A subcontractor change order log is the one list that tells you, and me, where every extra stands. I don’t keep a change log for my subs. I use theirs. So when yours is clear, I can tell you the status of a change fast. When it isn’t, we both lose time.
I worked the tinner trade for about four years, and I’ve been in construction more than twenty years. Now I manage projects for a general contractor in Salt Lake, and sub change orders cross my desk every week. Back when I was a tinner, I didn’t keep a log. I wrote down my hours and turned them in every day.
This post is written from the GC side. The examples are HVAC, but the log works for any sub.
What a messy subcontractor change order log looks like
I was on a very complex project with a lot of segments. I ran two of them, not all of them. We used the same subs across most of the segments.
The subs mostly treated the whole thing as one project. We treated each segment as its own project. So when a log came in, it had everything for the whole job in one file. That made it hard to be sure each cost went to the right segment.
Every sub did it differently:
- Some sorted by the date the work happened.
- Some had no date, just a description. Over time those started listing the segment.
- Some were careful about numbering, with a number on every change.
- Some sorted by dollar value. That was the most confusing.
There was no one way to track it across the job. Looking back, we should have given every sub our own log format. We didn’t have one.
The columns a GC wants in a change order log
Here’s how I’d set it up:
| Column | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Item number | A sequence number, 1, 2, 3, never reused |
| Segment | Which part of the job, if the job has segments |
| Description | What the work is and where it is |
| Date of work | The day the work was done |
| Requested amount | The dollar value you asked for |
| Approved amount | The actual dollar value after approval |
| GC approval number | The number the GC gives the approved change |
| Status | Open, submitted or closed |
| New contract total | Your contract after this change |
Sort it by item number. Sorted by dollar value, it’s the hardest log to read.
Open, submitted and closed
On a large project, I track three stages:
- Open. The change is known, but it isn’t submitted to the owner.
- Submitted. It’s in front of the owner.
- Closed. It’s been approved or settled.
On a small project I wouldn’t bother. Changes turn around fast and don’t sit for months. On a very large project they do. A change order can take a few weeks to several months to settle, and the status column is how nobody loses track of it.
Send your change order log with every pay app
Send your log once a month with your billing.
When a change comes in, I create a change order in our system and track it as open. Then I use your log to answer you on where things stand. If your log is clear, so is my answer.
When the logs don’t match at closeout
If your log has a change I don’t have, that’s a question from me about whether it’s real. Because the log comes in monthly, it’s possible I missed one that was sent to me that month. Usually I get a call before it gets to closeout, though. Make that call. Don’t save it for the end.
How an approved change gets onto your pay app
There’s a process:
- The change order request goes in.
- The owner says yes or no.
- If yes, the request becomes an approved change order. It’s trued up to a contract change. One term for this is a project committed change order. That updates the total cost.
- A notice goes to you with a change document authorizing you to increase your budget.
- You add the change as a new line at the bottom of your schedule of values.
- You bill it as the work gets done. On a long project, you progress-bill against the authorized amount.
I went through how to set one up in HVAC schedule of values. The change line works the same way as every other line. Bill the percent that’s done.
The simplest change order log for a small shop
If you’re a small shop or doing side jobs, start with this:
- Give every change a sequence number.
- Keep its status.
- Change the dollar value to what got approved.
- Update your schedule of values.
On a side job with a homeowner, you may not have a schedule of values at all. Then invoice the change on its own, with a pay-upon-receipt line on the invoice.
The best log I ever used was built in Excel by an old-timer. It wasn’t fancy. It was just the simplest one for seeing the status of every change, and it looked a lot like the columns above.
So I built a free one just like it. It has every column above, numbers each change for you, and shows what’s still open and your current contract total at the top. Get the free change order log, plus my one-page Starter Sheet:
Keep them in the field for quick use
The Change Log Template will help you keep track of what is extra. The Field Extras Starter Sheet is one page. It has the checklist I’d run before saying yes to any extra, how to figure your floor price in three lines, and what to say when somebody wants a number on the spot. It’s free.
Common questions
What is a subcontractor change order log?
A running list of every change on a job, with a number, a description, the date, the amounts, the GC approval number, the status and your new contract total.
What columns should a change order log have?
Item number, segment if the job has them, description, date of work, requested amount, approved amount, GC approval number, status and new contract total.
How often should a sub send a change order log to the GC?
Once a month, with your billing.
How do approved change orders get billed?
After it is approved, the GC sends you a change authorization form with signatures. You add the change as a new line at the bottom of your schedule of values and bill it as the work gets done.
Do small jobs need a change order log?
A simple one. A sequence number, a status and the approved amount are enough. On a side job, you can invoice each change on its own.