2025 Guide to Progress Payments in Commercial Roofing

If you're planning a commercial roofing project, chances are you'll be asked to approve “progress payments” as part of your contract. For many managers, this raises concern: Why am I paying before the job is finished? What if something goes wrong midway? What’s stopping a contractor from disappearing after the deposit?

At Equity Commercial Roofing, we’ve worked on hundreds of large-scale roofing projects where progress payments aren't just industry standard; they’re essential for keeping your job on track, your budget predictable, and your crews accountable.

In this article, you’ll learn what progress payments are, how they’re structured, and how they benefit you as much as your contractor. You’ll also get a sample payment schedule, answers to common concerns, and red flags to watch for before you sign.

Clickable Table of Contents

• What Are Progress Payments?
• Why Do Commercial Roofers Use Progress Payments?
• How Progress Payments Work on a Commercial Roofing Project
• Are Progress Payments Safe for Businesses?
• Common Concerns About Progress Payments
• Red Flags to Watch For When Using Progress Payments
• Making Progress Payments Work for Your Organization
• Planning Your Commercial Roof Budget

What Are Progress Payments?

In simple terms, progress payments are partial payments made as your roofing project moves forward. Instead of one big lump sum at the end, the total cost of the job is divided into smaller, clearly defined stages, or “milestones”.

Behind the scenes, our production manager creates a Schedule of Values (SOV). This is a detailed breakdown of your total project estimate, including:

• Mobilization: the cost to get crews, equipment, and materials to your property
• Materials: all parts of your roof, such as coatings, fasteners, etc. 
• Labor: the skilled roofing work itself
• Closeout: the final inspection, cleanup, and demobilization after completion

Each of these milestones has a set dollar value. As we complete a portion of the work, we bill only for the percent that’s actually done (for example, 25%, 50%, or 75% complete). Every invoice you receive clearly lists the percentage of progress and the type of work covered.

Why Do Commercial Roofers Use Progress Payments?

Understanding what progress payments are is one thing; understanding why they’re essential is another. Large commercial projects often stretch across several weeks or even months. Material suppliers invoice contractors immediately when products hit your job site, and skilled roofing crews need consistent weekly paychecks.

Consider this timeline: A two-month project with a standard 30-45 day payment cycle could mean contractors wait 75-90 days for any payment. Without progress payments, they'd essentially finance your entire project out of pocket.

How Progress Payments Keep Your Project Moving

When contractors know they'll be paid for completed work each week, they can keep their best crews assigned to your project instead of shuffling workers between jobs to balance cash flow. This consistency is especially important in today’s shortage of skilled roofers; steady payment keeps top-tier crews committed to your project.

The payment structure also creates natural checkpoints. Roof production managers must document completion percentages weekly, which means you receive regular updates with photo evidence of work being done.

How Progress Payments Work on a Commercial Roofing Project

Here’s a typical example of how an SOV might be structured:

For example:

• Week 1: Materials arrive, setup begins → invoice for mobilization and materials
• Week 2: 25% of the roof completed → invoice for 25% labor
• Week 3: 75% complete → next progress invoice issued
• Final: Inspection and documentation → closeout invoice

Each invoice clearly states the percentage of completion and the work performed during that period. Nothing is billed ahead of progress. If your roofers complete pressure washing and install fastener plates across 30% of your roof by Friday, that's exactly what gets invoiced.