How is Retention Held and Released?

How is Retention Held?

Once you have set up your Retention in a New Project, every invoice that you create will automatically hold the percentage defined in your Project settings.

Example:

In this example, the Project value is $10,000.00 USD, and the Retention is set to 10%.

You can access this view from:
Projects Module > Select your Project > Details (left panel)

Under Additional Details, you will find the Project Details section, which includes the Contract Amount and Retention percentage.

Step 1: Create the Schedule of Values (SOV)

Once Retention is set, the next step is to create your Schedule of Values (SOV).

Read this article for more information: [Basics of Schedule of Values (SOV)]

To create the SOV:

1. Go to your Project.

2. From the left panel, select Schedule of Values.

3. Click on Add Item to SOV.

4. Choose Manual Project Item.

5. Enter the description “Total Value of the Project” and set the total amount to $10,000.00 USD.

Step 2: Create an Invoice

1. Go to the Invoices Module.

2. Click Add New Invoice.

3. Choose to Import Items from SOV.

4. Select the “Total Value of the Project” item you created earlier.

5. Click Save & Close.

When you enter the percentage to bill for this project, Contractor Foreman will automatically apply and hold the 10% Retention set up in your Project.

How Do We Release the Retention?

At the end of the Project, you can release the held Retention by creating a final invoice.

1. Go to the Invoices Module.

2. Click Add New Invoice.

3. Click on the menu Add Item to Invoice.

4. Select Add Retainage (Partial or Full) for Payment.

A pop-up window will appear. Here, you can enter the percentage of Retention you wish to release.

In our example:

• The Project Retention was 10% of $10,000.00 = $1,000.00 USD.

• Enter “0” in the box to release all retained funds

Result:

A new line item labeled “Retention Invoice” will appear in your final invoice, showing the total amount of Retention that was held and now released.