Repair estimates: approve, pay, or ask for changes

When a vendor's estimate for a repair at your home is ready for you, we send you a message in Messages. It lists the property, the work order and the estimate amount, and links to Work Orders & Bills. You may also get an email, a text or a phone notification about the same message.

On Work Orders & Bills, estimates waiting on you are on the Needs approval tab (shortened to Approve on a phone). That tab opens first. Work that is already under way is under In progress, and finished work is under History.

Each work order is one card. The top line is its number after the # sign and the kind of request; the line under it is the home's address. The status sits at the top right: a card waiting on you reads Needs your approval, with how long it has been waiting under it. Below that are the description of the work and the photos taken when it was reported.

Then come the estimates. The heading reads Estimate for one, or Estimates (2) when several vendors have quoted. Each estimate shows the vendor, when it was received, the amount, any comments from the vendor, and a View estimate PDF link to the vendor's quote. At the bottom of the card is the Approve & pay button, which names the amount you are approving, and a link to your conversation with the team about this work order.

An estimate you have already approved carries an Approved tag, and the card no longer offers Approve & pay: there is nothing left for you to do. If the estimates panel reads “No estimate yet. We'll post it here when the vendor sends it.”, the vendor hasn't sent a quote yet, so there is nothing to approve.

When more than one vendor has quoted, you choose one estimate: each has a button beside it, and the cheapest carries a Lowest tag. The cheapest is chosen to start with; choosing another changes the amount on the Approve & pay button.

1. 1
   Open each estimate's PDF, and any other files the vendor attached, such as photos.
2. 2
   Check that the estimates cover the same work: parts and labor, and anything like permits or disposal. A lower amount can mean a smaller job.
3. 3
   If something is unclear, ask before you approve: reply to the estimate message in Messages, or contact maintenance@dvcommunities.com or (281) 729-4229.
4. 4
   Choose the estimate you want, then press Approve & pay.

Approve & pay approves only the estimate you chose. The portal has no Decline button; to decline an estimate, tell the team in Messages or by email or phone.

Approving and paying are one step. Nothing is approved until you finish it.

1. 1
   Press Approve & pay under the estimates. The Submit Payment window opens with the address, the work order number, the vendor, the estimate number and the payment amount.
2. 2
   Under Choose Payment Method, pick one:

   • Available funds uses money the home already holds, with no fee. It is listed first.
   • Bank Account has no fee.
   • Credit Card adds a 4% processing fee, and can only be chosen when the estimate plus the fee is $15,000 or less.
3. 3
   Review the details and confirm. Each method's last step is described below.

Choosing Available funds does not spend the money when you approve. It sets the amount aside in the home's balance, so it stays there instead of being paid out to you, and the vendor is paid from it when their bill arrives.

1. 1
   Check the review, headed Approve from available funds. It shows the amount reserved from the home's balance and what the balance will be after this repair.
2. 2
   Press Approve and reserve. The button shows the amount.
3. 3
   The window confirms that the estimate is approved and the amount is reserved. We will schedule the work and pay the vendor from this balance.

The home has to cover the whole estimate: there is no partial approval. If it can't, the card reads Not enough available funds in this home and can't be chosen, so pay by bank or card, or add money to the home in your Wallet first.

Bank Account

No fee. Choose the bank account and press Approve & Pay Estimate. The estimate is approved and our team is notified of your payment.

Credit Card

Adds a 4% processing fee, shown on the card before you choose it. Your card is charged first, and the estimate is approved only once the charge goes through. If the card is declined, nothing is approved and you can try again another way.

Once it goes through, you will see Payment Submitted Successfully. Your work order payment has been submitted and our team has been notified.

Before anything is charged, we check the estimate again with Rentvine. If it has already been approved, or the vendor changed the amount since the page loaded, the payment is refused and nothing is charged. Refresh the page to see where the estimate stands.

The portal has no Decline button, even though the estimate message says to approve or decline. To decline an estimate, ask for another quote, or ask for a smaller or different scope of work, tell the team:

• reply to the estimate message in Messages, or
• contact maintenance@dvcommunities.com or (281) 729-4229, the details shown under every estimate.

Include the work order number (after the # sign on the card), the vendor, and what you want: decline it, get another quote, or do only part of the work, such as the urgent repair.

Once you approve, the estimate carries an Approved tag and the card's status at the top right changes to Estimate approved. The work order then moves to In progress while the team schedules the work. If the card still sits on the Needs approval tab showing its earlier status, the update has not come through yet; the Approved tag is what tells you your part is done.

On the In progress and History tabs, a bar shows how far along the work order is. The current step is in bold, with a dot after it; on a phone the bar reads “Step 2 of 4” with the step's name. The Approved step only appears when you approved an estimate for the work.

When the team marks the work complete, it moves to History.