From first deposit to final draw.
Obra runs your build on a draw schedule — the same discipline banks use to fund construction, rebuilt for homeowners and contractors. Here's every step, including the messy parts.
What's a draw schedule?
Banks never hand a builder the whole loan on day one. They split it into draws — chunks of money tied to finished stages of work — and release each one when the stage is verified. It's how construction lending has protected money for a century. Obra gives that same structure to the money between a homeowner and a contractor, minus the bank, the paperwork, and the waiting.
| Draw | Milestone | Amount | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Excavation | $21,000 | RELEASED |
| 02 | Foundation | $65,500 | RELEASED |
| 03 | Framing | $48,500 | AWAITING APPROVAL |
| 04 | Rough-ins | $22,000 | IN ESCROW |
| 05 | Drywall | $12,500 | IN ESCROW |
| 06 | Finishes | $14,000 | IN ESCROW |
| 07 | Final walkthrough | $6,000 | IN ESCROW |
Six phases. Everyone can see all of them.
Set the schedule
Homeowner and contractor agree on the scope, break it into milestones, and put a dollar amount on each one. Obra turns that into the project's draw schedule, and both sides e-sign it. Nothing funds until both signatures are in.
- Milestone amounts must add up to the contract total — no mystery math.
- The contractor's license is verified at setup and shown on every draw.
- Need to change things later? Change orders amend the schedule — see below.
Fund the escrow
The homeowner deposits by ACH or wire into an FDIC-insured escrow account held by our licensed Utah title & escrow partner. From that moment, both sides watch the same ledger: what's in escrow, what's been released, what's next.
Build & document
The crew builds. When a milestone is done, they capture photos and a video walkthrough right in the app — each one timestamped and GPS-matched to the project site. A conditional lien waiver attaches to the draw automatically.
- About two minutes of documentation per draw, from the phones the crew already carries.
- Works in English or Spanish — the evidence reads the same in both.
- The waiver is the receipt that protects the homeowner's title. No paper chase.
Review & approve
The homeowner gets a notification the moment the draw is submitted. They review the evidence from anywhere — the office, a beach, the driveway — and tap approve. Takes about a minute. Questions? Ask them in-thread before anything moves.
Release
Approval lands the draw on the escrow officer's dashboard as a one-click release, backed by the evidence and the signed waiver. Same-day ACH hits the contractor's account, and everyone gets the receipt.
- Typical release: under 24 hours from submission. Industry average: 74 days.
- Every release is logged — who approved, when, what evidence backed it.
Close out
The final draw releases with an unconditional final lien waiver — the document that says every crew and supplier has been paid and no one can claim against the home. The homeowner keeps the full visual archive of the build, from excavation to walkthrough.
Builds don't go sideways politely. Obra plans for it.
Disputes
The draw pauses, funds freeze in escrow, and a five-day review window opens with the evidence on the table. Then a defined resolution path — not a shouting match, not a lawyer's letter as the opening move.
Change orders
Scope changes mid-build — it always does. Either side proposes a change order in-app, both approve it, and the draw schedule and escrow adjust. The ledger stays honest the whole way.
Walk-aways
If a project stalls or a contractor disappears, the unreleased money is still sitting in escrow — it was never in their account. A defined wind-down path returns unearned funds to the homeowner.
Three people. One ledger.
Funds & approves
Deposits into escrow, reviews the evidence for each milestone, and taps approve. Their money never moves without them.
Builds & documents
Does the work, captures the proof, submits the draw. Gets paid the same day it's approved — not two months later.
Holds & releases
A licensed Utah professional holds the funds and executes each release with one click, backed by evidence and a signed waiver.
See it on your own build.
Now piloting with custom builds and remodels on the Wasatch Front.