Check registration, insurance and lead-safe certification, and get a written contract that meets state law. In Pennsylvania, contractors doing at least $5,000 of home improvements a year must register with the Attorney General, and contracts must include specific items and a three-business-day right to rescind.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General says contractors who perform at least $5,000 of home improvements per year must register with its office, and registrations can be looked up online. The Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act also requires contractors to maintain liability insurance of at least $50,000 for personal injury and $50,000 for property damage, and to state the current coverage in the contract.
Under Section 7 of the Act, a home improvement contract is not valid or enforceable against the owner unless it is in writing and includes, among other items:
The owner may rescind within three business days of signing.
New Jersey's Division of Consumer Affairs says home improvement contracts of $500 or more must be in writing, contractors must be registered and carry at least $500,000 in liability insurance, and consumers may cancel for any reason before midnight of the third day after receiving a copy of the contract, by written notice, with any money paid returned within 30 days.
For homes built before 1978, the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule requires paid work that disturbs more than 6 square feet of interior paint per room or 20 square feet outside to be done by an EPA-certified firm using certified renovators and lead-safe practices, and requires the firm to give you the Renovate Right pamphlet before work begins.
Compare scope, not just totals: which surfaces are included, the prep steps, primers and number of coats, the products named, the schedule, and how lead-safe work is handled on older homes. Pennsylvania requires the contract to describe the materials and specifications, so quotes that name products and steps are easier to compare.
Joseph Assise III Painting is based in Easton and serves towns across eastern Pennsylvania and western New Jersey, centered on the Lehigh Valley. Town pages:
Allentown, PA | Bangor, PA | Bath, PA | Belvidere, NJ | Bethlehem, PA | Blairstown, NJ | Brodheadsville, PA | Califon, NJ | Catasauqua, PA | Center Valley, PA | Chester, NJ | Clinton, NJ | Columbia, NJ | Coopersburg, PA | Coplay, PA | Delaware Water Gap, PA | Doylestown, PA | East Stroudsburg, PA | Easton, PA | Emmaus, PA | Flemington, NJ | Forks Township, PA | Fountain Hill, PA | Frenchtown, NJ | Hackettstown, NJ | Hellertown, PA | High Bridge, NJ | Hope, NJ | Jim Thorpe, PA | Kutztown, PA | Lehighton, PA | Long Valley, NJ | Macungie, PA | Mendham, NJ | Milford, NJ | Mount Pocono, PA | Nazareth, PA | New Hope, PA | Northampton, PA | Oxford, NJ | Palmer Township, PA | Palmerton, PA | Pen Argyl, PA | Perkasie, PA | Phillipsburg, NJ | Portland, PA | Quakertown, PA | Riegelsville, PA | Roseto, PA | Sellersville, PA | Slatington, PA | Springtown, PA | Stockertown, PA | Stroudsburg, PA | Tatamy, PA | Topton, PA | Upper Black Eddy, PA | Upper Mount Bethel, PA | Walnutport, PA | Washington, NJ | Whitehall, PA | Williams Township, PA | Wind Gap, PA
Local guides with housing-age and climate data: Lafayette College, Easton | St. Luke's Easton Campus | Lehigh University, Bethlehem | SteelStacks, Bethlehem | Wind Creek, Bethlehem | Lehigh Valley Hospital, Cedar Crest | Dorney Park, South Whitehall.
Contractors who perform at least $5,000 of home improvements a year must register with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office, and registrations can be searched online. The registration number must also appear on the home improvement contract, which is not valid or enforceable against the owner without it.
In Pennsylvania, the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act requires contractors to maintain liability insurance of at least $50,000 for personal injury and $50,000 for property damage and to state current coverage in the contract. New Jersey requires registered contractors to carry at least $500,000 in liability insurance. Ask for a certificate of insurance.
In Pennsylvania, the owner may rescind a home improvement contract within three business days of signing. In New Jersey, a consumer may cancel for any reason before midnight of the third day after receiving a copy of the contract, by written notice, and money paid must be returned within 30 days.
Pennsylvania's Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act requires the contract to list the down payment and any special order materials separately. Read the deposit terms in the written contract, confirm the contractor's registration and insurance, and avoid paying before a compliant written contract is signed.
Sources: Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Home Improvement Contractor Registration; Pennsylvania Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (Act 132 of 2008), Section 7; New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs home improvement consumer alert; EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, 40 CFR Part 745 Subpart E. Figures checked October 2026.
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