Free email template

Deposit request email, before you order.

Cabinets, a custom door, a condenser, a pallet of shingles. Once it's ordered, it's your money on the line. This email asks for the deposit plainly and tells the customer exactly what it buys.

The deposit request

Send it the day they say yes, not on the start date, and never after you've already bought the materials.

Subject: Deposit to order materials for your [job type]

Hi [Customer first name],

Great to have you on the schedule for [job type] starting [Start date]. To hold that date and order [the main materials, e.g. the cabinets and the quartz top], I need a deposit of [Deposit amount], which is [Deposit percent] of the [Quote total] quote.

You can pay by card here: [Pay link]

Once it's in, I'll place the order with [Supplier] the same day. [Lead time, e.g. Cabinets are running about 4 weeks], so the sooner the deposit comes in, the sooner that clock starts.

The balance of [Balance amount] is due [when, e.g. on completion, or half at rough-in and half at completion], as in your estimate.

Any questions about what's included, call me at [Phone].

Thanks, [Your name] [Company]

Let Redline write it for you

A starting point, not legal advice. Deposit rules for home improvement work vary by state, so check yours, and match your signed estimate, before you set the amount.

What to change

Name the materials the deposit buys. "Deposit" alone sounds like a fee. "The deposit orders your cabinets" sounds like progress
Put the real lead time in. It's the honest reason to pay now, and it heads off "when are you starting?" calls
Copy the balance terms from your estimate word for word, so the email and the paperwork never disagree
Check your state's rules before you set the percent. Some states limit deposits on home improvement work
If you take checks too, add a line saying who to make it out to

Deposit invoice and email, one message

Bill Okafor the 40% deposit on the kitchen quote and draft the email. Cabinets are 4 weeks out

Here's a deposit invoice for Grace Okafor: $8,600, 40% of the $21,500 kitchen quote. Approve it and the card pay link goes live.

Subject: Deposit to order your cabinets

Hi Grace, to hold your start date and order the cabinets, I need a deposit of $8,600 (40% of the quote). You can pay by card here: [pay link]. Cabinets are running about 4 weeks, so I'll place the order the day it comes in.

Thanks, Sam

Approve the invoice first so the pay link goes live, copy it into the email with Edit, then tap Approve & send.

Done, both sent. Remind me Friday to check it came in.

Reminder set for Friday. It'll be in that morning's brief.

Deposits and pay links are on Solo. Nothing goes to Grace until you approve it, and Redline doesn't text.

How deposits work in Redline

A quote in Redline can carry a deposit percent, so the number is already worked out when the customer says yes. On Solo and up, Money keeps deposits in their own list under Invoices, and each one gets a card pay link on your own Stripe account, the same as any invoice. When the job's done, you bill the balance. See quotes and estimates and invoicing.

Two honest limits. A customer can't approve your quote online and set off the deposit invoice by themselves today, so this email is the ask. And deposit invoices aren't part of the day 3, 7 and 14 overdue alerts, so set a reminder to check the money came in before you place the order.

Questions contractors ask

Can the customer pay the deposit some other way?

The Redline pay link takes cards only. If you also take checks, say so in the email, and log the payment on their file when it clears ("log a $8,600 check from Grace").

Which plan do I need?

Building a quote with a deposit percent works on Free. Billing the deposit with a card pay link needs Solo, $29 a month with a 7-day free trial on the web. See pricing.

What if the job changes after the deposit?

Put the change in writing before the extra work. The change order approval email is built for exactly that.

Get the deposit in before the supplier bill.

Start free, build the quote by chat, and turn on Solo when you're ready to bill deposits by card.

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