What is percent complete in a draw inspection?

How it is assessed.

The budget on a construction loan is broken into line items: site work, foundation, framing, roofing, plumbing, electrical, drywall and so on. At each inspection, the inspector looks at the work behind each line and records how much of it is in place.

Three rules keep the number honest:

• Physical progress only. The percentage reflects what is built, not how long the project has run or how much the builder has spent or billed.
• Line by line. An overall completion figure is useful context, but the lender funds lines, so each line gets its own percentage.
• Against the approved scope. Approved change orders are folded into the budget before percentages are assessed; unapproved changes are noted as exceptions rather than counted as progress.

Stored materials are usually reported separately from installed work, because many loan agreements fund them under different conditions, if at all.

How lenders use it.

A simple example, with illustrative figures: the builder requests framing at 100 percent, and the inspector's photos and assessment support 85 percent. The lender can fund framing to the documented level and carry the rest to the next draw, ask for a revised request, or hold the line until the work catches up. See what happens if a draw inspection shows less work than requested.

Lenders also use the line-level percentages to check that the loan stays in balance: that the undisbursed budget is enough to finish the remaining work. Retainage, where the lender or owner holds back part of each payment until completion, is applied on top of the documented amount.

Why it matters for lenders.

Percent complete is where the funding decision meets the field evidence. Overstated percentages fund work that doesn't exist yet; the NCUA's examiner guide reminds credit unions that construction collateral is created only as improvements go in. Consistent method across inspectors matters as much as accuracy on any single visit, which is why the method belongs in the inspection criteria and the draw schedule belongs in the loan file.

How RAZE handles it.

Inspectors record percent complete against the lender's draw sheet in the RAZE Mobile App, and photos link to the draw sheet line items they support, so each percentage arrives with its evidence. The lender reviews the figures and decides what to fund.