Having a written contract reduces the potential for misunderstandings between owners and contractors. A written contract cannot prevent all problems from occurring, but it can make them less likely and less expensive to resolve. A good contract is one that treats both members fairly, is easy to understand and spells out what is covered as well as what is not.

Building a house?

Building a house is a major project that requires a professional contract between the builder and the owner. We recommend you use the Contract/Job description area to reference a physical paper contract and plans, as writing large contracts on this site makes tracking alterations difficult.

An independently developed contract is available through the New Zealand Standards Authority. To view a NZSA contract sample page, click on the following link: NZSA SAMPLE PAGE. To get more detail or buy copies of their contracts, go to the Standards New Zealand website. Many builders and builders' trade organisations also have standard contracts available. For more detail on the trade organisation contracts see the Certified Builders Associating of NZ, (CBANZ) and Registered Master Builders Federation, (RMBF) websites.

There are three main types of contract arrangements for major building work.

• Full Contract
  Full contract basically means the builder is the project manager. The builder is responsible for all subcontractors and materials.
• Labour-only Contract
  For the labour-only contract the owner is the project manager. They are responsible for all the materials, all subcontractors, scheduling, consents, inspections and health and safety on site
• Managed Labour Contract
  This type of contract is a hybrid of the above two contract types. This contract may have the most detail as the contractor's and the owner's exact roles need to be documented clearly. Normally, the owner is responsible for the purchasing of the materials and selecting the subcontractors and the builder manages the execution and control of the project.

Other Services

For all other services E-trustee recommends you consider all of the following contract items for inclusion in your Contract/Job description.

• Details of the job
  This is this actual job to be completed by the contractor. It could include design detail, material to be used and product specifications.
• Inspection period
  This is how long the owner has to inspect the work completed by the contractor before agreeing that the job has been competed on the E-trustee website.
• Mediator and procedure for disputes
  What happens if things go wrong should be considered. This could save time and money for both members.
• Project Schedule
  This is the start and finish dates for the job and maybe certain milestone dates. You may also include acceptable reasons for changing these dates i.e. bad weather, hold ups in consents etc.
• Responsibility for cleanup
  This area is often overlooked and can result in a disgruntled owner after an otherwise successful job. For an owner this maybe one of the easiest ways to save money on the entire job. This is the one part of most jobs that doesn't required a trade qualification or experience - so why pay tradeperson rates to a tradesperson to clean?
• Identified Risks
  Warnings made by either member, i.e. "the quality of the paint provided by the owner may not last more than 5 years".
• Responsibly of the owner
  The owner may have specific responsibilities such as deciding subcontractors, scheduling subcontractors and supplying materials.
• E-trustee Fee
  Who is paying the E-trustee fee. There is a drop-down section on the Contract/Job description page where you can either select that the owner pays, the contractor pays or 50:50 split of the fee.
• Other Fees
  Who is paying the other fees i.e. Council fees.
• Liability insurance
  These are the contractors and their subcontractors liability insurance details.
• Subcontractors
  These are details on who is responsible for subcontractors, including deciding who they are, the scheduling of their work, their health and safety requirements and payment.
• Variations
  Theses are procedures for changes to the agreed Contract/Job description.
• Penalties
  This could include penalties for delays, this can be for either member.
• Warranties
  These are warranties that the contractor provides for their completed work and the manufacturers warranties covering the materials they provide.