Create progressive invoices in Houzz Pro from an estimate

1. Check that Progressive Invoicing is on under Settings > Business Documents > Features > Cost Features; Houzz Pro turns it on by default for builders and off for designers.
2. Open the approved estimate in the project, click Create Invoice on the top toolbar and choose Progressive Invoice in the modal.
3. Type a percentage in the % field at the top to bill the entire estimate, or set % on one category or line item to bill a single phase, then click Create Invoice.
4. For a milestone, tick the line items with the left checkboxes and pick Remaining to Invoice to bill them in full.
5. Preview, click Send, and do the same on every active project at each draw. Houzz Pro keeps the remaining balance in the estimate Total area, but tracking which draw each project has reached is left to whoever does the billing.

Bill the next draw on the approved Oak Street estimate: 30% for rough-in. Check what is already invoiced, create the invoice and send it to Dana, issued on send.

1. 01

   Find the right estimate

   The agent matches the project name with list_projects, then reads list_estimates and takes the one marked approved. When a project has two approved estimates, such as the base contract and an add-on, it asks which one the draw belongs to.

2. 02

   Work out what is left

   list_invoices returns every invoice on the project, drafts included. The agent adds them up against the estimate subtotal and stops when the requested percentage would pass what remains, since Houzz Pro will not bill beyond the remaining balance. A draft for the same draw left from an earlier run is reused, not duplicated.

3. 03

   Create the draw

   create_invoice gets percent for an across-the-board draw, or item_ids when the milestone is a phase such as Cabinets and Countertops. One invoice never mixes the two.

4. 04

   Send with the right lock

   send_document emails the draft with your message. issue_on_send is set only when the prompt asks for it, because an issued invoice is locked and, with QuickBooks Online connected, lands in your books. You approve each send unless confirmation is off.

5. 05

   Report per project

   The run ends with each project, the share billed so far and the balance left, so the next draw starts from the right number.

Oak Street Kitchen, estimate "Kitchen remodel" ($29,500, approved)
Already invoiced: 30% deposit, INV-0011, $8,850
New: INV-0012, 30% rough-in, $8,850, sent to dana@example.com, issued on send
Billed so far: 60%, remaining $11,800
Skipped: Birch Lane Bath, 40% requested but only 25% left to invoice

• A Houzz Pro progressive invoice shows the share billed in an Invoiced % column, and its Quantity column follows it, for example 0.5 for 50%.
• The source Houzz Pro estimate updates the Invoiced % of each line item, lists every linked invoice, and shows Partially Invoiced under General Info after a milestone invoice.
• Unpaid scheduled payments on a Houzz Pro estimate carry over to an invoice created from it.
• Houzz Pro locks an invoice once it is issued, through Actions > Issue Invoice or Issue Upon Sending under Approval settings, and issued invoices sync to QuickBooks Online when the account is connected.
• Houzz Pro invoice automations, under the lightning bolt icon next to the Actions dropdown, can email the client when an invoice is overdue or has an overdue payment.

send_document asks for your OK by default. To run it on a schedule without you, switch confirmation off for that tool in your dashboard.

Sources: Houzz Pro Help: How to Use Progressive Invoicing · Houzz Pro Help: How to Create an Invoice · Houzz Pro Help: How to Use Automations on Documents

curl https://cotlet.dev/api/v1/houzz-pro/create_invoice \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $COTLET_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"estimate_id":"est_48213","percent":30}'

{
  "invoice_id": "inv_77105",
  "code": "INV-0012",
  "project": "Oak Street Kitchen",
  "status": "draft",
  "subtotal": 8850,
  "currency": "USD"
}

MCP: add https://cotlet.dev/mcp/v1 with the same key; the tool is houzz-pro_create_invoice. Example data.

• Follow up on stale Houzz Pro leads
• Houzz Pro API and MCP server: every tool
• All use cases