Lathcheck checklist › Rule explainers
California home improvement contract rules, explained
Not legal advice. This page is a plain-English summary for general information. It may be incomplete, and the statute text controls. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Contractors State License Board or any government agency. For advice about your contract, consult a licensed California attorney.
- Downpayment limit: $1,000 or 10 percent, whichever is less
What Bus. & Prof. Code 7159.5(a)(3) says about the maximum downpayment on a California home improvement contract, and the statement the contract must show. - Schedule of progress payments
Plain-English summary of Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(d)(9) and 7159.5(a)(4)-(5): progress payments in dollars and cents, tied to work performed, and no payment ahead of the work. - Bond notice and the approved-bond exemption
What the bond notice in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(c)(6) says, and which payment rules 7159.5(a)(8) lifts for contractors with a registrar-approved bond or joint control. - Right to cancel: three, five or seven business days
Plain-English guide to the cancellation notices in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(e)(6)-(7): three days, five days for owners 65+, seven days for declared-emergency repairs, and the 2026 email option. - Notice of Cancellation, and your email and phone on the first page (2026)
What the Notice of Cancellation form in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159 must say, and the 2026 first-page email address and phone number requirements in 7159(c)(3)(B). - Subcontractor Yes/No statement (2026)
Plain-English summary of the 2026 subcontractor disclosure in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(c)(7): a Yes/No checkbox and, if yes, the statutory disclaimer. - Mechanics Lien Warning and lien releases
What Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(e)(4) requires for the Mechanics Lien Warning, and the lien-release statement in 7159(c)(4) and 7159.5(a)(6). - Extra work and change orders
Plain-English summary of the change-order notes in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(d)(13) and (e)(3): written, signed change orders before the work starts. - Insurance notices: commercial general liability and workers' compensation
What Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(e)(1) and (e)(2) require: notices about commercial general liability insurance and workers' compensation insurance, printed or attached. - Required headings, dates and the CSLB notice
Checklist summary of the headings and items in Bus. & Prof. Code 7159(d) and (e)(5): license number, contract price, project description, start and completion dates, CSLB information.