Under state law, a New York home improvement contract over $500 has to carry a paragraph in bold type about mechanic’s liens. It warns that a contractor, subcontractor or supplier who doesn’t get paid may have a legal claim against your property. Most people sign right past it.
That paragraph is only one item, though. New York State, Nassau County, Suffolk County and New York City each have their own list of what a home improvement contract should have in it, and we work in all three of those places (our own contracts get signed at the showroom). So we put the lists next to each other, using each agency’s own guidance. The sources are linked at the end.
It has to be in writing
Suffolk County’s fact sheet sums up state law: home improvement contracts “must be in writing, legible and in plain English,” and “a copy must be given to the customer before any work is done.” Nassau and New York City add that it must also be in the language mainly used when the job was sold to you.
What each agency says the contract should cover
| Nassau County | Suffolk County | New York City | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contractor’s name, address and phone | Required | Not listed | Required |
| Contractor’s license number | Required | License number listed | Required, as on the DCWP license |
| Salesperson’s name | Required | Not listed | Required |
| Dates | Completion date | Start and completion dates | Approximate start and completion dates, and reasons the end date could change |
| Description of the work and materials | Not listed | Detailed work; materials by quantity, quality, brand and model | Specific work; materials by brand and model; price of each |
| Payment schedule | Not listed | Payments tied to completed work | Each payment tied to the work, materials or costs it covers |
| Right to cancel notice | Required if signed away from the contractor’s main place of business | Required (see below) | Required, in bold, next to your signature, plus a separate cancellation form |
| Permits | Not listed as a contract item (the FAQ says the contractor must make sure permits are obtained before work starts) | Contract should say who gets them | Contractor agrees to get all permits, and gives you a written permit notice no later than the day you sign |
Where those columns come from: Nassau’s is its home improvement license FAQ, and Suffolk’s is the checklist in its consumer fact sheet (the only legal requirement that fact sheet states is that the contract is in writing). New York City’s is the checklist every licensed contractor there has to sign.
If it says “Not listed,” that agency’s page just leaves the item out. You’d still want it in your contract.
The city also wants any guarantees or warranties the contractor advertised written into the contract, along with a promise to give you a certificate of workers’ compensation insurance before work starts.
What state law adds
Then there’s the state. General Business Law Article 36-A, section 771, covers every home improvement contract in New York with an aggregate price over $500, so Nassau, Suffolk and New York City all fall under it. It adds these on top of everything above:
- A mechanic’s lien notice, in bold type. It must be in “clear and conspicuous bold face type” and begin: “Any contractor, subcontractor, or materialman who provides home improvement goods or services pursuant to your home improvement contract and who is not paid may have a valid legal claim against your property known as a mechanic’s lien.”
- A progress payment schedule, if there are progress payments. It must show each payment “as a sum in dollars and cents” and “specifically identifying the state of completion of the work.” The statute also says each payment “shall bear a reasonable relationship to the amount of work to be performed, materials to be purchased, or expenses for which the contractor would be obligated at the time of payment.”
- An insurance disclosure. Before work begins, the writing must disclose “the existence of a property and/or casualty insurance policy that covers the scope of such contractor or subcontractor’s employment should an insurance claim be filed resulting from losses arising from the work at such property.” It “shall also include the contact information of the insurance company providing such property and/or casualty insurance, including a phone number and address.”
Three business days to change your mind
State law says the owner “may cancel the home improvement contract until midnight of the third business day after the day on which the owner has signed an agreement or offer to purchase relating to such contract.”
Each agency explains it a little differently.
- Nassau: the notice must be in bold type next to your signature. You can send written notice by postal mail, text or email. If you cancel, your payments must be returned within 10 business days. The contractor can’t start work or deliver goods within those three days unless you sign a separate, dated statement describing an emergency and giving up the right to cancel.
- Suffolk: its fact sheet advises cancelling by certified mail, return receipt requested.
- New York City: you get a separate “Notice of Cancellation” form when you sign. If you cancel, payments must be returned within 10 business days.
Where your deposit goes
If you read one part of this post, read this one.
Under state law, a contractor who takes money before the job is substantially complete must do one of two things:
- deposit it within five business days in an escrow account in a bank, trust company, savings bank, or state or federal savings and loan association, located in New York State. Unless the contract names the bank, the contractor must tell you in writing where it’s held within ten business days; or
- post with you a bond or contract of indemnity from a surety company licensed in New York, or an irrevocable letter of credit from a bank, trust company, savings bank, or state or federal savings and loan institution located in New York, guaranteeing the return of the payments or their proper application to the purposes of the contract. It must be delivered to you within ten business days after the contractor receives the payment.
That’s section 71-a of the Lien Law, and your contract has to include a notice about it.
As far as we found, neither of those state law sections puts a percentage cap on a deposit. Suffolk goes further in its advice: a down payment “under 15%,” payments as each phase gets done, and the final payment held back until the work has passed its inspections. That’s advice from the county, though, not a legal limit.
On penalties, the statute says a contractor who fails to put deposits in escrow or provide a bond, or fails to provide a written contract substantially in compliance with the article, can face a civil penalty “not to exceed the greater of two hundred fifty dollars for each violation or five percent of the aggregate contract price,” with a cap of “twenty-five hundred dollars for each contract” (General Business Law section 773). If the contractor can show the violation wasn’t intentional and came from a bona fide error, the higher penalty doesn’t apply.
In New York City, a contractor’s license itself depends on joining the city’s Home Improvement Business Trust Fund or posting a $20,000 bond.
Changes halfway through
Things change on a remodel. A wall comes down and there’s something behind it, or halfway through you’d rather have a different tile.
Suffolk’s advice is to agree a price for any change or extra work, and write it into the contract or an addendum that both sides initial or sign. New York City publishes a change order form for exactly this.
If you’ve got a contract in front of you, ours or anybody’s, bring it to the showroom at 29 Jerusalem Ave. Unit 1 in Levittown and we’ll go through it with you. If you’re still choosing a contractor, our guide to hiring a contractor on Long Island shows how to look up a license.
Not legal advice. We checked the agencies’ guidance and the statutes on October 6, 2026; the links below have the current versions.
Sources
- New York State, General Business Law Article 36-A, Home Improvement Contracts and Lien Law section 71-a
- Nassau County Department of Consumer Affairs, Frequently Asked Questions on Obtaining a Home Improvement License
- Suffolk County Department of Labor, Licensing and Consumer Affairs, Home Improvement Fact Sheet (revised 10/16/24)
- NYC DCWP, Home Improvement Contractor Contractual Compliance Agreement and Checklist (updated 09/11/2026), license checklist and model contract
Related: Planning a Full-Home Remodel on Long Island: What to Decide, and in What Order