Hiring a Contractor in Pennsylvania: What HICPA Means for Homeowners

Pennsylvania homeowners have stronger legal protections than most — if they know to use them. The Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (HICPA) sets rules for who can perform home improvement work in the state and what a legitimate contract must contain. Here's what to check before you sign anything.

Registration is the first checkpoint

Under HICPA, contractors performing home improvement work in Pennsylvania are generally required to register with the state Attorney General's office and display their registration number — the "PA" number you'll see on legitimate contractors' advertising, contracts, and vehicles. You can verify any contractor's registration for free through the Attorney General's website.

If a contractor can't produce a PA registration number, that's not a paperwork technicality — it's a signal about how the rest of the project will run. Pittsburgh Home Renovations is a registered and insured Pennsylvania company, and the licensed professionals on our team lead and primarily perform the work in-house.

What a HICPA-compliant contract must include

For most home improvement projects, Pennsylvania law requires a written contract containing, among other things:

• The contractor's registration number and contact information
• The full scope of work and materials
• The total price and payment schedule
• Approximate start and completion dates
• Notice of your three-business-day right to cancel

A contractor who works on a handshake or a one-line invoice isn't doing you a favor — they're removing your legal protections. A detailed contract protects both sides, and it's how disputes get prevented rather than litigated.

Deposit rules exist for a reason

HICPA limits how large a deposit a contractor can demand up front on most projects. Be cautious with anyone requesting most of the money before work begins. A financially healthy company doesn't need your project to fund its last one.

Beyond the legal minimum: what to actually ask

Registration and a compliant contract are the floor. The questions that separate contractors from each other:

• Who performs the work? Many companies sell the job and subcontract the labor, which means the crew in your home may have no lasting relationship with the name on the contract. Pittsburgh Home Renovations employs 30+ vetted in-house employees who lead and primarily perform the work across every trade — the people in your home are our people. When a project calls for a specialist, we bring in vetted partners who work under our supervision and to our standards.
• Will it pass inspection? Ask directly whether work is built to code and whether the contractor stands behind inspection results. Ours is, and we do — guaranteed.
• Can they hold a schedule? On time and on budget should be a commitment, not a slogan. Ask how the company sequences trades; companies juggling subcontractors' calendars can't honestly promise a date.

The bottom line

HICPA gives you the tools to filter out bad actors before they're in your home: verify the registration, demand a compliant written contract, and be wary of oversized deposits. Then hire based on who's actually swinging the hammers.

Planning a project this year? Contact Pittsburgh Home Renovations for an in-home consultation — serving homeowners across the greater Pittsburgh area.