Use this worksheet to organize the contract basis, supporting costs and questions behind a proposed change. It helps structure your own review; it does not replace project-specific professional judgment.
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Buying more than one? The Construction Document Bundle is all three review worksheets for $225.
Not sure yet? Read the free guide first: it teaches the method; the worksheet runs it.
You supply your contract and the contractor's paperwork. The worksheet supplies the discipline.
Is this even a reviewable change order? Seven checks on the paperwork itself: written form, real price, cost breakdown, schedule impact, stated reason, notice window, and whether the work already happened. Defective paperwork goes back before you evaluate anything.
Does the contract make you pay for this at all? Every claim sorts into one of four buckets, from owner-directed changes (you owe a fair price) to contractor error dressed up as a concealed condition (you owe nothing). The bucket decides everything downstream.
The five places money hides: labor rates that drifted from the bid, unsupported material pricing, stacked overhead and profit across tiers, unit-price math, and the credit for deleted work that owners forget to ask for. Printed thresholds where honest industry norms exist.
Approve as submitted, approve with corrections, or request substantiation. Fill in the blanks, send the same day, keep the record. Silence is the one response the worksheet never allows.
A six-step worksheet helps compare the supporting paperwork with the contract and organize questions for your project team. The applicable contract governs change authorization; review time depends on complexity and the information available.
The Change-Order Review Worksheet is a diligence tool, not legal advice. Markup ranges and thresholds reflect customary practice for small commercial work; your signed contract always governs where it differs.
Rather have me run the review? Send the change order with the contract and get a written yes, no, or not-yet in two business days. Change Order Review, from $750 →