The Draw Schedule That Keeps a Build On Budget
Where construction money leaks — and the cadence that plugs it.
Projects rarely blow the budget in one dramatic event. They bleed — a little at each draw, across the gap between plans and pour.
The fix is a draw schedule tied to verified completion, not to the calendar or the contractor's cash needs. Money releases when work is in place and inspected, never before.
Tie every draw line to a scope item and a percentage complete. If a line is 60% done, it gets 60% — full stop. This single rule removes most of the friction and most of the overruns.
Walk the site against the schedule on every draw. The schedule is only as honest as the person verifying it. Oversight is not bureaucracy; it's the cheapest insurance on the job.
Hold a retainage and a contingency you actually defend. The contingency is for the unknown, not for the things you should have scoped. Builders who respect that line finish on budget.