Articles

Every contractor who builds, repairs or remodels homes or apartments in Minnesota knows about One, Two, Ten. One: Contractors have to provide at least a one year warranty on materials and workmanship. Two: Plumbing, electrical and HVAC work require a two-year warranty. Ten: Any “major construction defect” is covered for ten years. All this is […]

Hawaii has a reputation for making life difficult for contractors who don’t toe the line. Sometimes the results border on the ridiculous, at least from a contractor’s perspective. Just ask Michael Sakatani, a Honolulu contractor doing business as 808 Development LLC. A few years ago Mike’s company landed a $1.8 million contract to build a […]

The Texas Residential Construction Commission Act (TRCCA) has joined the Alamo as a memorable episode in Texas history. Like defenders of the Alamo, defenders of TRCCA went down swinging. But the result was about the same: A commendable effort that came up a little short. As I pointed out in this space last May, TRCCA […]

Go browsing on the Web for construction contracts and you’ll see braggadocio about some boilerplate contract being “legal in all 50 states.” Claims like this show up on Web sites run by savvy people with good credentials but who should know better. If you’ve skimmed over any of the earlier entries in this blog archive, […]

The much-maligned Texas Residential Construction Commission Act (TRCCA) is about to fade into the sunset if activists in Texas get their way. TRCCA took root in 2004. The legislated purpose was to (1) promote quality construction by registering home builders, (2) serve as a resource for home owners and (3) offer neutral technical review of […]

If you’re a licensed B1 contractor in California, you probably know all about Cal B&P; 7159. It’s caused more than a little grief for more than a few California contractors, some of them now former California contractors. Cal B&P; 7159 is Sacramento’s effort to rewrite every contract for home improvement, remodeling and repair work throughout […]

The Commonwealth has been marching to its own drummer since Revolutionary times. So it was probably inevitable that Massachusetts would go its own way in handling grievances against home improvement contractors. Massachusetts Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation (OCABR) runs a home improvement arbitration program designed to keep construction defect claims out of Massachusetts […]

Not many residential contractors in Georgia are good at writing warranties for their work. Builders usually think of warranties as bad news: Nothing good ever came from a warranty. Better to ignore the issue and hope clients never give it a thought. That’s about to change. Georgia Code Section 43-41-7 (the Written Warranty Act) now […]

Cory and Angela Bogard needed more space in their Casey, Illinois home. In the fall of 2004, Dan Smith of Dan R. Smith Building Services offered to put a 26′ x 20′ addition on the Bogards’ living-room for “$20,000 or less”. Cory and Angela accepted Dan’s offer and he started work the following month. By […]

Pennsylvania has joined New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, California and other states in micro-managing construction contracts for home improvement work. Pennsylvania’s Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA) is intended to protect owners when negotiating home improvement jobs. But HICPA’s list of contract requirements is like a ridge board made from utility grade lumber: […]