7 Construction Billing Methods & Tips to Get Paid Fast

Contractors should understand all of the stakeholders involved on a construction project. While owners and contractors may agree on billing practices, lenders, investors, or third-party managers may have their own stipulations that contractors will need to meet in order to get paid. Depending on contract stipulations, payment terms may allow for 30, 60 or 90 days between billing and payment. construction billing methods General contractors should ensure that whatever payment terms they receive are mirrored in the contracts with their subcontractors. Having to pay a subcontractor within 30 days when a progress payment may not come for another two months could impact cash flow and prove detrimental to the project as a whole. Time and materials billing is used for small contracts and self-perform work.

• Each month look at the calendar and note the specific dates that you will be performing your billings, accounting for weekends and holidays.
• Each method carries different risks and advantages for either side and should be consciously considered in negotiations.
• These costs can be offset by a number of different things including defective work or materials, damage to a job site, clean-up requirements, or unexpected or forced use of equipment.
• Keep a close eye on the description of the work claimed to be performed, and the line item dates.
• For instance, a residential project invoice will be much less complex than the invoice a general contractor (GC) submits to the owner of a large public project.
• Unit pricing is a method contractors can use to boil down project prices into blocks of work and then charge for each block (or unit) they complete.
• Fortunately, you can improve your cash flow processes by learning about the best construction billing methods.

Time & material billing method

The initially set out budget will not be enough to cover the project’s plan. Include a clear description of each service, the date it was performed, and the corresponding charge. This might range from labor and materials to equipment use and any subcontracted work. Every construction https://www.bookstime.com/ invoice should start with the basics—your company’s name, address, contact information, and, if applicable, your logo. This information plays an important role in ensuring your invoice is promptly recognized and processed by the client’s accounts payable department.

What are construction invoices?

Keep in mind though – owners and customers don’t typically take kindly to lien threats. While a notice of intent to lien is a great payment recovery tool, it’s important that a party who sends one can back up their payment claim with sufficient documentation. On other projects, vendors and subcontractors may not be responsible to adhere to the prime contractor’s invoicing standards, and can simply send over their own invoice they send across all jobs. It will then be the GC’s responsibility to adhere to the prime contract on behalf of all hired subcontractors by submitting additional documentation alongside their payment application.

• Alternatively, contractors can bundle labor, material, overhead, and profit all into a single unit and charge by that unit.
• Construction accounting is undeniably complicated and unwieldy, yet you need it to ensure your construction business gets paid accurately and on time.
• By implementing these best practices, construction companies can optimize their billing processes, minimize errors and disputes and improve overall financial management.
• Since this payment method depends on a project’s progress, it is also beneficial to clients who can make their payments as they see changes in progress at the job site.
• This clarity benefits not just the client by setting understandable expectations but also supports the contractor in justifying the project costs, thereby paving the way for smoother financial transactions.
• For example, when 10% of the project is complete, the client pays 10% of the total contract amount.

Cost estimation

Even after you’ve established your billing process, keeping it running smoothly can be a daunting task, especially without the right tools or knowledge. With these nine steps, you’ll be well on your way to ensuring a consistent and steady flow of income for your business. For this reason, many large commercial construction projects take advantage of unit pricing. Cost-plus agreements can eliminate a certain level of risk for construction companies if a project has a considerable grey area.

• As mentioned above, following up on an unpaid invoice is perfectly acceptable – and most customers are reasonable enough to talk about the payment delay.
• Click here If you want to skip straight to our free construction invoice templates.
• The construction planning process is an enormous undertaking, as discussed below.
• If a contractor cannot provide adequate documentation to justify costs, it can cause serious problems.

Having a historical data set means you can adequately plan for and budget each job. This article will compare the most common construction billing methods, which projects best suit each — and suggest some billing best practices to help get contractors paid on time. This billing process occurs alongside the project, either based on a payment schedule (i.e., weekly, monthly) or project milestones. There are several reasons why your company may want to bill based on progress, including more direct funding of project costs, such as equipment, labor, and subcontractors during work-in-progress.

If you’re undertaking a lengthy whole-house remodel in your immediate area and the clients might add to the project as it goes, you might choose the cost-plus option. A construction plan refers to the set of documents prepared during construction planning. This continuation sheet is used in conjunction with the G702® document to present a comprehensive picture of the progress of the construction project. An ongoing assessment of your billing methods helps to identify areas for improvement, ensuring your practices remain efficient and client-focused. Utilizing client feedback and insights gained from software solutions can direct enhancements, smoothing the path for your team and your clients alike.

Construction Invoicing 101: Best Practices and Billing Procedures

• A schedule of values is an important document in the construction industry.
• Contractors and their administrative staff may prefer lump sum billing regardless of project size because of the freedom and time-savings it provides.
• Like every other industry, the construction industry is also back on track post-pandemic.
• Here, the contractor will charge the client’s account directly for any materials and simply add a standard hourly/daily rate on top for their labour.
• But on most commercial and public projects, contractors will invoice using a payment application.

Practice short payment terms