A schedule of values (SOV) lists each measurable piece of work and the dollar value for that piece. Added together, the values equal the original contract sum. Progress billing is then “what percent of this line is done,” not a round-number invoice.
On most US commercial jobs the SOV is the G703 continuation sheet behind an AIA-style G702 cover. Official G703 forms are sold by AIA Contract Documents. The layout below is the same columns GCs check, not a licensed AIA template.
Why the SOV exists
Owners and GCs will not certify a lump-sum invoice that says “50% complete.” They need each trade or phase priced so stored materials, change orders, and retainage can be applied line by line. If the SOV is front-loaded (too much money in early demolition, too little in closeout), the GC will reject it before Application 1.
What goes on each line
Item number, description, scheduled value, work previously billed, work this period, stored materials, total completed and stored, percent complete, balance to finish, and retainage if the form tracks it by line. That layout is the G703 continuation sheet.
Scheduled values must sum to the original contract. Change orders that add or deduct scope belong as new or revised rows plus a net change on the G702 cover — not as a silent edit to an old line.
SOV vs G702 cover
The cover sheet is a nine-line summary. The SOV is the engine. Line 4 on the cover is the G703 grand total of completed and stored to date. If those disagree, the pay app is already wrong. How to fill out G702 and G703 walks the cover. How to bill retainage covers Line 5.
How to build one before Application 1
Start from the subcontract scope, not from last job’s spreadsheet. Split work the way you will actually bill it: mobilization, materials, rough-in, finish, commissioning. Put stored materials on their own logic (often a separate column, sometimes a separate retainage rate). Get the GC’s written approval of the SOV before you submit the first certificate — changing it later means every prior Column D/G relationship has to be rebuilt.
Common SOV mistakes
Front-loading so early applications look fat and later ones cannot support labor. Combining unrelated trades on one line so stored materials cannot be isolated. Editing a scheduled value after Application 3 without a change order. Recalculating retainage from this period only instead of carrying the cumulative holdback.
Fill a sample HVAC SOV in the G702-style pay application.