Glossary · Legal, Title & Liens
Punch List
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Definition
A punch list is the written list of small items still open at the end of a build: touch-up paint, a missing cover plate, a door that does not latch, a cracked tile, a downspout not connected. The builder works it down before final completion, and lenders typically hold the last draw, or a holdback, until it is cleared.
Where it comes from.
Near the end of the job the owner, the builder and often the lender's inspector walk the house and write down everything that is incomplete, damaged or wrong. The walk marks substantial completion: the house is usable for its purpose, and the list is what stands between usable and finished. Each item is small; the list is not always, and a long list at walkthrough tells the lender something about how the job was run.
Where the draw inspection fits.
The final draw inspection records the open punch items with a photo of each, so the lender knows what it is holding money against and the builder knows what closes it. A re-inspection confirms the items closed, photographs the corrections and releases the hold. The Draw Inspection Field Guide lists "punch list complete, site cleaned" among the stage 7 checkpoints beside the certificate of occupancy and the final lien waivers.
Why it matters for lenders.
The last draw is the lender's last leverage. Once it is funded, a builder's reason to come back for a sticking door is goodwill. Holding a holdback or the final payment until the list is cleared is standard practice in construction contracts and in loan agreements, and the AIA payment documents tie final payment to completion of the work and the release of liens. What is a construction holdback? explains the hold itself, and What is a lien waiver and when is it required for a draw? covers the waivers collected alongside the cleared list.
How RAZE handles it.
A RAZE final inspection documents each open item with a photo tied to its line, and the re-inspection documents the correction. The lender decides when the hold is released.
Sources
Primary sources only. Where a figure appears on this page, it comes from one of these.
See the workflow behind the answer.
RAZE standardizes how draw inspections are ordered, dispatched, captured and delivered, inside the loan administration workflow a lender already runs.
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