Contracts & ExecutionQuestion 700 of 1632

A home improvement contract states the project 'will start sometime soon and finish when done.' What is the defect?

a.It omits the approximate start and completion dates the law requires
b.Nothing is wrong with it, since approximate dates are entirely optional
c.Dates are required only on contracts worth more than $50,000 in total
d.Only the start date is required, never the completion date

Explanation

B&P §7159(d)(10) requires the heading 'Approximate Start Date' followed by the approximate date work will commence, and §7159(d)(11) requires the estimated completion date to be referenced — both of them — and §7164(b)(2) requires the same pair in a contract to build a single-family dwelling. 'Sometime soon' and 'when done' are not approximations but the absence of a term, and §7159(a)(5) makes that cause for discipline. (d) keeps half the requirement, which is how this violation usually looks in practice. (c) invents a dollar threshold; the only threshold in the article is the $500 that makes it a home improvement contract at all. (b) reads 'approximate' as 'optional', when the statute has already made its concession by asking for an approximate date rather than a firm one.

Law Reference: Bus. & Prof. Code §7159(d)(10)-(11), §7159(a)(5); cf. §7164(b)(2)

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