Work Orders
Editing a Work Order
Topkey's work order form lets you create work orders directly and push them to your PMS — keeping your maintenance records and owner statements in sync without leaving Topkey. This page walks through every field on the edit form so you know exactly what each setting controls and why it matters.
Assign Property
Type to search for a property and select it from the list. This single selection drives three things at once: it determines which owner gets billed for the work order, which markup rules apply to the line items, and how the work order appears in property-level reporting.
This field is required unless the work order is configured as bill-to-owner. If the property you previously selected has since been archived, Topkey will display a warning and ask you to choose a different one before saving.
If the property shown in the form has been deleted, you must select a replacement property before Topkey will save the work order. Archived properties cannot be billed and will cause errors on sync.
Name
The Name field holds a short, descriptive title for the work order — for example, "Pool pump replacement" or "HVAC filter swap." This title appears in the work orders list so your team can identify jobs at a glance, and it is included in the data Topkey sends to your PMS when you push the work order.
Keep names specific enough to distinguish similar jobs across different properties. A clear name also makes searching and filtering in the work orders list much faster.
Description
The Description field is a free-text area for longer notes about the work being performed. Use it to document what was found, what was done, or any context the owner or your PMS may need. This text is included in the sync payload when you push the work order to your PMS.
Unlike the name, the description is not required — but filling it in creates a useful internal record, especially for work orders that may later be converted into bills or attached to transactions.
Adding Lines
Click Add Item beneath the items list to add a new line. Each line has one of two types:
- Part/Cost — captures a description and a total amount. When an integration supplies the data, quantity and unit cost may also be populated. Use this type for materials, parts, subcontractor invoices, or any flat-dollar expense.
- Labor — captures a description, an hourly rate, and a labor time broken down into hours and minutes. Topkey calculates the line amount automatically from those inputs. The Part/Cost vs. Labor type selector appears when the work order is connected to Streamline or when the work order already contains a labor-type line.
You can edit any line inline by clicking Edit next to it, and remove it by deleting its content. All lines roll up into the subtotal shown at the bottom of the items section. If you want to consolidate multiple lines into a single entry, click Merge items into one.
Labor line amounts are calculated automatically — you do not enter a dollar amount directly. Enter the hourly rate and the time (hours and minutes), and Topkey computes the total.
Markups
When a markup applies to a work order, Topkey shows a Total with markup ($) figure alongside the base Subtotal ($). Each line displays its marked-up amount in parentheses — for example, $425 (+10% markup) → $467.50.
Topkey resolves which markup percentage to use in the following order:
- A per-GL-code markup configured on the property (when that feature is enabled for your account)
- A property-wide markup set on the property record
- The account-level default work order markup percentage
Only one of these applies to any given line — Topkey works down the list and stops at the first match. The markup amount is shown separately from the subtotal so you can see exactly how much is being added before you save or sync.
Dates
The Details panel on the right side of the form contains two date fields:
- Received Date / Finished on — this is the business date Topkey uses to assign the work order to the correct period on owner statements and in reporting. Set this to the date the work was actually performed. For work orders that originated from Breezeway, this field also reflects the date the task was marked finished in Breezeway.
- Scheduled date — an optional field for recording when the work is planned to occur. This date does not affect owner-statement assignment but is useful for scheduling and filtering.
Always set the Received Date / Finished on date before pushing to your PMS. This is the date Topkey and your PMS use to place the charge on the correct owner statement.
Vendor
The Select a vendor field in the Details panel links the work order to one of your saved vendors. Type to search and select a vendor from the list. The vendor you choose here is used in two places: it pre-fills the vendor on any bill created from this work order, and it is sent to your PMS's vendor field when you push the work order.
Topkey may automatically suggest a vendor based on the property you selected. A note beneath the field explains why a particular vendor was chosen — for example, whether it was set by a property rule or selected manually. You can override the suggestion at any time by searching for and selecting a different vendor.
For the vendor to post correctly in your PMS, the vendor must exist in both Topkey's vendor list and your connected PMS. A vendor present in only one system cannot be used for posting.
Recurring Work Order
Check Make this a recurring Work Order to put the work order on an automatic schedule. Once checked, a Frequency selector appears with three options:
- Weekly — Topkey generates a new work order each week on the same day of the week as the original.
- Monthly — Topkey generates a new work order each month. You also specify the day of month (1–28) on which it should be created.
- Yearly — Topkey generates a new work order each year on the same day and month as the original.
Each cycle, Topkey creates a fresh work order copied from this one — including the property, line items, and vendor — and sets its status to draft so your team can review it before sending.
The day-of-month field only appears when Monthly is selected. Enter a value between 1 and 28 to ensure the schedule works correctly across all months.
Push to PMS
Pushing a work order to your PMS is the primary reason to create work orders in Topkey. Once a work order has been saved and is attached to a PMS-connected property, the Save and Send to PMS button becomes active in the footer.
- Click Save and Send to PMS to save the work order and immediately push it to your PMS in one step.
- Click Save as Draft if you want to save progress, attach transactions or bills, or review the work order before sending.
- From the work orders list, you can also select multiple work orders and use the bulk Send to PMS action to push several at once.
After a successful push, Topkey records the date and time the work order was synced and stores the full payload in the audit log so you can verify exactly what was sent.
Use Save as Draft when you need to attach multiple transactions or bills before sending. The tip in the form footer is a reminder: draft status lets you keep building out the work order before it goes to your PMS.
Additional Features
Assigning Team Members
You can add one or more assignees to a work order to record which team members are responsible for the job. Assignees appear in the work orders list and are included when you export work orders to CSV, making it easy to track workload and accountability across your team.
Tagging Work Orders
Tags let you apply custom labels to work orders for filtering and reporting. You can add or remove tags directly from the work orders list or from the edit form. Tags are free-form, so you can create whatever labels make sense for your business — property type, job category, season, or priority level.
Attaching an Existing Work Order to a Transaction or Bill
If you have already saved a work order and later need to link it to a transaction or bill, you do not need to create a new one. An Attach button appears inline on transactions and bills, and lets you select from:
- A draft imported from your PMS
- An existing draft you already created in Topkey
- A record that came in from Breezeway or SuiteOp
Select the work order you want and confirm — Topkey links the records without duplicating anything.
Starting a Vendor Payment from the Work Orders List
To pay a vendor directly from the work orders list, click Start Payment on the relevant row. A modal prompts you to select a vendor and confirm the payment. Once confirmed, Topkey records the payment and generates a receipt automatically.
Viewing the Audit History
Every status change and user action on a work order is logged with a timestamp. To view the full history, click the Last Audit cell on any row in the work orders list. The log shows you who did what and when — useful for tracking approvals, edits, and sync events.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if I save a work order without setting the Received Date / Finished on? The work order saves without a business date, but Topkey will not be able to assign it to the correct period on owner statements. Always set this date before pushing to your PMS or generating an owner statement.
Can I change the property on a work order after it has been pushed to my PMS? You can edit the property field on a saved work order, but doing so may require you to re-sync the work order to your PMS. Any markups and vendor assignments tied to the original property will be re-evaluated when you select the new property.
Why don't I see the Part/Cost vs. Labor type selector on my line items? The type selector only appears when the work order is connected to Streamline or when the work order already contains at least one labor-type line. For other configurations, all lines are treated as Part/Cost by default.
Questions? Contact Support