Written by contractors and attorneys — the perfect collaboration between real construction experience and legal knowledge.
Every contract shown on this page has a California edition.
Professional construction paperwork built around real contractor experience, California requirements and the disputes that happen on real jobs. Clear enough to use with customers. Strong enough to protect the business behind the work.
We start with the problems contractors actually face — scope changes, delays, access, existing conditions, payment, materials and customer expectations. Those pressure points shape the agreement before attorney knowledge strengthens the legal structure.
California has its own home-improvement rules, disclosures, payment limits, cancellation requirements and licensing framework. Your edition is built for California projects from the start, not treated as an afterthought.
California Contract Library
Choose your trade below. Every product shown here is pulled from our live contract library and opens with the California edition already selected. When a new contract is added to the library, it appears here automatically.
Trade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedTrade-specific contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedCommercial contract template for California projects, with the correct state edition selected.
✓ California selectedOur contractors start with the conversations that cause problems on real jobs — unclear scope, changes, delays, access, materials, payment and customer expectations. Those real-world pressure points are written into the contract before they have the chance to become disputes.
Then attorney knowledge and California law strengthen the structure. Trade experience identifies the problem. Clear paperwork helps stop it becoming an argument later.
CONTRACTOR EXPERIENCE. CALIFORNIA LEGAL KNOWLEDGE.
The trade leads the contract. Our contractors start with the problems that actually happen on jobs: scope disagreements, extra work, delays, access, materials, payment, customer responsibilities and the issues unique to each trade.
Attorneys then help turn that contractor knowledge into professional terms while considering the California law and regulatory requirements that can affect the agreement. The contract then comes back to contractors for real-world review before the California edition is finalized.
FROM JOBSITE EXPERIENCE TO A CALIFORNIA-SPECIFIC AGREEMENT
Contractor knowledge and attorney experience work together through every stage — with California law forming part of the legal review, not an afterthought.
Contractor Experience
Experienced contractors identify the disputes, misunderstandings, payment issues and jobsite risks that repeatedly arise in their trade.
California Legal Review
Attorney knowledge is applied to the California edition, including the California construction rules, required disclosures, consumer requirements, lien issues and licensed-trade requirements that can affect the agreement.
Professional Drafting
Contractor experience and the California legal layer are developed into clear terms covering the real project issues the agreement needs to address before work begins.
Contractor Review
The draft returns to experienced contractors to check that the wording still reflects how the trade actually operates and makes sense on a real California project.
Clearer Wording
If wording is unnecessarily complicated, it is refined so the agreement remains professional and legally informed while still being clear enough for contractors and customers to use.
Final California Edition
The result is a trade-specific California construction contract built from contractor experience, strengthened by attorney knowledge of California law and prepared for practical day-to-day use.
THE PERFECT COLLABORATION
The process moves back and forth until the contract works from both sides: the contractor knows the trade, the attorney brings legal knowledge, and the California edition reflects the state requirements relevant to that agreement.
Every contract in the library below has a California edition, with California already selected when you open it.
Find Your California Contract →More Than Boilerplate
A useful construction contract has to understand more than the state. It has to understand the job. Construction Companion combines a consistent contractor framework with trade-specific experience and a California-specific layer.
Built around recurring contractor issues including scope, changes, site access, materials, concealed conditions, delays, customer responsibilities and payment.
Practical contractor knowledge is developed into clear contractual terms and organized into professional paperwork for real projects.
The California edition is built separately so relevant California notices, consumer provisions, construction rules and trade requirements can be considered.
California Construction Contract Law
California's detailed home-improvement contract rules are especially important for contractors working directly with homeowners. Commercial construction has a different contract environment, so the page separates the two instead of implying that every homeowner notice and cancellation rule applies identically to commercial work.
Construction Companion combines contractor experience, attorney-developed terms and a dedicated California legal layer relevant to the agreement being used.
CSLB states that California requires a written contract for home-improvement projects over $500 in combined labor and materials. The home-improvement agreement and later changes must be written, legible and understandable, with the required consumer information included where applicable.
California's home-improvement framework addresses far more than a scope and price. Contractor identity and license information, project description, contract price, approximate dates, payment information, required notices, cancellation language and specified formatting can all matter to the written agreement.
For ordinary California home-improvement contracts, the down payment is generally limited to $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less. The contract also needs a detailed payment schedule, and payments generally cannot exceed the value of work performed or materials delivered, apart from the permitted down payment and statutory exceptions.
When the contract price or scope changes, CSLB requires the change to be documented in a written change order signed before the changed work begins. The written project record should show what changed and the effect on price or payment.
Qualifying California home-improvement transactions can carry statutory cancellation rights. From January 1, 2026, CSLB also says home-improvement contracts must include the contractor's email address, allow buyers to cancel by email, and include a telephone number to help buyers locate and complete the Notice of Cancellation. The correct cancellation framework depends on the transaction and applicable exception.
California's payment framework includes mechanics-lien warnings and surrounding notice rules. Subcontractors and suppliers can have lien rights, and preliminary-notice requirements form part of the wider project paperwork contractors and owners may need to manage.
Effective January 1, 2026, contractors using subcontractors on home-improvement projects must provide subcontractor information when requested, including the subcontractor's name, contact information, license number and classification. CSLB also confirms that the prime contractor remains responsible for the overall project.
For covered residential solar transactions, CSLB requires its Solar Energy System Disclosure Document on the front or cover page of the solar contract in boldface 16-point type. The disclosure and contract must also follow California's language rules tied to the sales presentation or marketing used with the consumer.
California Commercial Contracting
The detailed §7159 home-improvement framework above is aimed at home-improvement transactions and should not simply be copied across every commercial project. Commercial roofing, solar, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and painting projects can involve different payment structures, authorized representatives, change procedures, retainage, schedules of values, closeout requirements and business-to-business risk allocation.
California licensing, mechanics-lien law, permits, local requirements and project-specific rules can still matter to commercial contractors. Public works can introduce an entirely separate statutory layer as well. That is why Construction Companion uses dedicated commercial agreements rather than treating the residential paperwork as the commercial contract.
CSLB says a contractor license is generally required when a project needs a building permit, employee labor is used, or the total cost of one or more contracts on the project is $1,000 or more. The minor-work exemption is limited, and contractors cannot split a larger project into smaller contracts to avoid licensing requirements.
State law is only one part of the project. Building permits, inspections, adopted codes, AHJ requirements and local rules can differ across Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno and other California jurisdictions.
Real Construction Experience in the Paperwork
A California roofing agreement should not be a plumbing agreement with the trade name changed. The work, risks, customer expectations and recurring disputes are different.
Built to Be Used
The customer, property, scope, project price, payment schedule and dates change from job to job. The underlying agreement is already structured around the trade and the California edition.
California Contractor Agreements
Construction Companion supplies California construction contract templates for independent contractors and contracting businesses across the state. Whether you need a California roofing contract template, California solar contract, California HVAC agreement, California electrical contractor agreement, California plumbing contract, remodeling contract or commercial construction agreement, start with the trade and choose the California edition built for that work.
Professional construction paperwork should not be reserved for huge corporations with in-house legal departments. Our California contract library is built for contractors and small construction businesses that want professional terms without another subscription.
Find Your California Contract →California Construction Contract FAQs
Yes. CSLB states that home-improvement projects over $500 in combined labor and materials require a written contract. The agreement and changes must meet California's applicable home-improvement requirements.
For an ordinary California home-improvement contract, the down payment is generally limited to $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less, subject to statutory exceptions such as the rare qualifying blanket performance and payment bond arrangement.
Yes. CSLB says changes to price or scope must be recorded in a written change order signed before the changed work begins so the change becomes part of the written agreement.
Among the 2026 changes, CSLB says home-improvement contracts must include the contractor's email address, allow cancellation by email and include a telephone number connected with the Notice of Cancellation process. Contractors using subcontractors must also provide specified subcontractor information when requested.
No. California's detailed home-improvement framework is aimed at homeowner/home-improvement transactions. Commercial construction can involve a different contract structure and different project-specific legal issues, although licensing, liens, permits and other California rules may still apply.
For covered residential solar transactions, CSLB requires its Solar Energy System Disclosure Document on the front or cover page of the contract in boldface 16-point type, together with applicable language and cancellation requirements. See our California Solar Contract Guide for a deeper explanation.
The California editions are designed for contractors working across California, including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno and other areas, subject to applicable local permit, inspection, licensing and project-specific requirements.
Yes. The templates are designed to be completed with project-specific information and reused for suitable projects carried out by the purchasing business during the permitted use period.
