NYC HOME IMPROVEMENT 2026 STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS MARKED A+
✔✔Home improvement definition - ✔✔The construction, repair, replacement,
remodeling, alteration, conversion, rehabilitation, renovation, modernization,
improvement, or addition to any land or building or any part of the land or building used
or designed to be used as a residence or dwelling place, including basements,
driveways, fences, garages, landscaping, patios, porches, sidewalks, swimming pools,
and terraces.
✔✔Home improvement contract - ✔✔A 'home improvement contract' is an agreement,
whether or not in writing, between a contractor and a consumer or tenant for
performance of a home improvement and includes all labor, services, and materials to
be furnished and performed.
✔✔Employee legal authority - ✔✔You must comply with the Federal Immigration laws,
which require employers to ensure that employees have legal authority to work in the
United States.
✔✔Additional penalty for unlicensed business - ✔✔A person may be prosecuted civilly
and face fines of up to $100 per day for engaging in unlicensed activity or aiding and
abetting the operation of an unlicensed person or business.
✔✔Painting exterior of a house - ✔✔You may require a suspended scaffold and a
rigging permit from DOB to paint the exterior of a home that is one story or more, unless
you can use a ladder to do the job.
✔✔Net profit of a job - ✔✔Net profit is the final profit of any job after expenses.
✔✔What is NOT home improvement - ✔✔Construction of a new home or building; Sale
of goods or materials in connection with the installation of or application of goods or
materials; Work performed on a residence owned or controlled by the state or
municipality; Painting or decoration of a building, residence, home, or apartment, when
not related to home improvement work.
✔✔Difference between subcontractor and employee - ✔✔A subcontractor is an
individual in business for himself or a firm in business for itself contracting to do part of a
home improvement contract with a prime contractor. An employee works for wages and
is under the employer's (prime or subcontractor) direct supervision and control.
✔✔Consumer contract cancellation - ✔✔Within 10 business days refund all payments
made under the contract, cancel and return money paid in connection with the contract,
terminate any security interest, and notify the consumer as to whether the contractor
intends to repossess or abandon any shipped delivered materials.
, ✔✔Class One Self Hauler Registration - ✔✔If you plan to haul or transport waste
resulting from your business operations, you must obtain a Class One Self Hauler
Registration from the New York City Business Integrity Commission.
✔✔Capital Improvement Exclusions - ✔✔Repairs such as repairing a window frame or
painting the living room do not qualify as capital improvement.
✔✔Capital Improvement Example - ✔✔Adding a bathroom to a home is an example of
a capital improvement.
✔✔Contractor's First Step for Extension - ✔✔The first thing a contractor should do
before beginning work on a home is to consult with a licensed architect or engineer to
determine if the owner can put in the extension and still comply with the applicable
zoning law.
✔✔Dumpster Permit - ✔✔A Contractor should contact the DOT for a dumpster permit.
✔✔Permit for Addition or Alteration - ✔✔A contractor secures all necessary permits
from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB). A contractor must make sure
that any addition or alterations meet building code standards and do not violate local
zoning laws.
✔✔HIC License Posting - ✔✔You must post your license in your office where all
consumers can see it or show it to consumers upon request.
✔✔Salesperson Definition - ✔✔A salesperson is someone who negotiates a home
improvement contract with a consumer or tenant, or solicits a home improvement
contract from an owner or tenant.
✔✔Contractor Definition - ✔✔A contractor is anyone who owns, operates, maintains,
conducts, controls, or transacts a home improvement business and undertakes or
agrees to perform any home improvement.
✔✔DCA License Requirement - ✔✔Any person who solicits, canvasses, sells, performs,
or obtains a home improvement contract as a contractor or salesperson must have a
DCA license.
✔✔Permit Responsibility - ✔✔It is the duty and obligation of the prime contractor to
secure all necessary permits, licenses, and Certificates of Occupancy or special
exceptions in accordance with applicable state or local building laws.
✔✔Amended Certificate of Occupancy Responsibility - ✔✔If an amended Certificate of
Occupancy is needed, it is the contractor's responsibility to obtain it for the consumer.
AND ANSWERS MARKED A+
✔✔Home improvement definition - ✔✔The construction, repair, replacement,
remodeling, alteration, conversion, rehabilitation, renovation, modernization,
improvement, or addition to any land or building or any part of the land or building used
or designed to be used as a residence or dwelling place, including basements,
driveways, fences, garages, landscaping, patios, porches, sidewalks, swimming pools,
and terraces.
✔✔Home improvement contract - ✔✔A 'home improvement contract' is an agreement,
whether or not in writing, between a contractor and a consumer or tenant for
performance of a home improvement and includes all labor, services, and materials to
be furnished and performed.
✔✔Employee legal authority - ✔✔You must comply with the Federal Immigration laws,
which require employers to ensure that employees have legal authority to work in the
United States.
✔✔Additional penalty for unlicensed business - ✔✔A person may be prosecuted civilly
and face fines of up to $100 per day for engaging in unlicensed activity or aiding and
abetting the operation of an unlicensed person or business.
✔✔Painting exterior of a house - ✔✔You may require a suspended scaffold and a
rigging permit from DOB to paint the exterior of a home that is one story or more, unless
you can use a ladder to do the job.
✔✔Net profit of a job - ✔✔Net profit is the final profit of any job after expenses.
✔✔What is NOT home improvement - ✔✔Construction of a new home or building; Sale
of goods or materials in connection with the installation of or application of goods or
materials; Work performed on a residence owned or controlled by the state or
municipality; Painting or decoration of a building, residence, home, or apartment, when
not related to home improvement work.
✔✔Difference between subcontractor and employee - ✔✔A subcontractor is an
individual in business for himself or a firm in business for itself contracting to do part of a
home improvement contract with a prime contractor. An employee works for wages and
is under the employer's (prime or subcontractor) direct supervision and control.
✔✔Consumer contract cancellation - ✔✔Within 10 business days refund all payments
made under the contract, cancel and return money paid in connection with the contract,
terminate any security interest, and notify the consumer as to whether the contractor
intends to repossess or abandon any shipped delivered materials.
, ✔✔Class One Self Hauler Registration - ✔✔If you plan to haul or transport waste
resulting from your business operations, you must obtain a Class One Self Hauler
Registration from the New York City Business Integrity Commission.
✔✔Capital Improvement Exclusions - ✔✔Repairs such as repairing a window frame or
painting the living room do not qualify as capital improvement.
✔✔Capital Improvement Example - ✔✔Adding a bathroom to a home is an example of
a capital improvement.
✔✔Contractor's First Step for Extension - ✔✔The first thing a contractor should do
before beginning work on a home is to consult with a licensed architect or engineer to
determine if the owner can put in the extension and still comply with the applicable
zoning law.
✔✔Dumpster Permit - ✔✔A Contractor should contact the DOT for a dumpster permit.
✔✔Permit for Addition or Alteration - ✔✔A contractor secures all necessary permits
from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB). A contractor must make sure
that any addition or alterations meet building code standards and do not violate local
zoning laws.
✔✔HIC License Posting - ✔✔You must post your license in your office where all
consumers can see it or show it to consumers upon request.
✔✔Salesperson Definition - ✔✔A salesperson is someone who negotiates a home
improvement contract with a consumer or tenant, or solicits a home improvement
contract from an owner or tenant.
✔✔Contractor Definition - ✔✔A contractor is anyone who owns, operates, maintains,
conducts, controls, or transacts a home improvement business and undertakes or
agrees to perform any home improvement.
✔✔DCA License Requirement - ✔✔Any person who solicits, canvasses, sells, performs,
or obtains a home improvement contract as a contractor or salesperson must have a
DCA license.
✔✔Permit Responsibility - ✔✔It is the duty and obligation of the prime contractor to
secure all necessary permits, licenses, and Certificates of Occupancy or special
exceptions in accordance with applicable state or local building laws.
✔✔Amended Certificate of Occupancy Responsibility - ✔✔If an amended Certificate of
Occupancy is needed, it is the contractor's responsibility to obtain it for the consumer.
