How do I fill out a construction pay application (G702/G703)?

A pay application has two parts. The continuation sheet (AIA G703, or a form laid out like it) lists every line of your schedule of values and how much of each is complete. The application itself (G702) is the one-page summary that turns those totals into the amount due. Fill out the continuation sheet first, then carry its totals to the summary.

Part one: the continuation sheet

One row per line of your schedule of values, with these columns:

• A. Item number.
• B. Description of work.
• C. Scheduled value. The dollar value of the line. It does not change during the job.
• D. Work completed, from previous applications. Carried over from last month's total.
• E. Work completed, this period. What you did since the last application.
• F. Materials presently stored. Material delivered and not yet installed, if your contract allows billing for it.
• G. Total completed and stored to date. D + E + F, and the percentage of the scheduled value that represents.
• H. Balance to finish. C − G.
• I. Retainage. The amount held on this line, if it is tracked by line.

Work one row at a time. Decide the percent complete to date, multiply by the scheduled value to get the total, and subtract column D to get this period. Working from the total to date keeps small errors from piling up month after month.

Part two: the summary

1. Original contract sum.
2. Net change by change orders. Approved ones only.
3. Contract sum to date. Line 1 plus line 2.
4. Total completed and stored to date. The total of column G.
5. Retainage. The percentage in your contract, applied to completed work and to stored material.
6. Total earned less retainage. Line 4 minus line 5.
7. Less previous certificates for payment. Line 6 from your last application.
8. Current payment due. Line 6 minus line 7.
9. Balance to finish, including retainage. Line 3 minus line 6.

A worked example

• Original contract sum: $200,000
• Approved change orders: $10,000
• Contract sum to date: $210,000
• Total completed and stored to date: $120,000
• Retainage at 10 percent: $12,000
• Total earned less retainage: $108,000
• Less previous certificates: $72,000
• Current payment due: $36,000
• Balance to finish, including retainage: $102,000

Why applications get rejected

• Column D does not match last month's column G. The most common error. Every application starts where the last one ended.
• A line billed past 100 percent. Extra work belongs on a change order line.
• Unapproved change orders included.
• Scheduled values changed without an approved revision.
• Retainage at the wrong rate, or left off stored materials.
• Missing signature or notarization where the contract requires it.
• Missing attachments: lien waivers, certified payroll, stored material invoices.
• Submitted after the cutoff.

Any one of these can push payment to the next cycle.

Before you send it

• The scheduled values still add up to the contract sum to date.
• Every row: D + E + F = G, and no G is larger than C.
• Line 7 equals line 6 of the previous application.
• The percentages match what the superintendent would say on a walk.
• The waivers cover the right amounts and the right dates.

If the GC accepts a pencil copy, send one a few days early. Agreeing the percentages before the formal copy is the fastest way to be paid on time.

Where ConstructStream fits

ConstructStream prints a Contractor's Application for Payment with its continuation sheet from the job's own numbers: the lines of the accepted bid, approved change orders as their own lines, what earlier invoices billed, and the retainage held. The previous-application column is carried forward, not retyped, so the error that sends most applications back does not happen.