks | Store equipment |
| Adhesive used by your installers (not sold) | Consumed during service |
| Grout used by your installers (not sold) | Consumed during service |
The adhesive and grout distinction. If a customer buys a box of tile, three bags of thinset, and a bucket of grout from your retail counter, those are resale items. If your installation crew uses thinset and grout while installing tile as part of a contract, those materials may be considered consumed in providing a service (depending on your state). The key is whether the materials are sold to the customer separately or consumed by your workers.
Wholesale Suppliers
Major flooring distributors that require your resale certificate:
- Shaw Floors (one of the largest flooring manufacturers, both carpet and hard surface)
- Mohawk Industries (carpet, hardwood, LVP, tile, laminate)
- Armstrong Flooring
- Mannington Mills (residential and commercial)
- MSI (M S International) (tile, stone, LVP, countertops)
- Dal-Tile (Mohawk subsidiary, ceramic and porcelain)
- Stanton Carpet (specialty carpet)
- Flooring distributors (FlorStar, Haines, T&L Distributing, regional wholesalers)
- Floor & Decor (wholesale pricing for trade accounts)
Most manufacturers sell through authorized dealers and require proof of a showroom or retail location plus your resale certificate.
Installation Labor Tax Treatment
When you sell flooring and provide installation, the tax treatment of installation labor varies by state:
States that tax bundled labor. If the material and installation are a single transaction, the full amount (materials plus labor) may be taxable. Examples include Texas and New York for certain contract types.
States that exempt separately stated labor. If you break out the material price and installation labor as separate line items on the invoice, the labor charge may be exempt. Examples vary, and the rules depend on the type of contract.
How this affects your resale certificate. The certificate covers your wholesale material purchase regardless of how you structure the customer invoice. But understanding installation labor taxation helps you price jobs correctly and charge the right amount of tax at the customer level.
Dollar Savings
| Business Type | Monthly Material Purchases | Annual Tax Savings (7%) |
|---|---|---|
| Small showroom with limited inventory | $15,000 | $12,600 |
| Standard flooring retailer | $40,000 | $33,600 |
| High-volume retailer with installation | $80,000 | $67,200 |
| Multi-location flooring chain | $200,000+ | $168,000+ |
Common Mistakes
Using the resale certificate for materials your crew installs under a lump-sum contract. In many states, lump-sum installation contractors are the end consumer of materials. The resale certificate only covers materials sold at retail. If your state treats your installation contracts as service transactions, you owe tax on the materials your crew uses.
Not distinguishing between retail sales and contract jobs in your accounting. Audit exposure increases when your books do not clearly separate walk-in retail sales from installation contract revenue. Different tax rules apply to each.
Failing to collect tax on floor care products. Sealers, cleaners, and maintenance products sold at retail are taxable. Some flooring stores include a "care kit" with installation and forget to charge tax on it.
Not getting the certificate to specialty suppliers. If you buy transition strips from one vendor, adhesive from another, and underlayment from a third, each needs your certificate on file.
How to Get Started
- Apply for your resale certificate through your state or our service.
- Determine your state's rules for installation contractors. If you provide installation, understand whether your state treats you as a retailer or consumer of materials for contract jobs.
- Provide the certificate to all material suppliers. Shaw, Mohawk, MSI, and your regional distributors.
- Set up your invoicing to separate materials and labor. This protects the labor exemption in states that offer it and makes your records audit-ready.