Builder payment schedule: link payments to work and procurement
A sensible payment schedule answers two questions at once: what does the builder need to fund the next stage, and what has the homeowner received for the money paid? A flat percentage every Friday rarely answers either. Agree the stages, amounts and evidence before work starts, then use the contract to record how changes are approved.
Map the money to the actual programme
Start with a written scope and a realistic sequence: access and scaffold, structural work, weatherproofing, first fix, finishes and handover. Show when major materials must be ordered, when they arrive, and when subcontractors are due. A builder may reasonably need funds for steel or scaffold before much visible work appears, but the item, amount, order, delivery and ownership arrangements should be transparent.
Do not treat a protected booking deposit as if it automatically pays for mobilisation. If a separate pre-start payment is needed, describe precisely what it covers and when it becomes due. The contract should say what happens if a start date changes or an ordered item cannot be supplied.
Agree measurable payment triggers
For each stage, write down the work or procurement event, the amount due, the evidence to be provided and the payment date. “First fix complete” needs a definition: which rooms and services, whether inspections are needed, and which work remains. A stage is easier to verify when it corresponds to a completed area or a specific delivered item.
Check that cumulative payments do not race far ahead of completed work and identifiable materials. Equally, do not expect the builder to carry weeks of labour, scaffold and ordered materials without cash flow. The right schedule depends on the job, its supply chain and the contract; there is no universal safe percentage.
Keep variations separate
When the homeowner changes a bathroom layout or hidden work is found, record the description, price basis, time effect and approval before the extra work proceeds where practical. Update the remaining balance and future stages. Otherwise an apparently tidy original schedule quickly becomes meaningless. See our guide to a builder asking for more money.
Protect the final stages
Define completion, testing, certificates, outstanding defects and handover documents. Agree how the final balance is assessed under the chosen contract. Do not improvise a withholding figure after a dispute starts. JCT Home Owner contracts are one established route for domestic work; use the form appropriate to the appointment and understand its payment and administration provisions before signing.
If the schedule is already slipping, compare paid amounts with completed scope, ordered materials and the current programme. Keep invoices, delivery notes, photographs and written changes together.
Before you agree
Ask for the scope, programme, stage descriptions, payment amounts, procurement assumptions, change procedure and contract in one connected set. An independent comparison can reveal where cash flow is unrealistic or where the homeowner would pay ahead of value. Build Advocate can review your proposed builder appointment and payment arrangements before you commit.
