Buyer’s Guide
What Should Be in Your Remodeling Contract in Southeastern PA (2026)?
The clauses every contract must have — and what it means when one is missing.
Last updated: May 2026 · Alex Smearman, Owner, Fedor Fabrication (PA HIC #PA202519)
A remodeling contract should put eight things in writing:
- A fixed total price
- A defined scope of work
- A deposit and milestone payment schedule
- A written change-order process
- Who pulls the permits and carries the license (with HIC number)
- How hidden conditions are handled
- Approximate start and completion dates
- The workmanship warranty and its duration
A handshake and a total dollar figure is how Southeastern PA homeowners end up stranded with a half-finished kitchen.
Pennsylvania regulates this. The Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA) sets a legal floor for what a contract over $500 must contain — but the legal minimum is not the same as a contract that protects you. We cover both.
Key Takeaways
- Pennsylvania’s Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA) legally requires a signed written contract for work over $500, with the contractor’s HIC registration number, scope, approximate dates, and total price.
- The clause homeowners most often discover is missing: who pulls the permit. If it is not in the contract, assume it is not happening.
- A real contract has a written change-order process — every change priced and signed before the work happens, never a verbal “we’ll settle up later.”
- A typical, reasonable structure in Southeastern PA: a 25–30% deposit and 4–5 milestone payments tied to completed work — not a large lump sum up front.
- Fedor’s contracts include a 1-year workmanship warranty and a HIC number (PA202519) you can verify with the state in two minutes.
What clauses must a remodeling contract include?
Pennsylvania law sets the floor. Under HICPA, a home improvement contract over $500 must be in writing and signed, and must include the contractor’s name and PA Home Improvement Contractor (HIC) registration number, a description of the work and materials, the approximate start and completion dates, and the total contract price. A contractor who cannot or will not give you that is operating below the legal minimum — full stop.
But the legal minimum is not a contract that protects you. This is what a complete one actually spells out:
| Clause | What it should say | What it protects you from | Red flag if missing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed price & scope | One total for a defined scope, by area | “It grew once we started” | A range, or “estimate” |
| Deposit & milestones | ~25–30% deposit, 4–5 payments tied to completed work | Paying far ahead of progress | Large deposit, no schedule |
| Change-order process | Every change priced and signed before work | Surprise invoices | “We’ll figure it out” |
| Permits & license | Contractor pulls permits; HIC # listed | Unpermitted work, no recourse | Silent on permits |
| Hidden conditions | How behind-the-wall surprises are handled | Open-ended overruns | Not addressed |
| Start & completion | Approximate dates in writing | Indefinite stall | No dates |
| Workmanship warranty | Duration and what it covers | “Not my problem now” | No warranty named |
For the difference between a fixed price and a loose estimate, see what fixed-price remodeling actually means. For why a complete contract costs more than a thin bid, see why we cost more.
Why does “who pulls the permit” need to be in writing?
Because this is the clause that quietly disappears. We took over a stalled kitchen and bath in Newtown Square where the first contractor had beaten around the bush about permits the whole time. It was nowhere in the contract — the homeowners only realized when they started asking about inspections and had nothing to point to.
Unpermitted work is not a paperwork problem. It surfaces:
- At resale, when a buyer’s inspector or appraiser flags it
- At insurance claims, when the carrier denies coverage on unpermitted work
- At the next contractor, who has to legalize someone else’s mistakes on your dime
In Pennsylvania, permits are issued and inspected by your local township or borough under the PA Uniform Construction Code (PA UCC). The contract should say, in plain words, that the contractor pulls the required permits and schedules the inspections.
If the contract is silent, assume permits are not happening. More warning signs in red flags when hiring a contractor.
How should change orders be handled in the contract?
Every change priced and signed in writing before the work happens — never verbal, never “we’ll settle up at the end.” The best change-order clause is the one you rarely use: we plan heavily on the front end so changes stay at an absolute minimum, with most occurring only in the first two to three demolition days when older Southeastern PA homes reveal what they were hiding. After that early window, any change is homeowner-driven, not surprise-driven.
When a change does happen, the process must be written and the same every time:
| Step | What happens | Your sign-off |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Identify | Condition found, or you request a change | — |
| 2. Price & scope | Contractor writes the cost and the work | You receive it in writing |
| 3. Approve | You review and approve before work | Signed, before anything proceeds |
| 4. Schedule | Work slotted into the existing schedule | Confirmed timeline impact |
A real example: on a recent project the homeowner decided, after work had begun, that they wanted their existing kitchen hardwood sanded and stained. We developed a price and a scope of work, sent it to them, they reviewed and approved it, and only then did we schedule it within the existing project timeline. No work happened, and no money moved, before the signature. That is the entire point of the clause — the words “we’ll settle up at the end” have cost more Pennsylvania homeowners more money than almost anything else in this trade.
What’s a fair deposit and payment schedule in Pennsylvania?
A reasonable Southeastern PA structure is a 25–30% deposit at signing, followed by four to five milestone payments tied to completed work. The principle is simple: you should never be paying significantly ahead of what has actually been done. A contractor demanding 50%+ up front with no milestone schedule is asking you to finance their cash-flow problem — and that is exactly the position the abandoned-project homeowners are always in. How payment ties to scope is also a key line when you compare estimates.
What should the contract say about hidden conditions?
We do not carry a contingency line. We price the real scope and tell homeowners plainly that hidden conditions can surface in the first two to three demo days. The typical ones in older Southeastern PA homes:
- Knob-and-tube wiring remnants
- Undersized electrical panels
- Rotted subfloor under tile
- Out-of-square framing in a 1950s Media single or Main Line stone colonial
When one surfaces, it goes through the written change-order process above, with your sign-off, before any work proceeds. What the contract should not do is pretend older homes have no surprises, or leave “unforeseen conditions” as an open-ended blank check. Honest beats vague.
What about the workmanship warranty?
The contract should name a workmanship warranty and its duration. Ours is a 1-year workmanship warranty. A contract that names no warranty at all is telling you what happens if something goes wrong after the final payment: nothing. You want the duration in writing, not implied.
What if the contract is vague or missing these clauses?
Then it is not a contract that protects you, regardless of how friendly the contractor is. Vague contracts do not become specific under pressure — they become the other party’s interpretation. Ask for every item in the checklist above in writing before you sign. A contractor who is building a real project will not flinch at putting the project in writing. For the questions that surface all of this before you ever get to a contract, see questions to ask before you hire a remodeler and what to expect at your first consultation.
What We Tell Our Clients at Fedor
The best protection in a remodeling contract is not a clever clause — it is the planning that happens before the contract is signed. We push selections and design hard on the front end so the change-order section stays mostly unused. “We’ll figure it out as we go” is not a plan — it is a billing strategy.
The Newtown Square homeowners did not get stranded because they missed a subtle legal term. They got stranded because the basics were not in writing:
- No clear permit responsibility
- No real milestone structure tied to completed work
- Nothing to hold a disappearing contractor to
When we took that project over, the fix was not heroics — it was a defined scope, a payment schedule that matched progress, and permits actually pulled. That is the whole job.
A contract is not there for when things go well. It is there for the one project in a hundred where they do not — and on that project it is the only thing standing between you and a half-finished kitchen. See how we structure this on our process page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a written contract legally required for remodeling in Pennsylvania?
Yes. Under Pennsylvania’s Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA), any home improvement over $500 requires a signed written contract that includes the contractor’s PA Home Improvement Contractor (HIC) registration number, a description of the work and materials, the approximate start and completion dates, and the total contract price. A contractor who cannot or will not give you that is operating below the legal minimum. Our contracts list HIC #PA202519, which you can verify with the state in two minutes at hicsearch.attorneygeneral.gov.
What is a fair deposit for a remodeling project in Southeastern PA?
A 25-30% deposit at signing, followed by four to five milestone payments tied to completed work, is a reasonable Southeastern PA structure. The principle is simple: you should never be paying significantly ahead of what has actually been done. Be cautious of anyone demanding more than half up front with no milestone schedule – that contractor is asking you to finance their cash-flow problem, and that is exactly the position stranded homeowners are always in.
How should change orders work?
Every change should be priced and scoped in writing and signed by you before the work happens – never a verbal agreement settled at the end. The honest goal is for the change-order section to stay mostly unused: we push selections and design hard on the front end so changes stay at an absolute minimum, with most occurring only in the first two to three demolition days when older homes reveal what they were hiding. “We’ll figure it out as we go” is not a plan – it is a billing strategy.
What if my contract doesn’t mention permits?
Assume permits are not being pulled, and do not sign. The contract should state in plain words that the contractor pulls the required permits and schedules the inspections under the PA Uniform Construction Code. Unpermitted work is not a paperwork problem – it surfaces at resale, at insurance claims, and at the next contractor who has to legalize it. We took over a stalled Newtown Square kitchen and bath where the first contractor beat around the bush about permits the whole time, and it was nowhere in the contract.
What’s a normal workmanship warranty?
A workmanship warranty and its duration should be named in the contract itself, not implied. Fedor’s is a 1-year workmanship warranty, stated in writing. A contract that names no warranty at all is telling you what happens if something goes wrong after the final payment: nothing. You want the duration on the page, not assumed – the absence of a warranty clause is itself the warning.
How do I verify a contractor’s license in PA?
Look up the contractor’s PA Home Improvement Contractor (HIC) registration number on the state registry at hicsearch.attorneygeneral.gov – it takes about two minutes. Every legitimate PA remodeler has one and must list it in any contract over $500 under HICPA. Ours is PA202519. A contractor who will not give you their HIC number, or whose number does not check out, is below the legal minimum and not someone to sign with.
What does “hidden conditions” mean in a contract?
“Hidden conditions” is how the contract handles surprises found once demolition opens the walls – knob-and-tube remnants, undersized panels, rotted subfloor, out-of-square framing in a 1950s Media single or a Main Line stone colonial. We do not carry a contingency line. We price the real scope and tell you plainly these can surface in the first two to three demo days, and when one does it goes through the written change-order process with your sign-off before any work proceeds. What the contract should not do is leave “unforeseen conditions” as an open-ended blank check.
Can a contract really be fixed-price with no surprises?
Yes – the price is fixed for the defined scope and only moves if you change that scope, or a hidden condition is found and you approve the change through a signed change order. It is not a guess that drifts upward; it is a contractual commitment to a number for a defined amount of work. That is the entire point of putting scope, allowances, and a change-order process in writing. See what fixed-price remodeling actually means.
Sources and References
- PA Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act overview — PA Office of Attorney General
- PA Home Improvement Contractor registration & verification — hicsearch.attorneygeneral.gov
- Building permits & inspections — issued and inspected by your local township or borough under the PA Uniform Construction Code (there is no single county permit portal)
- Remodeling Magazine — Cost vs. Value Report, Middle Atlantic — remodeling.hw.net
Related Guides
- What fixed-price remodeling actually means
- How to compare remodeling estimates line by line
- Why one remodeling quote is so much higher than another
- What’s actually included in a remodeling estimate
- Red flags when hiring a contractor · Questions to ask before you hire a remodeler
- What to expect at your first consultation · Our process · Are we the right fit?
- Kitchen remodel cost ranges · Bathroom remodel cost ranges
- Ready to see a real contract? Book a consultation — we will walk every clause with you.