Setting a Retainer on a Quote

 A retainer is an up-front amount you plan to collect against a quote before or as work begins. In Kudurru Stone you set the retainer on the quote itself, either as a single quote-level amount, as amounts tied to specific quote lines, or both. Once a retainer is set, it can be billed onto a project invoice as a single Retainer line. This article covers how to enter and adjust a retainer on a quote. 

Overview

Kudurru Stone supports two kinds of retainer on a quote, and they can be used together:

• Quote Retainer - a single retainer for the whole quote, entered as a dollar amount or as a percentage of the quote subtotal.
• Line Retainer - a retainer amount attached to an individual quote line.

The two are added together into a Total retainer due now, shown near the quote totals. That combined figure is what later gets billed on an invoice.

Where to find it

Open the quote (Quotes, then Edit the quote you want) and look at the totals area on the right, near Discount and Tax Rate. The Quote Retainer field sits there, and the Total retainer due now panel appears below the totals. Line Retainer fields appear on each quote line, beneath the line total.

Fields

Setting a quote-level retainer

1. In the quote totals area, find Quote Retainer.
2. Choose how to enter it:
   • Click $ to enter a fixed dollar amount (for example, 1000).
   • Click % to enter a percentage of the quote subtotal (for example, 20).
3. Type the amount in the field next to the toggle.
4. Save the quote.

When you choose percent, Kudurru Stone shows a hint confirming what will be collected, for example "Collecting $1,000.00 of $5,000.00 subtotal," so you can see the dollar value the percentage works out to.

Setting a line retainer

1. On a quote line, find the Line Retainer field beneath the line total.
2. Enter the dollar amount you want to hold as a retainer for that line.
3. Repeat for any other lines that should carry their own retainer.
4. Save the quote.

Line retainers are useful when the retainer should be attributed to specific work rather than spread across the whole quote. Each line retainer is added to the total retainer.

Total retainer due now

As you enter amounts, the Total retainer due now panel updates live. It shows the combined retainer (Quote Retainer plus all Line Retainers) alongside the Quote total, so you can sanity-check the retainer against the size of the quote before saving.

Removing a retainer

To remove a retainer, clear the value (or set it to 0) and save:

• Set the Quote Retainer field to 0 or blank to remove the quote-level retainer.
• Clear the Line Retainer field on any line to remove that line's retainer.

If the retainer has already been billed on an invoice, changing or clearing it on the quote does not change the invoice. To adjust a retainer that is already billed, remove the Retainer line from the invoice first, update the quote, then bill it again. See Adding a Retainer to an Invoice.

What happens next

Setting the retainer on the quote does not create any charge by itself. To collect it, open a project invoice, go to the Quotes tab, and use the Bill Retainer button. Kudurru Stone adds a single Retainer line to the invoice and records how the retainer covers each quote line. See Adding a Retainer to an Invoice for the full billing steps.

Tips

• Decide up front whether the retainer belongs to the whole quote (Quote Retainer) or to specific work (Line Retainer). You can use both.
• The percent option is based on the quote subtotal, so it moves if you change the line items. Check the Total retainer due now after edits.
• Save the quote after entering a retainer. The Bill Retainer button on an invoice only appears once the quote has a retainer saved.
• Keep the retainer at or below the quote total. If it is larger than the remaining billable value when you bill it, Kudurru Stone will still charge the full amount but will warn you.