Set payment schedules that follow your state's deposit rules
Start from the accepted contract price and split it into a deposit, progress draws tied to phases and a final payment.
Plankbook checks the deposit against your state's cap and compares each invoice with the value of the work done.
Send a schedule that meets the deposit rule, and invoice each draw when its phase is done.
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- DepositPaidAt signing$1,000
- Rough-in passedPaidAfter rough-in inspection · Conditional waiver on progress payment$17,332
- Cabinets and countertops installedAfter cabinets and countertops$21,000
- Tile and fixtures doneAfter fixtures and finish$9,000
- Final paymentAfter the punch list$4,862
California limits the down payment to $1,000 or 10% of the contract, whichever is less. This deposit is $1,000. Business and Professions Code 7159(d)(8)(C).
Check the deposit against your state's cap
Plankbook checks the deposit against the cap in these states today. In every state, it checks that the payments add up to the contract price and warns you when the schedule has no final payment.
| State | Deposit limit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| California | $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less | Business and Professions Code 7159(d)(8)(C) |
| Nevada | $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less | NRS 624.970, as described in a Nevada State Contractors Board bulletin. We have not read the statute text. |
| Maryland | One third of the contract price, and no payment before the contract is signed | Business Regulation 8-617 |
Sources read 2026-10-21.
Keep billing from running ahead of the work
Plankbook works out the value of the work done: each estimate line earns its price as its phase progresses.
When an invoice would put your billing ahead of that value plus the deposit, Plankbook warns you. To send it anyway, write a reason, and the reason stays on the invoice.
California contracts must warn the homeowner that collecting payment for work not yet completed, or for materials not yet delivered, is against the law (Business and Professions Code 7159(d)(9)).
- Work done so far, at contract prices
- $18,835
- Deposit
- $1,000
- Billed before this invoice
- $18,332
- This invoice
- $21,000
- Billing ahead of the work
- $19,497
Record the lien waiver with each payment
- Mark the waiver type
- Record whether you gave a conditional or unconditional waiver, on a progress or a final payment, next to each payment.
- Use California's statutory forms
- California sets the waiver forms in Civil Code 8132 to 8138. Plankbook records which form you gave. It does not generate the forms.
Invoice the way each contract works
- Bill a milestone
- Invoice a draw from the payment schedule when its phase is done.
- Bill approved change orders
- Add approved change orders to any invoice. Unapproved ones never appear.
- Bill cost-plus and time and materials work
- Invoice billable crew time and costs with your markup on cost-plus and time and materials projects.
- Record every payment
- Send each invoice as a link, and record payments by check, card, bank transfer, cash or financing.
Confirm the rules for your contracts
Plankbook's checks help you catch mistakes before a schedule or an invoice reaches the homeowner. They are not legal advice.
State rules change and have exceptions. Nevada's contractors board, for example, says its deposit cap does not apply to a contractor with a $100,000 consumer protection bond. Confirm your contract and payment terms with your state's contractor board or a lawyer.
Send payment schedules that hold up in your state
Open the sample company to see a California payment schedule and the billing check. The plan costs $99 per company per month after the 30-day trial.
Try every job tool for 30 days without a card. Add your whole team at no extra cost.