First Project - Does this Escrow Agreement look OK?

[victorrivera8]

Hello! Just got my first project on Upwork. It is also the first time my client is using it. We agreed on $600 total, $150 for the first milestone. I just delivered the first milestone and got paid $150 but don't see anything about the remaining $450 on the agreement. Do I just have to trust that she will pay when I deliver the rest of the project?

See attached screenshot for more info:

Thanks, 

Victor

**Edited for community guidelines**

[victorrivera8]

Nevermind! She just sent me another milestone for the remaining $450. 

Thanks

[gilbert-phyllis]

Good! To answer your original question, NO, never just trust that a client will pay you when the work is done. 

When setting up a contract with multiple milestones, the client can fund them all or just the first one. If they only fund the first one, then they have to approve completion of that one before they can fund the next one. You should NEVER work on a milestone until it's funded unless you trust the client with the amount of money involved plus some portion of your UW reputation. (If things go sideways and disagreement ensues, it can easily be the FL who comes out on the short end of feedback, regardless of how the money shakes out in the end.) If you ever work on an unfunded milestone, the client can't be forced to pay for it and only your charm and wit stand between you and getting stiffed. None of us likes to think we'd get entangled with a client who'd do that, but they are around and sometimes they look just like clients who wouldn't do that.

Other miscellaneous fine points... Sometimes a project unfolds in different phases or segments than anticipated. You can always submit work and request only a portion of what was allocated for that milestone. If more is warranted, the client can increase the funded amount for that milestone. The client can always add milestones to a contract but new ones can't be funded until previous ones are approved.