I have a year-long major home remodeling project; we are now pretty much done with the rough-in leaving the walls, floors, doors, trim, and finishings. The contract was signed in June 2020 and most of the required framing lumber was delivered in early August. (Since then there have been change orders, presumably reflecting the current price of framing lumber, so the GC should have been able to reflect his lumber price increase in the change order for that specific work.) I have paid my monthly progress payments, but now (in February) he's adding a huge increase for all the work done since the start of the contract -- reflecting a doubling of the price of all framing materials and related labor! Because it's a fixed price contract, he's not entitled to charge the extra for labor. The contract does have a price escalation clause for materials. I'm waiting for his material invoices, but he has indicated the total materials cost he paid (reflecting a 14% increase from the relevant materials cost in the contract /COs). I understand construction prices have gone up, but I don't intend to pay more than the actual increase. Two questions: (1) the price escalation contract clause says that the increase would be added to the contract (if it's above 5%); can I just add the material price increase and not include his typical 15% margin (this clause doesn't specify) and can I just cover the difference above 5%; and (2) Can I make a claim that he should have charged me the appropriate price increase within the next monthly billing cycle and that it's not justified to wait six months. Is there some legal provision that prevents this retroactive pricing (the contract doesn't specify). He's recently become annoyed with me for other reasons, hence I think he's just trying to get me to cancel the contract by giving me an outrageous bill. He's border-line breach of contract on refusing to do the cabinets and tiling, but I don't have an issue removing that from contract as he's proposed.