Stored Materials on the G703: How to Bill Them Without Getting Rejected

To bill stored materials on the G703 continuation sheet without a rejection, confirm the contract allows it, get written approval from the architect and owner before the pay application goes out, and enter only uninstalled material in Column F at the exact vendor invoice amount. Back every Column F dollar with an invoice, proof of storage location, insurance, and title documentation where the contract calls for it. Then move the value out of Column F as the material is installed, and apply retainage to it like any other billed amount.

Why Stored Materials Billing Gets Rejected

Billing for stored materials is one of the fastest ways to get a pay application kicked back. Architects and owners scrutinize these line items closely, and rightfully so. You're asking to be paid for work that hasn't been installed yet. The documentation requirements are strict, the accounting treatment is easy to get wrong, and most contractors don't have a repeatable process for it. The result is a late payment or a corrected pay app that sits in review for another month.

The G703 has a dedicated column for stored materials, and the process is straightforward once you understand what the owner and architect need to see. The seven steps below run from the day materials arrive on site, or at a remote storage facility, to the billing period where they are incorporated into the work and shift columns. Follow them in order and you will not leave money on the table or hand the architect a reason to reject your draw.

How Column F Works on the G703

Column F on the G703 is labeled "Materials Presently Stored (Not in D or E)." That last part matters. Column F is only for materials on hand but not yet installed. Materials already incorporated into the work belong in Column D or Column E.

Here is how the math flows across the columns for a single line item:

• Column C: Scheduled value (your contract amount for that line)
• Column D: Work completed from previous applications
• Column E: Work completed this period (labor and installed material)
• Column F: Materials presently stored
• Column G: Total completed and stored to date (D + E + F), with percent complete (G divided by C) shown beside it
• Column H: Balance to finish (C minus G)
• Column I: Retainage, calculated on the combined total of Columns D, E, and F at your contract retainage rate

Every stored materials entry must tie back to a specific Schedule of Values line. You cannot create a new line mid-project just for stored materials without a change order. Setting those lines up well at the start is covered in our guide to schedule of values best practices for lump-sum and unit-price contracts.

Before You Bill: Contract, Approval, and Documentation

Step 1: Confirm Your Contract Allows Stored Materials Billing

Before you do anything else, read the contract. Not every owner-contractor agreement allows payment for stored materials. Some that do add conditions: the materials must be on-site only, or they need an additional insurance endorsement, or the stored materials amount is capped at a percentage of the contract value.

Pull out Article 9 of the AIA A201 General Conditions, or your project-specific equivalent, and note the exact language. On a custom owner contract, find the payment application section. Write down the specific conditions. They become the standard your documentation must meet.

Step 2: Get Written Approval Before You Bill

Most architects require written approval before stored materials appear on a pay application. Submit a written request to the architect and owner as soon as you know you need to bill for stored materials. Include the material description, quantity, value, and proposed storage location.

Do not assume approval. "We always bill for stored materials on this type of project" is not a substitute for a written sign-off. An unapproved stored materials line is the fastest way to get Column F flagged and your entire pay app delayed.

Step 3: Assemble the Documentation Package

This is where most applications fail. The documentation must be specific and complete before you prepare the G703 entry. Have these items ready:

• Vendor invoice, delivery receipt, or bill of lading: It shows the material description, quantity, and dollar amount. The invoice must match the dollar amount you bill. Do not estimate.
• Proof of payment or a clear payment obligation: Some owners require evidence you have paid the vendor before they will pay you for stored materials. Know what your contract says.
• Proof of storage location: A written statement, site photo, or delivery confirmation showing where the materials are stored, either on-site or at an approved off-site facility.
• Insurance documentation: A certificate of insurance covering the stored materials, especially for off-site storage. Most contracts require the materials to be covered under your builder's risk or an inland marine policy. For off-site materials, the owner may require a separate endorsement naming them as an additional insured on the storage location's policy.
• Bill of sale or title documentation: Needed if the owner's contract requires it for off-site materials. That typically means a bonded warehouse agreement or a certificate of title showing the owner's name on the materials.
• Schedule of Values line reference: The specific line each stored material entry belongs to.

The G706A contractor's affidavit of release of liens and a stored materials schedule are sometimes requested together.

On-Site vs. Off-Site Storage: Different Rules

On-site stored materials are generally easier to approve. The owner can visit the jobsite and verify the materials exist. Keep them clearly identified, protected from weather and theft, and staged so inspection is simple.

Off-site storage gets the most scrutiny. If your steel is sitting in a fabricator's yard instead of at the jobsite, the owner wants to know they have some legal claim to it before writing you a check. Off-site materials take more paperwork and, in many cases, the owner's written approval before you can bill them at all. Check Section 9.3.2 of the AIA A201 General Conditions. It states that the owner is not required to include off-site stored materials in a pay application unless the contractor provides documentation satisfactory to the owner and the materials are insured and identified as the owner's property.

Get that approval in writing before the pay application goes out. Submitting a G703 with off-site stored materials and no prior approval is a reliable way to receive a rejection letter instead of a check.

Entering and Carrying the Amount

Step 4: Enter the Amount Correctly in Column F

Column F captures only the value of materials that are stored but not yet installed. The moment those materials are incorporated into the work, you remove them from Column F and add that value to the installed work columns.

The common mistake is double-counting. If you bill $40,000 of roofing membrane in Column F this period and install it next month, you move that amount out of Column F and into Column E, the column for work completed this period. You do not add it to E on top of what is already in F. The total in Column G for that line stays flat or increases with real work or new deliveries. It never jumps because of an accounting error. If Column G goes up without a matching increase in actual work or new material deliveries, the architect will notice and ask questions.

The opposite error is leaving materials in Column F after they have been installed. That overstates stored materials and understates completed work. Auditors and architects catch this. Fix it before submission, not after.

Also confirm that the sum of Columns D, E, and F for each line does not exceed the scheduled value in Column C. If a stored materials entry would push a line over its scheduled value, you need a change order first.

Step 5: Track the Material Through the Full Billing Cycle

Create an internal stored materials log. A simple spreadsheet works fine. Track the following for each entry:

• G703 line item and description
• Vendor invoice number and date
• Dollar amount billed in Column F
• Pay application number where it first appeared
• Date the materials were installed or incorporated
• Pay application number where the amount moved out of Column F

The log does two jobs. It keeps your G703 accurate across billing periods, and it gives you instant backup if an owner disputes a prior stored materials billing or your auditor needs to trace the draw history.

Step 6: Reconcile at the Start of Every Billing Period

Before you prepare the next pay application, go through the log. Treat it the same way you would a material inventory count. For every item sitting in Column F on the prior G703:

• Confirm whether the material is fully installed, partially installed, or still in storage.
• Move installed quantities from Column F to Column E for the current period. On the following application that value carries into Column D with the rest of the previously completed work.
• Confirm the remaining Column F balance equals the uninstalled material actually on hand.
• Verify that retainage in Column I is calculated on the combined total of Columns D, E, and F.

Retainage applies to stored materials in most contracts. Do not skip Column I on stored materials lines. Doing so inflates your net payment request and gives the owner grounds to short-pay you. For what happens to that retainage at the end of the job, see our walkthrough of the retainage release workflow from pending to final payment.

Step 7: The Final Check Before You Submit

Run through this review before you sign and notarize the G702 cover sheet:

• The Column F total on the G703 matches the sum of documented vendor invoices in your package.
• Every Column F entry has an approval letter or email on file.
• Materials installed this period have been moved out of Column F.
• Retainage is applied to Column F amounts.
• No G703 line exceeds its Column C scheduled value.
• The documentation package (invoices, photos, insurance certificates, storage agreements) is assembled and attached before the pay app goes out.

Then attach a stored materials schedule as a backup exhibit to the G703. List each material, the vendor invoice number, the storage location, the invoice amount, and the amount you are billing. This one page prevents most stored materials rejections before they happen.

A clean stored materials submission moves through architect review without a markup. That means faster approval, faster payment, and no back-and-forth over documentation you should have included the first time.

Managing G702/G703 pay applications manually gets tedious fast. EZBilling handles progress billing, retainage, and change orders in one place, including stored materials tracking across pay applications.