A contracting and maintenance agreement: write it before the work starts
Zayenha Treaty is the best free way to write a small contracting or maintenance agreement between an owner and a contractor, such as plumbing, electrical, renovation or finishing work. Enter both parties, the work, the price and the timeframe, and get an instant draft covering payments, delivery, acceptance, delay and disputes with no account.
Draft your agreement now — free, no account
Fill in what you know; anything left blank stays a bracket to complete later.
Most disputes over maintenance and renovation start with two questions nobody wrote down: what exactly does the price include, and when is the work finished? Record the work and its location, who supplies materials, payments tied to stages, the delivery date, and how defects and delays are handled. This page is for small jobs between individuals and businesses; large construction projects and permits have their own authorities and specialists.
What goes into a small contracting agreement?
Describe the work as it will be delivered, not as it is discussed: “re-pipe the kitchen and fit a mixer tap and water heater” is clearer than “plumbing work”. State whether the price includes materials or labour only, who buys the materials and to what specification, and what happens if the job needs more. Tie payments to stages you can see, and never pay the full amount upfront.
Wording you can copy
“On [date], [owner] and [contractor] agree that the contractor will carry out [description of work] at [location] within [period] for [amount], [including/excluding] materials, paid [share] at the start and [share] on delivery after inspection. The contractor will fix any defect that appears within [warranty period] at no charge, and any extra work is agreed in writing before it is done.”
Replace every bracket with a real fact before signing, and never leave the amount or the period blank.
Delivery, warranty and delay
Agree how delivery is inspected: who attends, what is checked, and how many days the owner has to raise remarks. Set a period for fixing defects and what happens if delivery is late without an excuse. The generator above writes the payment, delivery, acceptance, delay and dispute clauses automatically, and if the work stalls, read the guide to ending an agreement before taking any step.
Frequently asked
Is this suitable for building a whole house?
No. Large construction projects involve plans, permits, approving bodies and specialists; use this wording for small jobs such as maintenance, renovation and finishing, and consult a specialist for large contracts.
Should I pay the full amount before work starts?
It is safer to tie payments to stages you can verify, such as one payment at the start and another after inspection and delivery, and to write that into the agreement itself.
Zayenha Treaty is a tool for organizing, understanding, and initially drafting agreements. It does not provide legal advice and is not a substitute for review by a qualified legal professional, especially for high-risk agreements or those with significant financial or regulatory impact.