About Our Contrctual Terms And Conditions

Everything is worth it . . .

The following has been reviewed and agreed to by all parties prior to signing of the contract. Both parties understand and agree that they are to be bound by each and every paragraph herein and this is part of the contract describing all actual work.

Contractual Terms and Conditions

1. The parties to this agreement are Purchaser and Contractor. Purchaser represents that he/she has legal authority and right to enter into this contract; that he/she agrees to keep property and improvements free from obstruction or conflicting claims that would interfere with Contractor’s work or performance under this agreement.

2. Purchaser agrees to make all payments in accordance with the terms and conditions of this contract. Purchaser further agrees that any payments not made timely will be subject to interest at the rate of 1.5% per month, or at the then prevailing highest legal rate, until paid in full. Purchaseragrees nonpayment of all or any part of the agreed amount stated in the contract and/or any change orders, any add orders and any up charge omissions, shall render all the Contractor’s warranties null and void.

3. Both parties to this contract agree that in the event of a dispute, the matter will be submitted for binding arbitration under the rules of the American Arbitration Association and that arbitration shall be the sole method of resolving any material disagreements. Both parties agree that they shall accept the findings of the arbitrator and shall be bound thereby. It is expressly agreed that the prevailing party shall be entitled to reasonable cost’s and attorney’s fees for arbitration and/or legal actions. The Better Business Bureau Arbitration Services will serve as the arbitrator if needed.

4. All plans, including supplemental plans, change orders and specifications noted on the face of the contract are deemed to be integral part of this agreement.

5. Purchaser understands that any changes which are to be made to the agreed upon plans, specifications and contract, may result in additional costs for labor or material or both along with general overhead expenses. Purchaser agrees to pay such additional costs plus 2.5% administrative fees upon billing by Contractor or as outlined in the signed change order.

6. Both parties agree that NO modification to this contract shall be enforceable unless a written change order is prepared by Contractor in writing and signed by the Purchaser; however, in some instances, verbal instructions for change orders by the Purchasers may be deemed legally binding if the work is performed without adequate time for the Contractor to prepare the written change order and obtain a signature.

7. It is further understood and agreed that there are no other agreements between the parties dated prior, either written or oral, regarding the subject matter of this contract, and that this contract reflects the full and complete understanding between the parties, and this contract supersedes any prior contract whether written or oral.
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8. Under the current law, this agreement may be cancelled unilaterally by Purchaser by notifying Contractor in writing by registered mail or telegram by midnight of the third day following signing of the contract. If Purchaser cancels the contract at any other time, the Purchaser shall be responsible for any costs, labor or materials, which may have accrued to the Contractor. Further, no return of any materials delivered to job site may be permitted without prior written approval of the Contractor.

9. All prices that are based on plans or measurements provided by any architect are subject to increase in the event of any inaccuracies and/or omissions in the plans or by architect.

10. Force Majeure: Delay caused by change orders, add orders, floods, strikes, labor disputes, accidents, acts of God or other causes beyond the reasonable control of the Contractor shall excuse or extend the time for performance of the contract. (Also see the right to a performance bond below in item number fourteen - insurance).

11. Purchaser accepts responsibility for materials delivered to job site in good order by Contractor or his suppliers and agrees to provide protection against theft and damage from the elements and provide adequate storage for such materials within the property of the Purchaser, unless otherwise stated within the written contract.

12. Contractor agrees to furnish materials specified in contract and complete all work called for in a professional manner according to standard practice in the industry.

13. Purchaser agrees material warranties are solely those of the manufacturers of the materials specified and agree to look solely to those manufacturers for all warranty claims. Purchasers also take responsibility for the selection of all products and their performance, durability or natural reaction to the elements of any given product specified within the contract or estimate. Purchasers agree that the Contractor shall not be held responsible for any consequential damages to any specified product provided or installed according to the contract or estimate.

14. The Purchaser has the right to request the approximate expected date of completion of any project; however, a demand for a guaranteed completion date may incur additional costs.

15. The Purchaser has the right to require the Contractor to furnish a performance bond to guarantee a completion date, and the cost of the bond is to be paid the Purchaser.

16. The Purchaser has the right to require the Contractor to provide a non-exclusion insurance policy for mold related problems that may arise from the use of any product that the contractor may or may not provide, or directly related to any work performed by the Contractor or any of his subcontractors, or when any leaks or water damage is discovered during or after the contract is completed, by paying the direct cost of the premium for such insurance coverage. Otherwise, the Purchaser will not hold the Contractor, nor any of his sub-contractors liable for any mold damage, testing for mold presence, air quality assessment, nor any work related to accomplish the removal of any mold that may or may not be present.
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17. The contract must include a list and description of all documents required to be incorporated into the contract and/or attached to the written contract.

18. All contractual information, change orders and notifications by Contractor will be made by time dated emails and are to be considered binding if acknowledgement and approval by the Purchaser is made by email if a signature is not obtained.

19. When Contractor is ordering any doors and windows at the Purchasers’ request, the Contractor will require the Purchaser to sign off on the actual order prior to actually placing the order with the manufacturer. Contractor takes full responsibility for the sizes of the doors and windows only, but it is the Purchaser’s responsibility to verify the style, material, color, handing and overall appearance of all doors and windows and must sign the original quote or the order form from the Contractor’s supplier. All orders are final and a non-refundable deposit is required before actually placing any order; and, in any event, the balance due is the contractual obligation of Purchaser.

20. When Contractor refers to installation of hardware, all hardware is supplied by owners, and it refers to standard door and bathroom hardware as follows: a) standard bore and backset handles only, with or without dead bolts, pre-drilled doors only, and door stops; the cost of other door hardware and the installations will be considered as an extra charge, and, b) all bathroom hardware is supplied by owners and includes; standard towel bars, standard toilet paper dispenser, standard clothing hooks and one standard, single door medicine cabinet only, and the cost of, and the installation of any other hardware for bathrooms will be considered as an extra charge. No other hardware is included whatsoever. The boring for locks and handles will be considered as extra work.

21. When the Contractor performs or sub-contracts any roofing work, the removal or cleaning out of any debris that may drop or fall into the attic space from the work being performed on the roof is to be considered an extra charge and a change order will be presented, based on hourly rates to perform the clean up. Any and all other debris around the outside of the house will be removed on a daily basis to keep the site clean.

22. When the Contractor or any of his sub-contractors are performing any kind of structural work, or any kind of work on the roof of any building, whether residential or commercial, the cost to repair, prime and paint any ceiling is not included in the contract, nor the replacement of any insulation that may or may not be damaged.

23. Purchaser agrees that when he or she buys appliances, fixtures, or any other products and causes the delivery to the jobsite; whereas the delivery company delivers to the curb-side only, the Contractor will not take responsibility for the delivery, inventory, condition or the moving of the items into the house, residence or office, unless the Purchaser agrees to pay Contractor additional fees based upon hourly rates, for the Contractor or his staff to be available to receive the delivery, and/or the moving of delivered items inside the house, residence or office as directed, uncrating or unpacking all items, inspecting the condition of all items, checking the inventory against the shipping manifest and disposal of any crating debris.
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24. Purchaser agrees that when he or she uses other sub-contractors or installers, not directly connected to Contractor, the Purchaser takes full responsibility for the cost to remove of all the trash or debris caused by said sub-contractors and/or Purchaser’s installers, along with any cost for additional work or damaged caused by sub-contractors or installers.

25. Purchaser agrees to pay for all permits required to complete the work described in the plans, specifications, supplementals or contract upon presentation of billing by Contractor.

26. Purchaser agrees that during general construction for any project, that the landscaping and irrigation systems, such as lawns, shrubbery, plants and sprinklers may be damaged from the general work the Contractor may be performing and the cost to repair or to replace any of the landscaping or irrigation system is not included whatsoever, unless otherwise specifically stated in the contract.

27. Purchaser agrees to have all kitchen and laundry appliances installed by manufacturer’s certified installers when the warranty would be jeopardized by using the Contractor’s licensed plumber for any such installations, and further agrees to pay any additional costs directly to the manufacturer’s certified installer for such installations.

28. Purchaser understands that when the Contractor is applying any texture coating, whether it is stucco, concrete, drywall or plaster the term “to be matched as close as possible” is used in the contract and means exactly what it says. To make a perfect match may be impossible under any circumstance. To obtain a consistent texture on any surface, requires resurfacing entire walls and areas and the cost to do so will be considered an extra charge unless stated otherwise in contract.

29. Purchaser understands that when Contractor is breaking out stucco for installation of windows, doors and/or any other construction and “button board” is discovered, it may be necessary to remove all the stucco from “corner to corner” to reapply the stucco to a solid surface, and to do so will be considered an extra charge.

30. Purchaser understands that when Contractor installs any crown, casing, baseboards or baseshoe
moldings, the term “to be matched as close as possible” is used in the contract and means exactly what it says. To match any molding exactly, a milling charge will be incurred to do so and will be considered an extra charge.

31. Purchaser understands that unforeseen contingencies, such as the replacement of rotted or termite infested lumber, or any framing that will not pass current Building Department inspection that is underneath drywall, plaster, tile, sheathing or stucco or concealed in any manner will be considered to be an extra charge.

32. Purchaser understands that unforeseen contingencies, such as the discovery of water pipes, irrigation pipes, gas pipes, any kind of pipes, concrete or large boulders beneath any surface which need to be removed or relocated during excavation or demolition will be considered an extra charge.
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33. Purchaser understands that specialty plumbing fixtures not included or specified on the approved plans or specifically included in the contract, such as the installation of cast iron bathtubs, or elaborate plumbing fixtures, (I.e., hand held showering devices, multiple showerheads, temperature control valves, instant hot water devices, water-filtration systems and in general any fixture that is not considered to be a “standard fixture”) that has been selected and provided by the homeowners, will increase the installation cost of any kitchen or bathroom and will be quoted separately upon inspection of the product provided for installation.

34. Purchaser understands that disruption to any telephone, cable, satellite, internet or security system services may be caused during remodeling or general construction on any given project and the cost to relocate, reconnect or reset such systems is not the responsibility of the Contractor or any of his subcontractors. Every precaution will be taken as to not disrupt said service; however, in the event any disruption is caused, it is the sole responsibility of the Purchasers to contact and have the provider of said service or their installers/representatives to relocate, reconnect or reset such service. All costs are to be paid by Purchaser.

35. Purchaser understands that when there are “approved architectural plans“ or when there are “no approved architectural plans” for improving, remodeling, adding square footage to the structure, repairing or replacing any existing portion of the home, and the city that governs the control of the permits requires the Contractor to perform any additional work to be in compliance with any of the City‘s current building codes, there will be an additional charge. For example: Earthquake shut off valves for gas meter, any additional vents, low-flow toilets, battery or hardwired smoke detectors and when the project must be in compliance to any energy conservation program such as Title 24.

36. Purchaser understands that they have the right to request the Contractor to provide a “Waiver and Release” whether conditional or unconditional from each material supplier, laborer, and subcontractor involved in that portion of the work which payment was made. These forms are signed by persons who are releasing their rights to file a mechanics’ lien against your property.

37. Purchaser agrees and understands that any natural wood products that are exposed to weather or moisture, such as doors, windows or decking must be sealed or primed and painted or stained on all sides and edges to maintain the integrity, operation, durability and appearance of said product. If the Purchaser elects to use, or hire their own painters, or to do the work themselves to complete this process, the Purchaser agrees to commence the work immediately upon completion of Contractor’s installation of said product. The Purchaser also understands that failure to properly comply with the foregoing will void the warranty of any product, and any work required by the Contractor to adjust, fix or replace any product will be considered as extra work and additional charges will be incurred.

38. Required Notices by California Business and Professional Code Section 7018.5:

(a) Under the California Mechanics’ Lien Law, any contractor, subcontractor, laborer, supplier, or other person or entity who helps to improve your property, but is not paid for his or her work or supplies, has a right to place a lien on your home, land, or property where the work was performed and to sue you in court to obtain payment.

(b) This means that after a court hearing, your home, land, and property could be sold by a court officer and the proceeds of the sale used to satisfy what you owe. This can happen even if you have paid your contractor in full if the contractor’s subcontractors, laborers, or suppliers remain unpaid.

(c) To preserve their rights to file a claim or lien against your property, certain claimants such as subcontractors or material suppliers are each required to provide you with a document called a “Preliminary Notice.” Contractors and laborers who contract with owners directly do not have to provide such a notice since you are aware of their existence as an owner. A preliminary notice is not a lien against your property. Its purpose is to notify you of persons or entities that may have a right to file a lien against your property if they are not paid. In order to perfect their lien rights, a contractor, subcontractor, supplier, or laborer must file a mechanics’ lien with the county recorder which then becomes a recorded lien against your property. Generally, the maximum time allowed for filing a mechanics’ lien against your property is 90 days after substantial completion of your project.

39. In the event the Primary Contractor records a lien, Purchaser agrees to pay all costs involved in prepring, recording and releasing said lien.

40. Notice Required by California Business and Professional Code Section 7030.5: “Contractors are required by law to be licensed and regulated by the Contractors’ State License Board which has jurisdiction to investigate complaints against contractors if the complaint regarding a patent act or omission is filed within four years of the date of the alleged violation. A complaint regarding a latent act or omission pertaining to structural defects must be filed within 10 years of the date of the alleged violation. Any questions concerning a contractor may be referred to the Registrar, Contractors’ State License Board, Post Office Box 26000, Sacramento, California 95826 or www.cslb.ca.gov.

41. Any of the above contractual terms and conditions may be excluded if the actual written contract specifically states anything contrary to the terms and conditions set forth above.

All the above paragraphs have been read, and all paragraphs are understood, and all parties agree to “The Contract and Proposal” and the “Contractual Terms and Conditions” set forth above, which shall be held an integral part “The Contract and Proposal”.


Acceptance Signature of Purchaser Dated
Marshall Elberson July 31, 2009
Marshall Elberson, General Partner and General Contractor Dated

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