Contractor software built on New York's rules.
New York asks more of a home improvement contract than most states, and six places license the contractor on top of it. BuilderVP was built on Long Island with those rules written in: the contract notices, your license numbers, sales tax from the job address and the capital improvement certificate after signing.
Where you need a license
Home improvement work
| Nassau County | Nassau County Department of Consumer AffairsHome improvement license |
|---|---|
| Suffolk County | Suffolk County Department of Labor, Licensing and Consumer AffairsHome improvement license |
| New York City | New York City Department of Consumer and Worker ProtectionHome Improvement Contractor license |
| Westchester County | Westchester County Department of Consumer ProtectionHome improvement license |
| Rockland County | Rockland County Director of Consumer ProtectionHome improvement contractor license |
| Putnam County | Putnam County Director of Consumer Affairs, Weights and MeasuresHome improvement registration |
What New York asks of a home improvement job, and what BuilderVP does with it.
The contract
A home improvement contract is written in plain English and gives the contractor's name, address and phone, approximate start and completion dates, the work and materials, the mechanic's lien notice and the right to cancel until midnight of the third business day after signing.
Sources: General Business Law 771, NY Attorney General
In BuilderVPBuilderVP writes those notices into every New York home improvement contract and keeps them there whatever your own wording says. A contract is held back until its start date, substantial completion date, insurance carrier and deposit details are filled in.
Deposits
Payments taken before substantial completion go into an escrow account at a New York bank within five business days, or the contractor posts a bond or contract of indemnity instead.
Sources: Lien Law 71-a, NY Attorney General
In BuilderVPEach job chooses escrow or a bond, and the contract says which, with your bank or bond details filled in from Settings.
A contract signed at the home
When the agreement is made at the homeowner's house, New York's home solicitation law adds a written statement of the right to cancel and a notice of cancellation form.
Source: Personal Property Law 428
In BuilderVPEvery New York contract in BuilderVP carries the statement and the form, and the homeowner can also cancel from their project portal inside the three days.
Capital improvements
A capital improvement carries no sales tax on the charge to the homeowner. The contractor keeps the homeowner's signed Form ST-124 as the record of it.
Source: Form ST-124
In BuilderVPBuilderVP makes the ST-124 from the signed contract. The client signs it, your team countersigns it, and it stays on the job.
Sales tax
The combined rate depends on the county, and on the city where a city has its own: from 7% to 8.875% across the state, with the commuter district tax in New York City and the seven counties around it.
Source: Publication 718
In BuilderVPThe rate comes from the job's ZIP code and town. A client can carry their own tax code, or be exempt with the certificate on file.
Building permits
Permits come from the village, town or city the job is in. New York City keeps its own construction code and issues permits through its Department of Buildings.
Source: NY Department of State
In BuilderVPBring the permit expediter, architect and engineer into preconstruction on the job. Each sees only the work assigned to them.
By place
Long Island
Long Island jobs, on both sides of the county line.
Nassau County
Contractor software that knows a Nassau County job.
Suffolk County
Suffolk County jobs, licensed, taxed and signed right.
New York City
Contractor software for New York City home improvement work.
Westchester County
Contractor software for Westchester, down to the Yonkers rate.
Rockland County
Contractor software ready for Rockland's new contractor law.
Putnam County
Putnam County jobs, registered, taxed and signed.
Every sales tax rate BuilderVP charges in New York.
The combined state and local rate for each county, and for each city with its own. A job takes its area from its ZIP code and town, and you can change it when a ZIP crosses a line.
From NYS Publication 718, effective March 1, 2025.
Show all 76 tax areas
| Area | Code | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Albany County | 0181 | 8% |
| Allegany County | 0221 | 8.5% |
| Auburn (city) | 0561 | 8% |
| Broome County | 0321 | 8% |
| Cattaraugus County | 0481 | 8% |
| Cayuga County | 0511 | 8% |
| Chautauqua County | 0651 | 8% |
| Chemung County | 0711 | 8% |
| Chenango County | 0861 | 8% |
| Clinton County | 0921 | 8% |
| Columbia County | 1021 | 8% |
| Cortland County | 1131 | 8% |
| Delaware County | 1221 | 8% |
| Dutchess County | 1311 | 8.125%* |
| Erie County | 1451 | 8.75% |
| Essex County | 1521 | 8% |
| Franklin County | 1621 | 8% |
| Fulton County | 1791 | 8% |
| Genesee County | 1811 | 8% |
| Glens Falls (city) | 5211 | 7% |
| Gloversville (city) | 1741 | 8% |
| Greene County | 1911 | 8% |
| Hamilton County | 2011 | 8% |
| Herkimer County | 2121 | 8.25% |
| Ithaca (city) | 5021 | 8% |
| Jefferson County | 2221 | 8% |
| Johnstown (city) | 1751 | 8% |
| Lewis County | 2321 | 8% |
| Livingston County | 2411 | 8% |
| Madison County | 2511 | 8% |
| Monroe County | 2611 | 8% |
| Montgomery County | 2781 | 8% |
| Mount Vernon (city) | 5521 | 8.375%* |
| Nassau County | 2811 | 8.625%* |
| New Rochelle (city) | 6861 | 8.375%* |
| New York City | 8081 | 8.875%* |
| Niagara County | 2911 | 8% |
| Norwich (city) | 0831 | 8% |
| Ogdensburg (city) | 4012 | 8% |
| Olean (city) | 0441 | 8% |
| Oneida (city) | 2541 | 8% |
| Oneida County | 3010 | 8.75% |
| Onondaga County | 3121 | 8% |
| Ontario County | 3211 | 7.5% |
| Orange County | 3321 | 8.125%* |
| Orleans County | 3481 | 8% |
| Oswego (city) | 3561 | 8% |
| Oswego County | 3501 | 8% |
| Otsego County | 3621 | 8% |
| Putnam County | 3731 | 8.375%* |
| Rensselaer County | 3881 | 8% |
| Rockland County | 3921 | 8.375%* |
| Rome (city) | 3015 | 8.75% |
| Salamanca (city) | 0431 | 8% |
| Saratoga County | 4111 | 7% |
| Saratoga Springs (city) | 4131 | 7% |
| Schenectady County | 4241 | 8% |
| Schoharie County | 4321 | 8% |
| Schuyler County | 4411 | 8% |
| Seneca County | 4511 | 8% |
| St. Lawrence County | 4091 | 8% |
| Steuben County | 4691 | 8% |
| Suffolk County | 4711 | 8.75%* |
| Sullivan County | 4821 | 8% |
| Tioga County | 4921 | 8% |
| Tompkins County | 5081 | 8% |
| Ulster County | 5111 | 8% |
| Utica (city) | 3018 | 8.75% |
| Warren County | 5281 | 7% |
| Washington County | 5311 | 7% |
| Wayne County | 5421 | 8% |
| Westchester County | 5581 | 8.375%* |
| White Plains (city) | 6513 | 8.375%* |
| Wyoming County | 5621 | 8% |
| Yates County | 5721 | 8% |
| Yonkers (city) | 6511 | 8.875%* |
* Includes the 0.375% Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District tax.
Questions
Does New York State license home improvement contractors?
The licensing is local. The Attorney General lists six places where home improvement contractors must be licensed: New York City and Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Putnam and Rockland counties. Every contractor in the state still follows the contract and deposit rules in General Business Law section 771 and Lien Law section 71-a.
Will BuilderVP write my New York home improvement contract?
BuilderVP holds your contract, written or pasted in BuilderVP or uploaded as your own PDF, with the statutory notices kept on it, your license numbers, the job's deposit choice and your payment schedule. Have your attorney review your wording once; BuilderVP keeps whatever you settle on and freezes it with the client's signature.
Does BuilderVP know the sales tax rate for every New York county?
Yes. BuilderVP carries every reporting code in New York's Publication 718, county and city, and picks the area from the job's ZIP code and town. You can change a job's area when a ZIP crosses a county line.
Is BuilderVP only for New York contractors?
No. Contractors anywhere use BuilderVP for leads, drawings, estimates, proposals and JobTread. New York is where BuilderVP also knows the local contract, license and tax rules, because that is where it was built.
Not in New York?
BuilderVP runs leads, drawings, estimates, proposals, ordering, the schedule and the field for contractors anywhere. See the features.
Sources
- General Business Law section 771, home improvement contractsNew York State Senate
- Home Improvement Fact SheetNew York State Office of the Attorney General
- Lien Law section 71-a, home improvement contract paymentsNew York State Senate
- Personal Property Law section 428, the buyer's right to cancel a sale made at homeNew York State Senate
- Form ST-124, Certificate of Capital ImprovementNew York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Publication 718, New York State Sales and Use Tax Rates by Jurisdiction, effective March 1, 2025New York State Department of Taxation and Finance
- Legal Memorandum LG03, the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building CodeNew York State Department of State
- LicensingNassau County Department of Consumer Affairs
- Consumer Affairs LicensingSuffolk County Department of Labor, Licensing and Consumer Affairs
- Home Improvement Contractor License Application ChecklistNew York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection
- Consumer alert: home improvement contractor season is underwayWestchester County Department of Consumer Protection
- Rockland County Code, Chapter 286, Home Improvement ContractorsRockland County Legislature, via eCode360
- Local Law No. 10 of 2013, amending Chapter 135 of the Putnam County Code, ContractorsPutnam County
BuilderVP is software, not legal or tax advice. Rules and rates change; each one here links to the office that publishes it. Have your attorney review your contract wording once, and BuilderVP keeps it on every job.
See it on one of your own jobs.
Bring a project you are pricing now. We will walk through it in BuilderVP, from the lead to the proposal check, in about thirty minutes.