Certified General Contractor/Contract Admin

Documentation & Closeout

20% of this exam

The paper that runs the project: submittals, the schedule of values, pay applications and retainage, then the closeout sequence — substantial completion, punch list, consent of surety, and record drawings. Expect at least one retainage math question; the rest are definitions straight out of A201 Articles 3, 9, and 12.

Core concepts

Submittals prove conformance, not transfer design

Shop drawings, product data, and samples (A201 §3.12) show how the contractor will conform to the design concept. The architect's review is for design-concept conformance only — it does not shift design responsibility or relieve the contractor of dimensions, quantities, or means and methods.

Payment runs through the schedule of values

Before the first pay application, the contractor submits a schedule of values allocating the contract sum among work items (A201 §9.2); each application (G702/G703) measures progress against those lines. Retainage — typically 5–10% — is withheld from each progress payment as security. Payment due = (work completed × (1 − retainage)) − previous payments.

Substantial completion is the pivot date

Substantial completion (A201 §9.8) is when the owner can occupy or use the work for its intended purpose — punch list items can remain. It starts the one-year correction period (§12.2), shifts utilities and insurance responsibility, and triggers retainage release provisions. The correction period runs from substantial completion, not final payment.

Closeout has a checklist

Punch list completion, record drawings (as-builts marked with actual installed conditions), warranties and O&M manuals, and — on bonded jobs — the surety's consent to final payment (G707). Releasing retainage without surety consent can prejudice the surety's rights and impair the owner's bond protection.

Key facts to know cold

RetainageTypically 5–10% withheld from each progress payment until completion (A201 Art. 9)

Schedule of valuesAllocates the contract sum by work item; basis for reviewing pay applications (A201 §9.2)

Substantial completionOwner can occupy/use the work for its intended purpose (A201 §9.8)

Correction period1 year from substantial completion (A201 §12.2)

Consent of suretyObtain before final payment/retainage release on bonded work (AIA G707)

Record drawings (as-builts)Site set marked with actual installed conditions and deviations (A201 §3.11)

Where it lives in your books

The real exam is open book. Knowing which book — and which tab — answers this domain is worth as much as memorizing it.

contract

AIA Documents

A201 article numbers are the map: Art. 3 contractor, Art. 7 changes, Art. 8 time, Art. 9 payments, Art. 11 insurance, Art. 12 corrections, Art. 14 termination, Art. 15 claims. Most Contract Admin questions cite one of these.

12 recommended tabs

Lookup strategy

· Three A201 stops cover the domain: §3.11–3.12 (record documents, submittals), Article 9 (schedule of values, retainage, substantial completion), §12.2 (1-year correction).
· For retainage math, write the formula first: earned to date × (1 − retainage %) − previous payments. Distractors come from applying retainage to the current period only.

Reading isn't learning — retrieval is.

13 questions in this domain, each with an explanation and source.