Budget estimate
Planning values organize the project and provide a category-level benchmark. They are never billed directly.
Cost Plus construction software
Bill actual project costs without losing the paper trail.
Foundation connects actual costs, source invoices, builder fees, draw approvals, and payments in one Cost Plus workflow built for custom homes and residential construction.
$199/month base plan + $8 Subscription Service Fee ($207 total). Unlimited users and projects.
Cost Plus Draw 2
Costs included in this draw
Monarch Flooring
Hardwood installation
$18,640.00
Stone & Tile Works
Primary bath material
$7,825.50
Project labor
Trim coordination
$2,960.00
Direct costs$29,425.50
Builder fee (20%)$5,885.10
Current draw$35,310.60
3 source documents attached to the submitted cost records
Actual-cost ledger
Multiple attachments
Owner and lender review
Online and offline receipts
How Cost Plus billing works
The estimate guides the job. Actual costs create the draw.
Foundation keeps planning and billing separate. A budget tells the team what was expected; an approved actual cost with its source documentation tells the builder what can be billed.
Read the draw request guide- 01
Set the project billing method
Choose Cost Plus in Project Settings and define the fee policy for that project. Fixed-price projects keep their separate draw-schedule workflow.
- 02
Record the actual cost
Enter an invoice, receipt, labor, material, subcontractor, or other allowable cost. Assign its category, vendor, date, and amount.
- 03
Attach the evidence
Add one or more source PDFs or images. The original documents stay connected to the cost and the submitted draw package.
- 04
Select unbilled costs
Review approved actual costs that have not appeared on an earlier draw. Add only the costs that belong in the current billing period.
- 05
Review cost plus fee
Foundation separates direct cost, builder fee, and current amount requested so the math can be checked before anything is sent.
- 06
Approve, pay, and reconcile
Send the draw through homeowner and lender review, collect an online payment or record an offline receipt, and retain the complete funding history.
One source of billing truth
Know what was estimated, what was spent, and what is still unbilled.
Cost Plus projects become difficult when the budget, invoices, markup worksheet, approvals, and payment log live in separate places. Foundation keeps each state explicit.
Approved actual cost
A real project expense includes vendor, category, date, amount, status, and source evidence. This is the billable input.
Funded receipt
A settled card, ACH, or offline payment updates received and outstanding balances without rewriting the approved draw.
Documentation that travels with the cost
Keep the backup invoice attached from entry through draw review.
Upload PDFs or images when the cost is recorded. Foundation can retain multiple source files, freeze the selected evidence with a submitted draw, and keep removed draft costs available for a later billing period.
Record vendor, category, description, date, and direct cost
Attach multiple invoices, receipts, or supporting images
Choose approved costs that have not appeared on an earlier draw
Remove a cost from the current draft without deleting its source record
Actual cost
Primary bath tile
- Vendor
- Stone & Tile Works
- Category
- Tile & flooring
- Direct cost
- $7,825.50
- Billing status
- Unbilled
Vendor invoice.pdf · 2 pagesReady
Delivery receipt.jpgReady
Material receipt.pdfReady
From draw request to receipt
Keep approval and payment separate—then connect them.
An approved draw confirms what may be billed. A settled receipt confirms what was actually received. Foundation reports billed, collected, and outstanding amounts separately so a signature cannot be mistaken for cash.
Review and signatures
Track homeowner review, approval, builder countersign, and lender-specific access without exposing unrelated project financials.
Card, ACH, or bank wire
Offer card or instant-verified ACH where configured, or record a linked offline receipt such as a confirmed bank wire.
Partial and reversed receipts
Show partial, paid, outstanding, refunded, and reasoned reversal states while preserving the original payment history.
QuickBooks handoff
Map the correct customer or job, import supported costs for review, and sync supported settled records without guessing by name.
Cost Plus or fixed price
Choose the billing method project by project.
A custom builder may have one open-book Cost Plus project and one milestone-based fixed-price project at the same time. Foundation keeps the workflows distinct instead of forcing one method across the whole company.
Workflow
Cost Plus
Fixed price
Billing source
Recorded actual costs
Draw schedule / progress
Builder compensation
Percentage or fixed fee
Included contract price
Supporting detail
Invoices, receipts, cost ledger
Milestone and completion detail
Project setting
Selected per project
Selected per project
Buyer checklist
What to look for in Cost Plus software.
The right system should reduce duplicate entry while making every billed dollar easier to explain. Use this checklist during your evaluation.
Actual costs stay separate from budget estimates
Unbilled costs cannot silently disappear into a prior draw
Receipts and vendor invoices stay attached to their source cost
Percentage or fixed builder fees are visible before submission
Homeowner and lender review follow role-specific access rules
Partial, paid, outstanding, refunded, and offline receipts remain auditable
Cost Plus and fixed-price projects can coexist in one company
QuickBooks mappings are explicit instead of guessed
Common questions
Cost Plus construction software FAQ
What should Cost Plus construction software track?
It should keep the original project estimate separate from billable actual costs, connect each actual cost to a category and vendor, retain supporting documents, calculate the contractual builder fee, show what has and has not been billed, and preserve approvals and payments in one audit trail.
Are budget estimates billable on a Cost Plus project?
No. In Foundation, budget categories remain planning values. Builders record actual invoices, receipts, labor, material, subcontractor, or other allowable project costs and select approved unbilled costs for a Cost Plus draw.
Can I attach more than one invoice or receipt to a Cost Plus draw?
Yes. Foundation supports multiple PDF or image attachments on Cost Plus actual costs and preserves the selected source documents with the submitted draw package.
How does Foundation calculate the builder fee?
The builder defines the project fee policy, such as a percentage of eligible actual costs or a fixed fee. Foundation calculates the applicable fee for the selected draw costs and shows direct cost, builder fee, and the current amount requested separately.
Can a homeowner or lender review the backup documents?
Submitted Cost Plus draws can include the supporting documents selected by the builder. The builder controls the package and sends the draw through the appropriate homeowner and lender review workflow.
Can homeowners pay a Cost Plus draw in Foundation?
Yes. After the draw reaches the appropriate payable state, Foundation can present card or instant-verified ACH payment options according to the builder's payment settings. Builders can also record linked offline receipts such as a bank wire and retain the settlement history.
Does Foundation connect Cost Plus projects to QuickBooks?
QuickBooks-connected builders can map a Foundation project to a QuickBooks customer or job, import supported costs for review and categorization, and sync supported settled payment records. Foundation requires explicit mappings and does not guess by project name.
Can one builder use Cost Plus and fixed-price billing?
Yes. Foundation's billing method is selected per project, so a builder can run a Cost Plus custom home and a Basic fixed-price project at the same time without mixing their draw workflows.
Related builder resources
Go deeper on draws, budgets, and changes.
Draw request process for custom home builders
Structure approvals, lender packages, and payment tracking.
How to create a construction draw schedule
Understand milestone draws and where Cost Plus billing differs.
Manage change orders without losing margin
Document scope, fee treatment, approval, and payment.
Construction budget template
Start with organized categories, then compare estimates with actual costs.
See a fully built Cost Plus project.
Open Hill Country Estate in the interactive Demo to review actual costs, Cost Plus draws, change orders, payments, project financials, and homeowner-facing approvals.
Foundation provides workflow software, not legal, accounting, tax, or lending advice. Your contract controls allowable costs, fee treatment, documentation, approval, and payment requirements.