# How your project budget is calculated

> The difference between a base budget and a total budget, how Simple and Detailed modes differ, and what approved change orders and payments change.

A renovation project has two budget numbers. The **base budget** is what you plan and type in. The **total budget** is the base plus every approved change order. You edit the base. Re:InvestorHub works out the total for you.

## The parts

| On screen | What it means |
|---|---|
| **Total Project Budget** (Simple mode) | The base budget you type. It is the only budget field you edit in Simple mode. |
| **Estimated Budget** (Detailed mode) | The sum of every line item's **Total**. This is your base in Detailed mode. |
| **Base Budget** | Shown at the top of the Budget tab once a change order has been approved. The base before change orders. |
| **+ $X approved change orders** | The sum of the change orders you approved. |
| **Total Budget** | Base plus approved change orders. The same figure appears in the **Total Budget** card at the top of the project. |
| **Amount Paid** | The payments you have logged. |
| **Amount Owed** (Simple) / **Remaining** (Detailed) | What is left to pay. |

## Simple and Detailed

The **Budget** tab has a **Simple** and a **Detailed** switch. Switching does not delete what you entered in the other mode.

**Simple** is one number. You enter a **Total Project Budget**, then log payments against it. **Amount Owed** is the total budget minus **Amount Paid**, never below zero, and the progress bar shows paid as a share of the total budget.

**Detailed** is a budget built from phases and line items. A line item's **Total** is its **Labor** plus its **Materials**, added for you. The base budget is the sum of all line item totals, and **Amount Paid** is the sum of the payments logged on the line items. Line items you have not placed in a phase are still counted.

> **Note:** A new project begins in Simple mode. If you start a rehab from the Deal Pipeline, the deal's rehab budget becomes its total budget when the deal had one. Switch to Detailed on the **Budget** tab when you want phases and line items.

## How it changes as you work

1. **You edit the base.** Type a new **Total Project Budget** in Simple mode, or add and change line items in Detailed mode. The total updates to match.
2. **You log a payment.** **Amount Paid** goes up and **Amount Owed** or **Remaining** goes down. In Simple mode **Log Payment** is disabled until the total budget is above zero.
3. **A change order is approved.** Its amount is added to the total budget in both modes. You do not edit the budget by hand. A change order that is still **Pending** or was **Rejected** adds nothing.

Only an **Admin** can approve a change order, so see [How roles and permissions work](https://docs.reinvestorhub.ai/how-it-works/roles-and-permissions/) if the **Approve** option is missing for you.

> **Warning:** In Detailed mode, do not add a line item for an approved change order. The total already includes it, so a matching line item would count the same money twice.

## A worked example

Maya budgets a rehab in Simple mode with a **Total Project Budget** of **$48,000**. She logs two payments, **$12,000** and **$8,000**.

- **Amount Paid:** $20,000
- **Amount Owed:** $28,000

Her contractor finds rotted subfloor, and she approves a **$3,500** change order.

- **Base Budget:** $48,000
- **+ $3,500 approved change orders**
- **Total Budget:** $51,500
- **Amount Owed:** $51,500 minus $20,000, which is $31,500

Her base budget never changed. If she rejected the change order instead, every number would stay as it was.

## Good to know

- Removing a line item deletes its cost estimate and the payments logged against it, and the total budget drops with it.
- Amount Owed and the progress bar measure against the total budget, not the base. The moment you approve a change order, the amount left to pay rises.
- In Detailed mode, the **Estimated Budget** card on the Budget tab adds up line items only. The **Total Budget** card at the top of the project includes approved change orders.
- Approving a change order that adds days to the schedule also moves the project's target completion date back by those days, when the project has one.
- The budget a deal carried while you analyzed it is separate from the project's budget. After the project exists, change its budget on the project's **Budget** tab.

## Related

  - [Budget and change orders](https://docs.reinvestorhub.ai/guides/run-a-renovation-project/budget-and-change-orders/): Set a budget, log payments and create change orders.
  - [Project statuses](https://docs.reinvestorhub.ai/reference/field-reference/project-statuses/): What each project status means.
  - [How the deal pipeline works](https://docs.reinvestorhub.ai/how-it-works/the-deal-pipeline/): How starting a rehab creates a project.
  - [Roles explained](https://docs.reinvestorhub.ai/reference/team-and-roles/roles-explained/): Who can approve a change order.