Change-Order Flow: Draft, Sign, Bill

What the change-order flow does

Verbal change orders are where remodels go to die. The homeowner says “while you’re at it, add the under-cabinet lighting.” The electrician nods. Three weeks later at final invoice, the homeowner refuses to pay because “nobody told me that was extra.” The change-order flow makes verbal changes structurally impossible.

• PM-initiated draft from the field — PM opens the contact in the GHL app, taps “new change order,” picks from common change types (scope add, material upgrade, structural surprise, homeowner request), enters the delta in dollars and days.
• Auto-formatted CO document — workflow builds a signed-ready PDF with the original contract reference, the change description, the dollar impact, the schedule impact, and a signature block.
• SMS + email to homeowner — homeowner gets the CO with a one-click sign link, plus a 24-hour reminder if unsigned.
• Auto-bill on signature — once signed, the CO triggers an invoice for the change amount (or adds to next milestone draw, depending on configuration).
• Schedule auto-adjusts — if the CO adds 3 days, the project schedule shifts and downstream subs get re-dispatched with the new windows.

How it works under the hood

The CO flow uses GHL Documents & Contracts for the legal artifact, a workflow for the lifecycle, and the project pipeline for schedule recalculation:

1. Trigger — PM submits the “New CO” form from the mobile app.
2. Document generation — workflow assembles the CO PDF from a template, pulling project address, original contract number, homeowner name, and the line items the PM entered.
3. Send for signature — fires an SMS + email with the e-sign link. Reminder at 24 hours, second reminder at 72 hours, PM escalation at 5 days.
4. Sign captured — when the homeowner signs, webhook hits the workflow. CO status moves to signed. Contract record updates.
5. Bill + reschedule — invoice fires (or appends to next draw), and if the CO added schedule days, the downstream trade dispatch dates shift automatically.

What it’s NOT

• Not a legal substitute for your master contract. The change order references your master contract; it doesn’t replace it. Get your master agreement reviewed by a construction attorney in your state. The CO flow rides on top of that foundation.
• Not a profit-protection magic wand. If your original estimate was 12 points too thin, COs will not save the job. They protect margin on actual additions; they don’t fix a bad bid.
• Not auto-approved. Every CO requires explicit homeowner signature before it bills. The system will not “assume yes” because the homeowner didn’t respond — silence is a pending state forever.
• Not for internal scope changes that don’t affect price or schedule. If you swap one paint brand for another at the same price with no schedule impact, no CO needed. The flow is for changes with dollar or day impact.

Why every CO triggers an immediate invoice

The longer the gap between “change happens” and “invoice issued,” the lower your collection probability. A CO billed within 48 hours of signature collects at ~96%. A CO bundled into the final invoice 4 months later collects at ~78%. The system bills aggressively on purpose.

That said, you can configure two modes per project type: bill-immediately (separate invoice per CO) or bill-with-next-draw (CO amount appends to the next scheduled draw). Default is bill-with-next-draw for projects already on a draw schedule and bill-immediately for fixed-price small jobs.