A.R.S. 32-1158: What an Arizona Home Construction Contract Must Include

Any Arizona construction contract over $1,000 must contain a specific set of terms, set by A.R.S. 32-1158. The contractor has to put your names, the price, the scope, the payment schedule, and a bold notice about your complaint rights in writing, and hand you signed copies when you sign. This page lists every required term and explains what each one protects.

What this statute says

A.R.S. 32-1158 applies to contracts that exceed $1,000. It sets a floor for what the written agreement must contain, requires the contractor to give you signed copies, and treats cash payments specially. Here is the heart of the requirement:

A written contract entered into between an owner and a contractor that exceeds one thousand dollars shall contain the following...

The statute then lists the mandatory terms. Below is the full checklist, in plain language.

The required contract terms

1. The contractor's identity and license. Name, business address, and ROC license number.
2. The owner and the jobsite. Your name and mailing address, plus the jobsite address or legal description.
3. The contract date. The date you and the contractor entered into the agreement.
4. The estimated completion date. The estimated date all work under the contract will be finished.
5. The scope of work. A description of the work to be performed.
6. The total price. The total dollar amount you will pay the contractor for all the work, including all applicable taxes.
7. Any deposit. The dollar amount of any advance deposit paid or scheduled to be paid.
8. The progress payments. The dollar amount of each progress payment and the stage of construction at which the contractor may collect it.
9. A complaint-rights notice. A statement of your right to file a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors, including how to contact the ROC, set in at least ten-point bold type and signed by both parties.

The statute also requires the contractor to give you a signed copy of every document you sign, and to provide a receipt for any cash payment. One more point matters: if a contractor leaves something out, the contract is still valid. The law states the contract "is not invalid solely because" it fails to meet these requirements, but the omission can be grounds for ROC discipline against the contractor.

What it means for your home build

Treat this list as your minimum checklist before signing. For example, on a $650,000 custom home in Cave Creek, the contract must name your builder's ROC license number, give a total price with tax, set an estimated completion date, and tie each payment to a construction stage (foundation, framing dry-in, drywall, final). If a builder hands you a one-page quote with a price and a start date but no progress-payment stages and no complaint notice, it does not meet 32-1158.

Two of the required items deserve extra attention. The progress payment schedule (item 8) is your protection against paying ahead of completed work; it should read like a draw schedule tied to real milestones. And while 32-1158 does not require a change-order clause, every term here can shift mid-build, so pair it with a written change order process so price and scope changes are documented, not verbal.

How this connects to other rules

This section defines the paperwork; the licensing sections decide who is even allowed to sign it. A.R.S. 32-1151 makes contracting without a license illegal, and A.R.S. 32-1153 stops an unlicensed contractor from suing for payment, so the license number in item 1 is doing real work. The payment-stage rule in item 8 connects to the prompt-payment timing in A.R.S. 32-1182. For a fuller walkthrough of building a strong agreement, see what to include in a custom home contract , how pricing is structured in cost-plus vs fixed-price home contracts , and how payments line up with financing in construction loan draw schedules explained .

Full text and source

Read the current section, including any amendments and the exact statutory wording of each required term, on the legislature's site: View A.R.S. 32-1158 on azleg.gov .

How the rule applies to a specific contract depends on the facts, so confirm details with a qualified professional before relying on it.