Live Build Stress Test
Risk mitigationFixed FeeFor Self BuildersTimetable agreed in writing at scoping
The Live Build Stress Test reconciles paid money, commitments, unpaid liabilities, changes, remaining work, cost to complete, reserve and dated shortfalls at an agreed evidence date. It shows the live financial position after procurement or work has begun, including a paused or partially procured project.
The problem
Once a building, trade, package or material order is accepted, a kit or build deposit is paid, or substantive enabling or building work starts, the project is live even if the main building has not begun. A paused build and a partially procured project stay live. Paid costs alone cannot show what remains: commitments, unpaid liabilities, changes, unpriced work, cost to complete, reserve and the dates money is needed all have to be reconciled.
The solution
At an agreed evidence date we reconcile the live position and separate what has been paid, committed, owed, changed, still to be done and not yet priced. We model cost to complete, remaining reserve and dated shortfalls, explain the risks and set out decisions and necessary actions with owners. This is a financial review, not a cost-plan preparation, programme assurance, design, survey, legal, tax or financial-product service.
How it works
You describe what has been procured and what remains
We use the project call to establish the live commitment, paused or active status, remaining scope and decision the review must support.
You provide the available live evidence
You send the project and financial evidence that exists, including gaps. The final information requirement is agreed after the call and is not assumed from a generic list.
- A
Project location, build route, finished scope, next decision and evidence date and the first construction commitment or works and current build status
EssentialWithout it: A whole-project comparison has no reliable scope
Where to find it: Your project notes and initial discussion
Why we need it: Set a common project scope and decision
- B
Original budget and current forecast, accepted prices, remaining-work estimates, exclusions and every available revision
EssentialWithout it: The expected completion cost cannot be assessed reliably
Where to find it: Your budget file, designer, builder and suppliers
Why we need it: Establish a traceable baseline and identify missing work
- C
Paid costs, unpaid invoices, accepted orders, deposits, retentions, existing commitments and actual work completed, with any disputed or uncertain liabilities
EssentialWithout it: Costs, liabilities or available cash could be misstated
Where to find it: Statements, invoices, quotations, orders and correspondence
Why we need it: Separate paid history, unpaid obligations and remaining work
- D
Cash held for the project, undrawn funds, offers and release conditions, repayments and expected receipts
EssentialWithout it: No reliable funding or cash conclusion can be given
Where to find it: Relevant statements, funding offers and your adviser
Why we need it: Establish available money and its conditions
- E
Actual progress and remaining-work dates supplied by the responsible team, payment and retention dates, overdue sums and funding-release conditions
EssentialWithout it: A total-cost comparison cannot prove payments can be met
Where to find it: Builder, designer, suppliers, lender and your records
Why we need it: Establish when payments are due and funding becomes accessible
- F
Current drawings, specification, scope descriptions and undecided selections
ImportantWithout it: Completeness and specification exposure remain uncertain
Where to find it: Your designer and supplier information
Why we need it: Compare prices against the intended finished scope
- G
Ground, drainage, utilities, access, levels, flood and other site or specialist evidence held
ImportantWithout it: Uninvestigated site exposure cannot be treated as resolved
Where to find it: Surveys, design team, utility providers and site records
Why we need it: Identify abnormal cost evidence and unresolved questions
- H
Executed or accepted builder, trade and supplier documents, payment and deposit terms, price-change terms and remaining unprocured packages
ImportantWithout it: The commercial exposure may be misunderstood
Where to find it: Quotations, contracts, orders and correspondence
Why we need it: Check scope gaps, pricing exposure and payment protection
- I
Household reserve to protect, project allocation, accommodation costs and proposed own labour or unpaid help
EssentialWithout it: The model could spend money that cannot be released
Where to find it: Your agreed household allocation and cost evidence
Why we need it: Separate project funds from household resilience
- J
Agreed and proposed changes, current concerns, setbacks, unfinished work, paused-work costs and mitigation already arranged
EssentialWithout it: Known exposure could be omitted from the tests
Where to find it: Your discussion notes and project correspondence
Why we need it: Select project-specific scenarios without double counting
- K
Previous cost reviews, advice and scenario models where available
OptionalWithout it: No comparison with previous advice can be made
Where to find it: Earlier advisers and your project files
Why we need it: Explain changed assumptions and unresolved earlier findings
Copies are fine. Send what you have and we will tell you what's missing.
- A
We confirm the live boundary and evidence date
We record the evidence cut-off and the qualifying commitment or work that makes the project live. A paused or partly procured project remains in this route.
Live position recorded
The review does not revert to pre-build because work has paused, the main building has not started or only part of the project has been procured.
We reconcile money and commitments
We separate paid money, unpaid liabilities, accepted commitments, changes and remaining work, so a low paid-cost figure cannot hide what is already owed or ordered.
We calculate cost to complete and reserve
We test the remaining scope, cost to complete, reserve and dated access to funding against the evidence and assumptions at the cut-off.
We model the shortfalls and risks
The workings and scenario model show the assumptions used, the risks exposed and any dated shortfall. It does not predict black swans or assure that a programme can be achieved.
We report the findings and discuss the decisions
The report states what was reviewed, what was found, what it means, the necessary actions with owners and decision points, and how Jack can help further. We discuss the findings with you.
We hand back the live financial position
What you get
A written review with checked workings, a scenario model and an explained risk profile. The profile considers budget completeness; design and specification; ground, site and access; materials and supply chain; contractors and procurement; labour and work you plan to do yourself; duration and weather costs; funding and cashflow; approvals, tax and completion requirements; and household reserves and contingency. The review assesses their financial effects from the information available and identifies any specialist evidence still needed. Where the information supports an assessment, we explain each material issue’s severity on a 1–5 scale and show the strength of its evidence separately. The overall assessment reflects the highest material unresolved severity, rather than an average. If essential information is missing, we mark the relevant assessment as not assessable and keep any demonstrated critical finding visible. The score helps you prioritise action; it is not a percentage chance of success or failure. The report answers five practical questions: what did we review, what did we find, what does it mean for you, what should happen next, and how can we help if further work is worthwhile? Actions have an owner and a decision point, including steps you or your current team can take. Any optional further service is separately scoped and is not needed to make the report useful.
The Handover Pack accompanies the work with its dates and sources, likely outcomes and responses, scope boundaries and ready-to-send correspondence where needed.
A one-off Fixed Fee and delivery date are agreed in writing after the project call, evidence review and scope are established.
We will agree the timetable in writing when we scope the work. We will confirm the start and target dates once we have the information needed for the agreed work. If something is missing or unusable, we will explain the options and agree any change before starting. We will confirm your target date.
Where the turnaround is stated in working days, the confirmed start day is day zero.
The turnaround ends when we issue the agreed deliverable and its supporting handover documents.
Tell us about any live deadline straight away. Contractual or statutory deadlines continue to run while information is being gathered.
We will confirm the target date for your agreed work.
Free Service Pack
A step-by-step Handbook, with the templates and working documents you need to carry out the work it covers yourself. You supply your own project information and records.
Follow the Handbook's scope and stopping points, and obtain independent advice where required. The pack is not project-specific advice or independent sign-off.
Tips that raise your odds of success
Frequently asked questions related to this service
This review is separate from work that checks a payment or prices a change. Where the findings need a repeating control, Valuation & Payment Checking or Variation Control can be separately scoped. If the whole money side needs a continuing owner, Commercial Management is another separately scoped option. The checked method-specific workbook is listed separately as the Live Build Stress Test Model. None is required to understand this report.