Guide · Published 30 October 2026
How do I fund a big new job before the first draw comes in?
Cover mobilization with in-house working capital or a revolving line, then repay from the pay apps. Jobsite Funding funds $10,000 to $2,000,000 in 24 hours with no minimum credit score, and can set the first remittance up to 21 days out so it lands after the first pay app clears. Factoring cannot help yet — there is no invoice to sell — and an SBA Contract CAPLine takes 4 to 10 weeks.
$0 to apply · Soft credit pull · No impact to your credit score · 4-minute application
Who funds what. Working capital and the Drawline line of credit are underwritten and funded in-house by Jobsite Funding. Invoice factoring is placed with specialty construction factors, and term loans and SBA loans are placed with our bank and SBA lending partners. On a partner product we underwrite the file and name the partner before you sign anything.
What "before the first draw" actually costs
Mobilization typically runs 5% to 10% of contract value, and DOT and federal owners often cap the mobilization pay item right there. On a $2,000,000 site job that is $150,000 to $200,000 out the door 60 to 90 days before the first pay application clears. Add the first month of payroll, the first material buy, bonds, permits and insurance, and the hole is deeper than the mobilization line suggests.
It also comes back slowly. Startup cost is often spread across unit prices rather than billed as its own line, so the cash goes out in month one and returns over months three through eight. Then retainage holds 5% to 10% of each billing. On the calculator example we publish — a $500,000 job, 10% retainage, 75-day payment terms and $85,000 a month of costs fronted — the contractor is carrying about $262,500 of their own money at the deepest point.
Your options, side by side
| Working capital | The Drawline | SBA Contract CAPLine | Invoice factoring | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Underwritten by | In-house | In-house | SBA lending partner | Specialty-factor partner |
| Amount | $10,000–$2,000,000 | $10,000–$500,000 | Up to $5,000,000 | 70%–85% of non-retained billing |
| Time to money | 24 hours | 24 hours to open; same-day draws | 4–10 weeks | 3–7 business days setup, then 24–48 hours |
| Minimum credit score | None | None | 650+ | None — priced on the GC's credit |
| Collateral | None; personal guarantee | None; personal guarantee | Assignment of contract proceeds | The receivable |
| Covers mobilization | Yes | Yes | Yes, on an awarded contract | No — no invoice exists yet |
| Best for | One big job starting soon | Mobilizing job after job | Large awarded jobs with time to close | After billing starts |
How to size the ask
Size against the deepest point of the gap, not the average. Add up mobilization, the payroll and materials you will front until the first payment actually clears, and the retainage that will be held once billing starts. That number, not the contract value, is what you need.
On our side, the offer is sized off your 3 strongest consecutive months of deposits in the trailing twelve, inside the in-house range of $10,000 to $2,000,000. The new job itself helps: a signed contract with a schedule of values counts as revenue evidence alongside your bank deposits, as do approved pay apps and retainage receivable on the jobs you are finishing. You still need to clear the base gate of 6 months in business and $180,000 in trailing-12-month deposits.
Structure it around the job
The structure matters as much as the amount. Working capital remits weekly, not daily, because an account that receives one pay-app deposit a month cannot service a daily debit. A pay-app-aligned start date can push the first remittance up to 21 days out. If the job runs into your slow season, Off-Season Step-Down drops payments to 40% in up to 4 months you name at application, written into the 2-page agreement.
When the first big pay app lands, paying the balance off early takes up to 30% off the remaining cost of funding. And at 50% paid down you can take additional capital for the next job without a new application.
If you mobilize a new job every month or two, the Drawline is usually the better tool: open it once, draw for each mobilization, repay as each job starts billing, and pay 1.8% to 4% per 30 days only on what is drawn.
Where the SBA Contract CAPLine fits
The SBA Contract CAPLine is the closest thing to a product designed around a schedule of values. It advances against the direct cost of performing a specific awarded contract — materials, subs, payroll, mobilization — and repays itself from the progress payments. It is placed through our SBA lending partners and needs an awarded contract in hand, 1–2 years in business, a 650+ score and an assignment of contract proceeds, and it takes 4 to 10 weeks. For a job starting in three weeks it will not exist in time. The two coexist well: the Drawline for speed and pre-award costs, the CAPLine for big awarded jobs.
What you'll need
- Your EIN and business legal name. Sole proprietor, LLC, S-corp, C-corp and partnership are all eligible.
- 6 months of business bank statements — PDF upload, or link the account securely in about 60 seconds, which also lets us pull a 12-month deposit summary.
- A driver's license and a voided business check.
- The signed contract or subcontract with its schedule of values, plus the start date and the mobilization line if there is one.
- Approved pay apps and a retainage schedule from jobs you are finishing — earned-not-paid revenue counts.
- Your slow months. You will be asked to name up to 4; it affects your payment structure, not your approval.
Keep reading: working capital · the Drawline · SBA Contract CAPLine · how much a contractor can borrow · what mobilization costs · all guides
Questions that usually follow
- Can I get funding based on a signed contract?
- A signed contract with a schedule of values counts as revenue evidence alongside your bank deposits at Jobsite Funding, but it does not replace the base gate of 6 months in business and $180,000 in trailing-12-month deposits. Lending directly against an awarded contract is what the SBA Contract CAPLine does, through our SBA lending partners, in 4 to 10 weeks.
- Can invoice factoring cover mobilization?
- No. Factoring advances against an approved invoice, and before the first pay app there is nothing to factor. Mobilization is a working capital or Drawline need.
- How big a job can you fund?
- In-house working capital runs $10,000 to $2,000,000 and the Drawline $10,000 to $500,000. Through our bank and SBA partners, total financing can reach $10,000,000, and a Contract CAPLine goes up to $5,000,000.
- When does the first payment start?
- We can set the first remittance to land after your next pay application clears, up to 21 days out, so the first payment comes from the job rather than from your reserve. Remittance is weekly by default.
- Do I need collateral to fund a new job?
- No collateral is required for working capital or the Drawline. In-house products require a personal guarantee from an owner of 20% or more. An SBA Contract CAPLine takes an assignment of your contract proceeds.
The job starts Monday. The first draw does not.
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