Describe what changed
A customer asks for another room, a different fixture or a larger area while the job is already underway. Before adding it to the workday, identify how the request differs from the accepted scope.
Write down the added, removed or replaced work. “Upgrade materials” is harder to review than “Replace the listed basic fixture with the customer-selected fixture, including the additional installation work described below.”
If a site condition created the change, record what you found and why the original approach needs to be revisited. Photos and measurements can help explain the issue, but keep the written description clear enough to stand on its own.
Price the change as its own piece of work
List the labor, materials, equipment and other costs created by the change. Include any additional setup, cleanup or return visit. If the change removes work, record the credit as well as the additions.
Use the Contractor Pricing Calculator to check the added scope. It calculates a price from included costs and a target margin; it does not know which costs were already covered in the original job.
Keep pricing adjustments distinct from payments. A $350 addition increases the agreed price. A $350 payment reduces the unpaid balance. They belong in different parts of your record.
Show the revised total and timing
Give the customer the previous agreed price, the change amount and the revised agreed price. Use a negative change amount for a credit. State clearly whether the figures include any applicable tax.
Previous agreed price: $2,100.
Added work: +$350.
Revised agreed price: $2,450.
Then explain the schedule effect. The change may add working time, require another material order or affect when other tasks can happen. “One additional site visit, subject to material availability” is more useful than leaving the customer to assume the finish date stays the same.
If there is no schedule change, record that too. It separates a confirmed decision from a detail that was never discussed.
Record approval before proceeding
Send the change description and its price and timing effects for review. Follow the approval process in the original agreement, including who is authorized to approve the change.
Record the version approved, the approving person and the date. A form's typed name field is a convenient record area; it is not automatically a digital signature system or a substitute for an approval process your agreement requires.
If you have an urgent situation, document the immediate concern and communicate it promptly. Do not assume a conversation about the problem also settled every cost and scheduling detail.
Carry the approved change into the final invoice
Give each change a reference and keep it with the job. When invoicing, describe the approved change so the customer can connect the charge to the earlier decision.
Reconcile the original price, additions, credits and payments. Check whether you are billing the full revised total or only the remaining balance. Avoid adding an approved change again if it is already included in that revised total.
The Change Order Template includes these core fields. Use it to make the conversation and the final invoice easier to follow, then adapt the process to your existing agreement and job.
Keep the change in one place.
Use the free Change Order Template to record the scope, price adjustment, schedule impact and approval.