Subs and suppliers get paid on schedule while owners pay contractors on draws. We lay out the lien clock and the cash-gap math for Amarillo builders.
Apply Now →A contractor in Amarillo, the county seat of Potter County and the largest city in the Panhandle, buys materials and pays crews as the job moves, but is paid on a schedule: a deposit, then draws as milestones are reached, then retainage at the end. The lag between spending and being paid is where the trouble starts.
A crew is paid every week or two. A lumber or concrete supplier typically wants payment within a month. A draw may be approved only after inspection and paperwork, which can slip. The contractor sits between all three, financing the project from their own account.
Take a $240,000 remodel of a commercial space with four draws of $60,000. The first draw covers the deposit. Before draw two, the contractor pays $38,000 for materials and $26,000 in labor. If draw two is released three weeks after the milestone, the contractor has carried $64,000 for most of a month. Add a second project in the same period and the cash needed doubles. These numbers are invented to show the arithmetic and are not our terms.
Texas Property Code section 53.052 covers lien affidavits filed with the county clerk. For non-residential work, an original contractor's deadline is the 15th day of the fourth month after the month the work was completed. Missing a lien deadline can cost a contractor leverage on a slow-paying owner, so track it job by job. This is a general description, not legal advice, so confirm dates with your attorney.
Texas Property Code section 28.004 also provides that overdue amounts accrue interest from the day after the due date at 1-1/2 percent per month. Both rules are tools for the collection side. Neither puts cash in your account this week.
Funding runs from $25,000 to $5,000,000 and can arrive in as little as 24 hours after approval. The application takes about five minutes and starts with a soft credit pull, and sole proprietors can apply, which covers many independent trades. See working capital for a payroll and materials bridge and equipment financing for trucks, skid steers and tools. Some contractors in the area also serve restaurants and shops; compare the restaurant cash cycle for context. Residential remodeling is a segment where we do not promise funding.
Spending ahead of payment. Crews and suppliers are paid before the owner releases the next draw.
Under Tex. Prop. Code 53.052, it is the 15th day of the fourth month after the month the work was completed. This is general information, not legal advice.
Be cautious. Borrowing against money you may not collect adds risk. Settle the dispute, or size the request to costs you can cover without that draw.
Yes. Sole proprietors can apply, with a five-minute application and a soft credit pull.
In as little as 24 hours after approval, with amounts from $25,000 to $5,000,000.
Three months of business bank statements and a 5-minute application. FICO 500+ considered. $25,000 to $5,000,000, funded in as little as 24 hours.
Apply Now →It takes about two minutes and it will not affect your credit score.
No obligation • No impact to your credit score
