The builder accepted your price. Before you commit the crew, check what the agreement requires you to do. A subcontractor agreement establishes the relationship and obligations between the contractor and subcontractor. It sets the terms for doing the agreed work and getting paid. AIA A401 instructions.
Before the crew starts, read the whole agreement and every document it includes by reference. Use these questions to review it with the builder and, where needed, a construction attorney. This is a reading checklist, not a contract template.
Check who signs and which documents apply
Identify each party’s legal business name and who can sign for it. Check the project description against the job you priced. AIA’s instructions call for identifying parties by their full legal names and describing the project. AIA A401 instructions.
Ask for every referenced exhibit, scope sheet, drawing, specification, schedule, and set of general conditions. Do not accept a reference to an attachment you have not received. List missing documents and get them before signing.
AIA A401 incorporates general conditions and a prime contract by reference. Its summary describes duties passing to the sub for the designated portion of work. AIA A401 summary. That is one form’s structure, not a rule that every subcontract contains the same terms.
Check which outside documents apply and which terms control if they conflict. Ask counsel to explain what the agreement includes by reference. Keep the final document list with the signed agreement so you can identify later revisions.
Connect the scope to the price
Compare your estimate with the attached scope line by line. Check locations, materials, drawings, finish requirements, access assumptions, and work by others. Write down each difference rather than relying on the sales conversation.
Use this suggested scope checklist:
Scroll to read all columns.
| Item | Question to resolve |
|---|---|
| Included work | Which tasks and locations are included in the price? |
| Exclusions | Which work is expressly outside your scope? |
| Materials | Who buys, delivers, protects, and accounts for them? |
| Interfaces | What must another trade complete before you start? |
| Acceptance | Who reviews completion and against which documents? |
| Cleanup and punch work | What is included and when is it required? |
Attach the agreed scope with a document name or number and date. If a later drawing changes the work, use the agreement’s change process. Do not let a new attachment silently replace the scope you priced.
For repeat work, separate standing terms from each job’s scope. ConsensusDocs publishes a master subcontract and separate project work order for that structure. ConsensusDocs master agreement announcement. Confirm that both documents exist and match the job before accepting a work order.
Read schedule and payment together
Record when you can start, when you must finish, the work sequence, and how to give notice of a delay. Ask what happens if the site is not ready or an upstream selection is unresolved. Do not insert your own assumptions about extra trips or standby compensation.
Compare the payment workflow with the change approval process before signing the package.
Then identify how you request payment. Ask when and how to bill, what backup to attach, who reviews it, and how the due date is calculated. Check deposits, progress draws, retainage, final payment, and the treatment of disputed items.
The ConsensusDocs 750 sample addresses schedule, changes, progress and final payment, insurance, and termination. ConsensusDocs subcontract sample. That sample shows how a contract can spell out those terms. Check the terms in your own agreement.
Ask for the billing instructions before the first crew arrives. If the payment clause refers to another document, obtain it. Check that the payment instructions match the business signing the subcontract. Do not rely only on the person who introduced you.
Read conditional-payment clauses carefully
Ask the attorney whether payment language regulates timing or transfers the risk of owner nonpayment. Do not rely on the heading “pay when paid” or “pay if paid” without reading the clause and checking applicable law.
North Carolina’s Chapter 22C contains payment protections but also excludes residential contractors and several residential categories, including improvements consisting of twelve or fewer residential units. N.C. Gen. Stat. ch. 22C. Do not assume its owner-payment rule settles a single-family subcontract.
For your job, ask which payment protections apply, what notice is required, and what happens if the owner does not pay. Resolve those questions with the builder before committing costs. Avoid treating an expected lender draw as a confirmed payment date.
Have your attorney and insurer review risk clauses
Identify any clause requiring you to indemnify, hold harmless, or defend another party. Ask whose acts trigger the obligation and which losses it covers. Give the clause to both your attorney and insurance producer.
North Carolina section 22B-1 restricts specified construction indemnity and defense agreements. Its provisions include negligence and fault conditions and exclusions. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 22B-1. It does not justify a blanket claim that every indemnity clause is invalid.
Compare the agreement’s insurance requirements with the policy documents your producer can supply. In North Carolina, a certificate of insurance does not change policy coverage or create additional rights beyond the policy. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 58-3-149.
Ask which endorsements are required, which entity must be named, and when coverage must be in place. AIA encourages broker and counsel review of its subcontract insurance requirements before construction. AIA A401 summary. Obtain that review before promising compliance.
Check warranty and correction obligations
Identify the work you must warrant, when the period begins, and how defects are reported. Ask who provides access for correction and who decides whether the issue falls within your scope. Separate workmanship responsibilities from manufacturer documentation.
AIA’s subcontract summary addresses special material and equipment warranties and their transfer to the owner. AIA A401 summary. Your agreement and applicable law may use different requirements. Do not assume a standard warranty length without confirmed text.
Check the treatment of unfinished punch work and any amount held for it. Ask for the required closeout documents before final billing. Record final completion and any remaining duties separately. Receiving payment does not mean every responsibility has ended.
Find the change, termination, and dispute procedures
Name the person authorized to order changes. Check how to document price and schedule changes and what notice deadlines apply. If someone requests extra work on site, use that agreed route instead of assuming the request changed your price.
Read termination for default separately from termination for convenience. Ask what notice, opportunity to correct, payment, and demobilization provisions apply. The ConsensusDocs sample addresses changes and suspension or termination in separate articles. ConsensusDocs 750 sample.
Identify the required notices and delivery method. Ask counsel about dispute forum, arbitration, attorney-fee provisions, and any unfamiliar remedies. Check whether ordinary email is enough for a required notice before a billing dispute starts.
Review waivers before they enter the payment routine
A lien waiver or release can affect rights beyond the invoice amount you had in mind. Before using a waiver repeatedly, ask counsel to check its amount, covered period, exceptions, and whether it depends on payment.
North Carolina section 44A-12(f) makes specified anticipatory lien waivers given for awarding a construction contract unenforceable, while allowing specified subordination or release. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 44A-12(f). That distinction does not make every later payment waiver harmless.
Ask counsel to review unfamiliar risks, missing referenced documents, penalties you cannot assess, and payment tied to events outside your control. Include agreed changes in the final documents.
Keep sensitive records private
Keep financial exhibits in restricted files. Give the crew the scope and authorized contacts. FTC access guidance.
For year-end reporting after the payment records are reconciled, follow the subcontractor 1099 workflow.
Where Cercha fits
Cercha’s Search, portfolios, and endorsements help you identify potential working relationships. Messages provides a route to the member responsible for discussing a scope. Use your own reviewed agreement to establish the job’s obligations. Ask about the beta.