Pre-signing checklist for a North Carolina roof job

Checks on license and permit

Before you sign, confirm whether the job's total cost reaches $40,000. If it does, your license must be active and cover the job's value.

Then ask the local inspector whether the work needs a permit. A roof replacement is outside the state statute's permit rule under the dollar limit, but a load-bearing repair is not.

Write down both answers with the date. A file note takes a minute and settles a dispute later. The threshold page shows how the figure is read.

$40,000The Board says a general contractor must be licensed if the total project cost is valued at $40,000 or higher. — North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors, retrieved 2026-09-29

Checks on money and paperwork

Cap the deposit at 20 percent, and tie the rest of the payments to finished work. The Department of Insurance calls 10 to 20 percent standard.

Attach a written scope, a materials list, a timeline, a cost breakdown and warranty terms. Add the three-day cancellation notice when you sell at the customer's home.

Buy your materials with sales tax in mind. A real property contractor is the consumer of the items used and pays the tax on materials, per the Department of Revenue.

The Department of Revenue says the real property contractor is the consumer of the item and pays tax on materials. — North Carolina Department of Revenue, retrieved 2026-09-29

Checks that apply after a storm

Ask whether the owner has filed a claim and whether an adjuster has looked. The regulator says permanent repairs should wait for the insurer's inspection.

State the deductible in the estimate. Do not take an assignment of benefits, and do not let the owner sign one under time pressure.

During a declared emergency, keep supplier invoices dated the day you price. The gouging page explains why. The storm contracts page covers the sales approach.

The Department of Insurance says not to have permanent repairs made until the insurance company has inspected the property. — North Carolina Department of Insurance, retrieved 2026-09-29

Questions