Deposit, Progress, and Final Invoices for Painting Jobs
A 30% deposit, 40% progress, 30% final structure is the residential repaint default. Commercial work uses smaller deposits and a progress schedule.
A typical painting project has three invoice types. The split varies by job size and client.
The three invoice types
| Invoice type | When sent | Typical % of quote | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deposit | On quote acceptance | 20–50% (residential), 10–25% (commercial) | Materials, scaffold, project mobilisation |
| Progress | At milestones during job | 30–40% per stage | Cashflow during job |
| Final | On completion sign-off | Remainder | Trigger warranty start, close project |
The Surfacely deposit auto-generation
When a quote is accepted, Surfacely auto-generates the deposit invoice based on the org's settings. The deposit invoice:
- Uses a sequence-numbered ID (DEP-001, DEP-002, etc.)
- References the project and quote number
- Opens in the client portal for Stripe payment or bank transfer
- Records the payment receipt against the project's financial record
Variation invoicing
When the client approves a variation (Addition or Reduction), Surfacely generates a variation invoice or credit note. The variation flows through the same payment portal as the original invoice.
Stripe vs bank transfer
Most residential clients prefer the Stripe payment button — instant, with email receipt. Commercial clients often request bank transfer with reference. Surfacely supports both — payment details show on the invoice from the org's paymentDetails settings.
Payment terms
Default terms: deposit on acceptance, progress invoices payable within 7 days, final invoice within 14 days. The painter configures default terms in quoteSettings.terms.paymentTerms and overrides per-quote where needed.