The Variation Record is a practical worksheet designed to help you control changes made during a building project. It is Tool 15 in the From Land to Home companion toolkit and supports Chapter 20 of From Land to Home. Its central rule is clear: no project change should proceed without a written price and approval, and every change should be recorded, including changes that add work and those that remove it.
Changes during construction can affect your budget, completion date and contractual responsibilities. Small additions can accumulate into significant extra costs if they are agreed informally or forgotten. The Variation Record gives you one structured place to document each change before it becomes part of the project.
Record Every Change Clearly
For each variation, the worksheet gives you space to record:
- Variation number
- Date
- What changed
- Why the change was requested
- Who requested it
- Change in cost
- Change in project duration
- Who approved it
- Approval date
- Owner’s signature
- Contractor’s signature
This creates a written history of how the project has changed from the original agreement.
Track the Cost Impact
Each variation includes a field for recording the financial effect in GH₵.
You can record increases as well as reductions, giving you a clearer picture of how changes affect the original contract price.
This is useful when reviewing your overall building budget or checking the final account.
Monitor Changes to the Programme
A change may affect more than cost. It may also extend or reduce the construction period.
The worksheet therefore includes a field for recording the number of days added to or removed from the programme.
This helps you connect design or construction changes with their effect on completion dates.
Keep Approvals in Writing
The Variation Record gives you dedicated spaces for approval details and signatures from the owner and contractor.
This can help reduce later disagreements about what was requested, what was approved and who accepted the cost or time impact.
The worksheet also advises against approving changes immediately on site. It encourages you to take time to think before accepting a variation.
Maintain Running Totals
Page 2 includes space to record:
- Running total added to project cost
- Running total added to project time
The worksheet recommends adding up these totals at the end of every month.
This gives you a simple way to see the cumulative impact of multiple changes rather than reviewing each variation in isolation.
Check Changes Against Your Original Needs
The toolkit also encourages you to ask if each change still serves the needs identified in your original project brief.
This can help you resist unnecessary additions that increase cost without adding real value to the house.
What This Toolkit Helps You Do
The Variation Record helps you:
- Document construction changes in writing
- Record why each change was requested
- Track who requested and approved the change
- Record additions or reductions in cost
- Track changes to the construction programme
- Keep signed owner and contractor records
- Maintain running totals for cost and time
- Review cumulative changes each month
- Compare proposed changes with your original project brief
Who Is This For?
This worksheet is suitable for:
- First-time home builders
- Families managing residential construction
- Ghanaians living abroad who are funding projects at home
- Owners working with contractors and project managers
- Clients managing phased construction
- Property owners renovating or completing unfinished houses
- Anyone who wants a written record of changes to a construction project
How to Use It
Complete a new line whenever a change to the agreed work is proposed.
Record what is changing, why it is changing, who requested it and the effect on cost and time. Obtain the required approval and signatures before the change proceeds.
At the end of each month, calculate the total amount added to or removed from the contract and the total change in project duration. Then review if the accumulated variations still support your original building priorities.
Product Details
Product: Variation Record
Series: From Land to Home Companion Toolkit
Tool Number: Tool 15
Related Chapter: Chapter 20
Format: Digital PDF worksheet
Length: 2 pages
Author: Adams Bediako Asare
Website: asarebediakoadams.com
The toolkit is provided for personal use and should not be sold or redistributed without permission.
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