Change Order Template

A change order is a written amendment to a signed construction contract. It describes the change in scope, prices it, states what the contract sums to now, says what the change does to the completion date, and carries both signatures — before the work is done, not after. This template builds one from a form: enter the change and its price, the original contract sum, and the net of any change orders already approved, and it prints the roll-forward — original sum, prior changes, this change, new contract sum — with a signature and date line for the contractor and the owner.

1. 01

   Name the parties and the contract being changed

   Add your business details and an optional logo, the client or owner, and the project with its address. Dating the original contract is what ties the change order to the agreement it amends.

2. 02

   Describe the change and why it is happening

   Write the changed scope specifically enough that both sides would describe it the same way, and pick the reason: client request, unforeseen condition, design change, credit, or an allowance adjustment. The reason is what makes the change order make sense a year later.

3. 03

   Price the change

   List the added work line by line with quantities and rates. A deduct is a negative rate, so a credit reads as work removed rather than a mystery discount. Markup applies to the subtotal, and tax is figured on the marked-up price.

4. 04

   Roll the contract forward and print

   Enter the original contract sum and the net of previously approved change orders, and the document prints the whole ladder up to the new contract sum. Add the days this change costs to get the revised completion date, then Save as PDF or print it for signature.

What should a change order include?

Both parties, the contract it amends, a change order number and date, a description of the changed scope, the reason for it, the price of the change, the contract sum before and after, the effect on the completion date, and a signature and date line for each side. A change order that prices the new work but never says what the contract now totals leaves the total to be argued at the end of the job.

Does a change order have to be signed?

Signing is what makes it a change order rather than a note. A written change both sides signed before the work started is a record of what was agreed; an unsigned one is a claim, and the price gets settled after the work is already in place. That is a plain point about how agreements are proved, not legal advice — your own contract may also spell out how changes must be authorized and by whom, so read what you signed.

Can I charge markup on a change order?

Markup on changed work covers overhead and profit the same way it does on the original contract, so it is part of the price of the change. Many contracts cap or fix the markup allowed on change-order work — that clause, not a habit, is what governs the number. The template applies the percentage you enter to the change's subtotal, then figures tax on the marked-up price.

How does a change order change the completion date?

Explicitly, or not at all. Enter the original completion date and the days this change adds, and the document prints the revised date next to the money; enter zero and it states that contract time is unchanged. Extra work that quietly eats the schedule is the other half of what change orders exist to prevent.

What about changes the client asks for verbally?

Write it up before the crew starts. A verbal go-ahead is easy to give and easy to remember differently, and the work is the hard thing to undo. If a change genuinely cannot wait, send the description, the price, and the schedule effect in an email or a text and get a reply that says yes, then put it on paper and have it signed.

How does ScribeLine handle change orders?

In ScribeLine a change order is authored against the job's agreed budget and, once approved, revises the contract and the project's own numbers together — the same roll-forward this template prints.