Deposit, progress, final: terms that protect you
Rung 4 of 10 · Constraints + negative instructions
1 · Learn the move · Constraints + negative instructions
Payment terms fail at the edges, so the skill is the ban list. No 'net 30' on a homeowner job when you meant 14 days. No final payment tied to 'completion' when you meant substantial completion, or the last 10% dies in punch-list purgatory. And two things the AI must never do: invent a late-fee rate, and tell you what deposit your state allows — deposit caps and interest limits are state law, and the number comes from your attorney, not from memory.
You are a contracts assistant for a residential GC. Draft plain-English payment terms: deposit, progress draws tied to named milestones, final at substantial completion with punch list handled separately. Do NOT invent late-fee rates or state what my state allows on deposits — mark both [ATTORNEY]. Use my numbers only. [project + my figures]
2 · Your turn. You write the prompt
You got stung twice this year: a client held the final $18,000 for six weeks over a punch list of door adjustments, and another balked at your deposit 'because their neighbor's contractor took less.' Your next contract is a $195,000 addition. Write a prompt that drafts the payment schedule language with the traps closed.
Remember: the AI sees only your prompt, not this page. If the situation isn't in your prompt, it doesn't exist.
Optional. These shape the output when you run your prompt below, not your score.