Contracts and defects
Read it before you sign, sort it out when it goes wrong
Most payment fights are written into the contract months before anyone is upset. A defect dispute usually turns on the same pages.
For builders, I read subcontracts and prime contracts the way a busy foreman can’t: payment and notice terms, change and delay clauses, indemnity, insurance and what happens in a dispute. I tell you what to push back on and what to live with.
For owners and builders in a defect dispute, I work from the plans, the contract and the record of the work. We sort what is a punch-list item, what is a real defect, and what each side owes the other.
What I read
The draft contract, before signing
Plans, specs and change orders
Photos and dated records of the work
Inspection reports and repair quotes
Clauses and claims
What I check in a contract, and in a dispute
Payment and notice terms
When you’re paid, what has to be sent and when, and what happens if a step is missed.
Changes and delays
How extra work is ordered and priced, and who carries the cost of a late start or a stalled job.
Indemnity and insurance
Who takes on whose mistakes, and what coverage the contract requires you to carry.
Claims over defective work
What was promised, what was built, what the record shows, and what a fair repair or credit looks like.
Contracts
Questions about contracts and defects
Do you review contracts for a flat fee?
Yes, usually. I look at the draft, tell you in writing what I’d change and why, and quote the fee before I start. Negotiating the changes with the other side is quoted separately.
Can I get out of a bad clause after I’ve signed?
Sometimes, if it’s unclear, unenforceable or was changed by what everyone did. Often not. Bring the contract and I’ll tell you which.
I’m an owner and the work is wrong. Where do I start?
Photograph it, keep your payment records, and don’t pay the final draw until you’ve talked to someone. Then send me the contract and the plans.
Do you represent both owners and builders?
Yes, but never both on the same job. I check for that before I take a file.