Can the homeowner party to a private residential construction contract legally waive the requirement to hold back 10% statutory retainage requirement?
1 reply
Dec 12, 2019
Nothing in the Texas Property Code's provisions on retainage seem to allow an owner to contract out of the retainage requirements created at § 53-101. Note, though, that an owner can technically refuse to follow retainage requirements - it will just open them up to greater liability on the job - and the Texas Property Code actually plans for that possibility.
Under § 53-105(a), an owner who fails or refuses to withhold the statutory 10% retainage will be subject to mechanics liens at least to the extent that they failed to retain funds. Otherwise, a subcontractor's lien claim would be limited to a greater degree.
For futher discussion on Texas' retainage laws: Texas Retainage Guide and FAQs.