NJ General Contractor cheat sheet

New Jersey contractor registration (home improvement) is issued by the Division of Consumer Affairs; the registration number must appear on contracts, estimates, advertisements, and vehicles.

A home improvement contractor registration is not a license to perform trade work; electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and fire protection work require separate trade licenses under the Uniform Construction Code.

New Jersey business entities file with the NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services; the Certificate of Formation/Authorization is distinct from the annual report filing.

Sole proprietors report business income on Schedule C; S corporations and partnerships are pass-through entities; C corporations face entity-level tax plus shareholder-level treatment.

A contractor's business name registration (alternate/fictitious name) must be filed with the county clerk where the business is located and renewed every five years.

Workers' compensation insurance is mandatory in New Jersey for employers with one or more employees; sole proprietors and partners may elect coverage.

General liability insurance is not statutorily mandated for contractors but is typically required by owners, lenders, and surety underwriters.

NJ contractor registration must be renewed every two years; failure to renew while performing home improvement work is a Consumer Fraud Act violation.

The Consumer Fraud Act allows treble damages plus attorney's fees and costs for unlawful home improvement practices, with a statutory minimum damages award.

Home improvement contracts over $500 must be in writing, signed by both parties, and state the legal name, business address, and registration number of the contractor.

Required contract terms include a description of work, materials, total price, deposit amount, start and completion dates, and the buyer's three-business-day right to cancel.

The right of cancellation runs until midnight of the third business day after signing; the contractor cannot begin work or accept payment before it expires unless there is a bona fide emergency.

A down payment may not exceed one-third of the total contract price for home improvement work under New Jersey's home improvement regulations.

The contractor must give the consumer a copy of the signed contract at the time of signing and cannot retain the only signed original.

Written change orders signed by the homeowner are required before performing work outside the contract scope; unsigned verbal changes are unenforceable and create CFA exposure.

Contractors must provide a written warranty statement where applicable and disclose whether the work is guaranteed and for how long.

Liens: a construction lien claimant must file a lien within 90 days after last furnishing labor or materials, then serve the lien and file suit to foreclose within one year.

The homeowner's three-day cancellation right does not apply to emergency repairs requested by the consumer when the contractor's usual business location is not open.

Waste factor: order quantity = net quantity × (1 + waste %); typical waste is 5-10% for framing lumber, 10% for roofing shingles, and 5% for drywall.

Board feet = (thickness in inches × width in inches × length in feet) ÷ 12; a 2×10×16 is 26.67 board feet.

Concrete volume in cubic yards = length × width × depth in feet ÷ 27; add 5-10% for over-excavation and spillage.

Masonry: 1.125 modular bricks per square foot of single-wythe wall (7 bricks per square foot for a 4-inch wall of standard modular brick).

Labor productivity: crew-days = quantity ÷ (crew size × daily unit output); labor cost = crew-days × daily crew rate.

Critical path method: the longest path through the network determines project duration; float = late start − early start.

A bid is legally an offer; the invitation to bid is not an offer, and a subcontractor's quote can be withdrawn before acceptance absent a firm offer.

Contingency is typically 5-10% of direct cost for well-defined work and 10-15% for renovation with unknown existing conditions.

Overhead and profit are separate markups: overhead covers indirect jobsite and home-office costs; profit is the residual margin on the contract.

OSHA fall protection for construction is triggered at 6 feet for general construction, 10 feet for scaffolding, and any height over dangerous equipment.

Guardrails, safety net systems, or personal fall arrest systems are acceptable fall protection; each employee must be trained and the system inspected before each shift.

Scaffolding must be erected, moved, dismantled, or altered only under the supervision of a competent person and must support four times the intended load.

Excavations 5 feet or deeper require a protective system (sloping, shoring, or shielding) unless the excavation is entirely in stable rock.

A competent person must inspect excavations daily before employees enter and after every rainstorm or other hazard-increasing event.

Ladders: extension ladders extend 3 feet above the landing; the 4-to-1 rule sets the base distance from the wall.

Hazard communication: Safety Data Sheets must be available on site, containers labeled, and employees trained on chemical hazards.

Personal protective equipment: hard hats, safety glasses, and hearing protection are required where hazards exist; respirators require fit testing and medical evaluation.

Recordkeeping: employers with 11 or more employees must maintain OSHA 300 logs; fatalities must be reported within 8 hours and hospitalizations within 24 hours.

New Jersey frost depth for footings is generally 30-36 inches depending on the county; footings must bear on undisturbed soil below the frost line.

Footing width = total building load ÷ allowable soil bearing capacity; minimum footing width for a one-story residence is typically 12 inches.

Concrete compressive strength at 28 days (f'c) is the design basis; typical residential foundation concrete is 2,500-3,000 psi.

Water-cement ratio governs strength and durability; a lower w/c ratio yields higher strength and lower permeability.

Slump test (ASTM C143) measures workability; typical residential foundation slump is 3-4 inches.

Cylinders for strength testing are cured and tested at 7 and 28 days; 7-day strength typically reaches about 70-75% of 28-day strength.

Reinforcement: #4 bar = 1/2 inch diameter, #5 = 5/8 inch; lap splices are typically 40 bar diameters for tension in normal-weight concrete.

Concrete must be protected from freezing; cold-weather concreting requires heated materials and insulated forms to maintain 50°F minimum.

Backfill against foundation walls requires the concrete to reach adequate strength (typically 7 days) and drainage/waterproofing to be in place.

Floor joists: maximum span tables depend on species, grade, size, and spacing; the span is measured clear between supports, not including bearing.

Joist bearing on wood or metal must be at least 1.5 inches; bearing on masonry must be at least 3 inches.

Notching and boring: notches in the top or bottom of a joist cannot exceed one-sixth of the depth; holes cannot exceed one-third of the depth and must be located in the middle third.

Stud spacing is typically 16 inches on center; wall height above 10 feet requires engineering or increased stud size.

Headers: the header spans the opening and carries loads from above; jack and king studs transfer header loads to the sole plate.

Roof framing: common rafters run perpendicular to the ridge; hip rafters run diagonally; valley rafters run diagonally where roof planes intersect.

Rafter length = run ÷ cos(roof pitch angle); pitch is rise over run, so a 6/12 pitch is a 26.57° angle.

Shear walls resist lateral loads; their capacity depends on sheathing thickness, nailing pattern, and anchorage to the foundation.

Wood decay: untreated wood requires 18 inches of clearance above grade and 6 inches from grade to siding; pressure-treated wood is required in contact with masonry or soil.

Roof slope: 4/12 or steeper is conventional; low-slope roofs (2/12 to 4/12) require underlayment and low-slope roofing materials.

Ice dam protection: a self-adhering membrane is required along eaves extending from the eave edge to a point at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line.

Underlayment: minimum one layer of No. 15 asphalt-saturated felt; two layers are required for slopes below 4/12.

Flashing: step flashing is required at sidewalls, headwall flashing at the top of a roof-to-wall junction, and counterflashing embedded in masonry.

Roof ventilation: net free ventilating area should be at least 1/150 of the vented ceiling area, or 1/300 with a vapor retarder and balanced intake/exhaust.

Housewrap must be installed with the printed side out, lapped shingle-style from bottom to top, and seams taped or sealed.

Window flashing sequence: sill pan first, then jamb flashing, then head flashing, so water sheds outward over the layers below.

Vapor retarders belong on the warm side of the assembly; in New Jersey's mixed climate, the strategy depends on whether the assembly dries inward or outward.

Air sealing is the priority over vapor sealing; penetrations, top plates, and rim joists are common leakage points.

A construction permit is required for electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work; trade permits are separate from the building permit and each trade requires its own licensed contractor.

Rough-in inspections must occur before covering; the electrical rough-in, plumbing rough-in, and mechanical rough-in are inspected before insulation and drywall.

Electrical: working clearance in front of a panel is 30 inches wide, 36 inches deep, and 6.5 feet high; the panel cannot be located in a clothes closet or bathroom.

Receptacle spacing: no point along a wall is more than 6 feet from a receptacle; kitchen countertop receptacles are spaced at 4 feet maximum.

GFCI protection is required in bathrooms, kitchens, garages, outdoors, unfinished basements, and within 6 feet of sinks.

Plumbing: each fixture requires a trap; vents must extend above the roof or connect to a vent stack, and the trap arm length is limited by pipe diameter.

Water supply sizing depends on fixture units and developed length; a pressure-reducing valve is required when static pressure exceeds 80 psi.

HVAC: combustion air, flue clearance, and condensate drainage must be coordinated; equipment must be accessible for service.

Coordination: mechanical chases, plumbing walls, and electrical panels must be shown on framing plans before rough-in to avoid conflicts.

The Uniform Construction Code (N.J.A.C. 5:23) adopts the model codes by reference, including the International Building Code, International Residential Code, and International Energy Conservation Code.

A construction permit is required before erecting, constructing, enlarging, altering, repairing, moving, removing, or demolishing a structure, with limited exemptions for ordinary repairs.

Ordinary repairs that do not affect structural safety or fire resistance do not require a permit; replacing a roof covering on a single-family dwelling may be exempt under limited conditions.

Permit applications are filed with the local enforcing agency (construction official); the construction official determines the required subcode approvals.

The construction official must act on a complete permit application within 20 business days; if not acted upon, the permit is deemed approved.

Inspections must be requested at least 24 hours in advance; the inspector must inspect within 3 business days of the request.

A certificate of occupancy is required before occupancy of a new building or a change of use; a certificate of continued occupancy is required for existing buildings.

A stop construction order may be issued for work not in compliance; work must cease until the order is lifted by the construction official.

Appeals of construction official decisions go to the local board of appeals, then to the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs.