Welcome to your daily briefing on construction developments in Maryland. Today we're covering 6 key stories including updates on maryland construction headlines, background & context. Let's dive in.
3 stories
Levelset provides tools that help contractors resolve payment problems and streamline their payment processes.
Maryland construction professionals face the same payment delays and disputes that plague the industry nationwide, making streamlined payment solutions critical to cash flow and project completion.
Get your Maryland construction licenses. Harbor Compliance assists with initial and renewal registrations in every state.
Relevant to construction professionals operating in MD.
BuildChek has launched a comprehensive building permit database with lookup software to simplify online access to Maryland permits.
Maryland construction professionals can reduce administrative delays by quickly verifying permit status digitally rather than navigating fragmented municipal systems.
Connect with contractors and builders
3 stories
Most construction contracts require change orders to be in writing, but many states enforce an "oral modification" exception when the parties' conduct shows agreement — especially when the changed work is performed and accepted without protest. Continued performance without written change orders can waive the writing requirement entirely.
Contractors who do extra work hoping to "true it up later" routinely lose those claims because the conduct shows acceptance of the original scope. A signed change order before the work is the cleanest evidence of agreement.
"Pay-when-paid" sets a timing condition only — the GC must still pay even if the owner never does. "Pay-if-paid" creates a true condition precedent — no owner payment, no GC payment to subs. Many states will not enforce pay-if-paid clauses without unmistakably clear language; ambiguity defaults to pay-when-paid.
The risk allocation between subcontractors and GCs hinges on this one phrase. Subs who sign pay-if-paid contracts effectively underwrite owner credit risk on top of project risk.
"Substantial completion" is achieved when the owner can occupy the project for its intended use — not when a punch list is finished or a percentage is hit. The status starts warranty clocks, transfers risk of loss, and triggers retention release in most contracts. Disputes over whether SC has been achieved are common at month-end.
Premature certification of substantial completion commits the contractor to warranty coverage on incomplete work; delayed certification gives the owner leverage to extend retention. The legal definition controls, not the status meeting.
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