Confirm eligibility before adding stored value
Check the executed contract’s rules for billing materials before installation, including any special requirements for off-site storage. Establish the evidence required for this project: identification, location, ownership arrangements, insurance, approvals, and supporting cost records as applicable. Do not treat delivery alone as universal authorization to bill.
Use a materials movement schedule
Our recommended schedule lists each material batch, beginning stored value, new eligible stored value, value installed during the period, and ending stored value. Connect each batch to one billing line and its evidence. Review the movement schedule alongside the continuation sheet so the same materials do not appear as both newly stored and newly earned installed work.
Example: installing previously billed materials
Suppose $30,000 of materials were billed as stored last month. This month, $20,000 is installed and no new materials arrive. Ending stored materials are $10,000. Moving the $20,000 into installed work does not by itself add $20,000 to cumulative earned value: that material value was already included. Any new installation labor is a separate amount to substantiate under the contract.
Calculate retainage from the actual rules
Write down the applicable basis and rate, including differences between work and materials or any authorized reduction. Separate retainage held to date from retainage released in the current application. For illustration, 5% on $200,000 of eligible cumulative work is $10,000; that is not automatically the rate or basis for a different project.
Make release a visible event
A request to release retainage should identify the amount, affected scope, contractual milestone, required evidence, and approval. Keep any remaining withheld amount visible. Do not assume substantial completion automatically releases every dollar or ends every outstanding obligation. Carry the approved release consistently through the detail, summary, and payment record.
Keep this handy
Review checklist
- Stored-material eligibility and evidence checked
- Beginning, added, installed, and ending values reconcile
- Retainage basis and changes documented
- Release approval is visible in the billing record
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Sources & scope
These references inform the document and workflow context. Checklists and examples are BuildProof’s editorial recommendations. The executed agreement, applicable law, and authorized project decisions control.
AIA and its document names are trademarks of The American Institute of Architects. This independent guide is not an AIA form or an endorsement. Obtain licensed documents when required. Educational guidance only; it does not replace project-specific legal, financial, or professional advice.
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