What is a new home construction contract?
Building a house takes months and hundreds of decisions, and the contract is what both sides go back to when something changes. The questions are predictable. What happens when the tile the owner picks costs more than the allowance? Who pays for rock in the foundation dig? When is each draw due? What counts as complete enough to move in? A clear new home construction contract answers each of them before ground is broken.
This template is for a builder working on the owner's own lot. It refers to the plans and specifications, summarises the house, and lists site work included and excluded. The owner handles the survey and association approvals, the builder handles permits and inspections, and hidden ground conditions are priced as changes. Choose a fixed price or cost plus a fee, with open books and an early warning if costs overrun. The template covers allowances with adjustment up or down, a selections deadline, a deposit and an editable draw schedule linked to an optional lender, lien waivers with each draw, signed change orders, delays, site visits and insurance. It ends with a punch-list handover and warranties for workmanship, systems and structure.
- Best for
- Custom home builders and general contractors
- Signed by
- The builder and the lot owner
- Price
- Fixed price or cost plus a fee, with allowances
- Length
- 4 pages, initialled on every page
When to use a new home construction contract
- A custom four-bedroom house on a lot the owner bought last year
- A cost-plus build for owners who want to choose as they go
- A lender-financed build with draws tied to bank inspections
- A small cottage or retirement home on family land
- Rebuilding a house after the old one was demolished
What you fill in
26 blanks, then the name and email of each person who signs: builder, owner.
1 The parties
- Builder (your business)*
- Your phone or email*
- Builder licence or registration (optional)
- Owner(s)*
- Owner phone or email*
2 The house
- Lot address and legal description*
- Plans*
- Specifications*
- House summary*
- Site work included*
- Not included*
3 Price
- Currency*
- Price type* fixed price · cost plus a fee
- Contract price (fixed) or estimated cost (cost-plus)*
- Builder's fee (cost-plus only)
- Allowances*
- Owner's selections due by*
4 Payment
- Deposit on signing*
- Draw schedule*
- Construction lender (optional)
5 Schedule
- Start of construction (expected)*
- Construction period (working days, expected)*
6 Warranty and law
- Workmanship and materials warranty (years)*
- Plumbing, electrical and mechanical systems warranty (years, optional)
- Structural warranty (years, optional)
- Governing law*
7 Who signs
- Builder signature and date, job title, initials on every page · The home builder or general contractor.
- Owner signature and date, initials on every page · The owner of the lot, or someone authorised to sign for all the owners. Name every joint owner in the Owner(s) blank.
What the new home construction contract covers
- The house
- The Lot, permits and approvals
- Price and allowances
- Payment
- Changes
- Schedule and delays
- Site visits, safety and insurance
- Completion and handover
- Warranty
- Ending this Contract and general
Using the new home construction contract, step by step
1 Describe the house
Enter the lot, the plan and specification references, a house summary, and edit the site work and exclusions lists.
2 Price and allowances
Choose fixed price or cost-plus, enter the price or estimate and any builder's fee, list the allowances and set the selections deadline.
3 Payment and schedule
Enter the deposit, edit the six-stage draw schedule, add the lender if there is one, the start date and the construction period.
4 Warranty and send
Set the workmanship, systems and structural warranty periods, add the governing law and send it to the owner.
Tips before you send it
- Make allowances realistic for the finish level the owner wants. Low allowances are a common source of budget disputes.
- Agree a selections calendar early. Late choices on windows and cabinets can hold up the build.
- If a lender is involved, match your draw stages to its inspection schedule before signing.
- Check whether your area requires a minimum new home warranty or a registered warranty plan.
Sign it online in minutes
- Fill in the blanks. Names, dates and amounts go straight into the agreement — the preview shows exactly where.
- Name who signs. Tick “This is me” for your own part. FileIt builds the PDF with every signature, date and initials box on the right line, and you can check or move anything before sending.
- Send it. Each signer gets a secure link and signs from any device — no account needed. The signed PDF, with an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion, is filed in your vault and emailed to everyone.
New home construction contract: frequently asked questions
What's the difference between fixed price and cost-plus?
Fixed price means the price only changes through allowances, signed changes and hidden ground conditions. Cost-plus means the owner pays actual costs plus the builder's fee, with open records and an early warning if the estimate will be exceeded by more than 5%.
How do allowances work?
The price includes a set amount for items the owner chooses later. If their choice costs more, the difference is added, and if it costs less, the difference is deducted.
Can the owner hold back the final payment for punch-list items?
Only the reasonable value of the unfinished items, as long as they don't stop the owner moving in.
What does the warranty cover?
Workmanship and materials for the years you set, plus optional warranties on plumbing, electrical and heating systems and on major structural defects. Longer legal rights for new homes still apply.
Is the template free?
Yes. It's free with FileIt eSignature, and the owner signs from the email link without an account.