Short answer
A general contractor is accountable for the whole result. They hire and pay the trades, sequence the work, order the materials, pull the permits, meet the inspectors, and answer for anything that goes wrong — including things a subcontractor did.
In Dallas, general contractors register with the city and must carry insurance. Texas does not issue a statewide residential general contractor license, so no Texas builder is “state-licensed” — a claim to be one should raise a question, not confidence.
Acting as your own GC saves the fee and costs you the coordination. The saving is real; so is the exposure, and most people underestimate the second.
On this page
The job, in the order it happens
- Reads the drawings and prices the work, including the parts that are not drawn and will have to be resolved on site.
- Writes the contract — scope, allowances, payment schedule, exclusions. See remodeling contracts explained.
- Pulls the permits and deals with the jurisdiction, whichever of the three local ones applies.
- Builds the schedule and books the trades in sequence, months ahead in some cases.
- Orders long-lead materials so they arrive when the trade that installs them does.
- Runs the site daily: access, deliveries, protection, waste, cleanliness, safety.
- Coordinates the trades, which is mostly resolving the small conflicts between them before they become large.
- Meets inspectors at each stage and corrects anything they flag.
- Manages changes in writing, with prices and schedule impact stated.
- Closes out — the punch list, final inspections, warranties, and the documentation you keep.
Where is the value actually?
Three things, none of which look like construction:
- Sequencing. Trades work in a specific order, and each depends on the one before. Electrical rough-in before insulation, insulation before drywall, drywall before cabinetry, cabinetry before stone templating. Getting one out of order costs weeks, because the trade that was skipped is now booked on another job.
- Single accountability. When the tile does not meet the cabinetry cleanly, the tiler blames the cabinetmaker and the cabinetmaker blames the tiler. With a GC, that is one person’s problem to solve. Without one, it is yours, and you have no leverage over either.
- Relationships and availability. Good trades work repeatedly for contractors who pay on time and run organized sites. A homeowner calling once gets whoever is free, which is not the same pool.
The most expensive failures in a remodel happen at the hand-off between whoever designed it and whoever built it — a detail simplified on site, a plan value-engineered without anyone telling you.
Jan Revels draws it and runs the build herself, registered with the City of Dallas and insured.
Registration, licensing and insurance in Dallas
This is widely misunderstood and worth stating plainly:
- Texas does not issue a statewide residential general contractor license. Consequently no residential builder in Texas holds one, and anyone advertising a state GC license is describing something that does not exist.
- The City of Dallas registers general contractors, and registration requires proof of insurance. That is the local mechanism, and it is a registration rather than a license.
- Specific trades are licensed by the state — electricians and plumbers among them. Those licenses are real, verifiable and worth checking.
- General liability insurance covers damage the contractor causes. Ask for a certificate, check the dates, and check the coverage amount rather than just its existence.
- Workers’ compensation is not universally required in Texas. Ask directly whether the contractor carries it, because if they do not, an injury on your property is a question you want answered in advance — see insurance and liability on a remodel.
Should you be your own contractor?
It is legal and people do it. What you take on:
| You gain | You take on |
|---|---|
| The contractor’s fee | Every scheduling decision, in the right order |
| Direct relationships with trades | Sourcing trades who will work for a one-off client |
| Full control of selections | Ordering everything, on time, to the right specification |
| Visibility of every cost | Permits, inspections and correcting whatever is flagged |
| — | Liability, insurance questions and lien exposure |
| — | Being available on site during working hours |
| — | Resolving disputes between trades with no leverage |
It works best for people who have done it before, have a flexible daytime schedule, and have an existing relationship with at least the plumber and the electrician. It works badly on a compressed timeline, on a structural project, or when you are working full time. The failure mode is not usually a disaster — it is a project that takes twice as long because nobody was there to make the next call.
When the designer is also the contractor
The hand-off between design and construction is where a disproportionate share of remodel problems originate: a detail gets simplified on site, a plan gets value-engineered without the homeowner being told, or a drawing turns out to be unbuildable and someone improvises.
Design-build removes that seam. One party draws it, prices it and builds it, and there is no one to blame. The trade-off is that you lose an independent second opinion on the build, so the choice of firm carries more weight. The comparison is set out fully in design-build versus hiring separately.
What to expect from a good one
- A written contract with scope, allowances, a payment schedule tied to milestones, and exclusions.
- A schedule, updated, that you can see.
- Changes in writing, priced, before the work is done.
- A clean, protected site. Floor protection, dust barriers, and the site left tidy at the end of each day.
- One point of contact who answers, and a known response time.
- Permits pulled in their name, not yours. A contractor asking the homeowner to pull the permit is transferring liability to you, and it is worth asking why.
- Lien waivers from subcontractors as they are paid.
- A closeout package — permits, inspections, warranties, paint colors, and a list of who did what.
Key takeaways
- The value is sequencing, single accountability and access to trades — not labor.
- Texas issues no statewide residential GC license; Dallas registers contractors instead.
- Check the insurance certificate dates and amounts, and ask about workers’ compensation.
- Being your own GC saves the fee and costs you availability, leverage and liability.
- Most remodel problems originate at the hand-off between designer and builder.
- A contractor who asks you to pull the permit is moving liability onto you.
- Expect lien waivers and a closeout package as standard, not on request.
Frequently asked questions
Are general contractors licensed in Texas?
What does a general contractor actually do?
Can I be my own general contractor?
Should the contractor or I pull the permit?
What should I get at the end of the project?
Jan has practiced interior design in Dallas since 1997 and founded Chateau Concepts in 2001. She holds a BFA in Interior Design from the University of North Texas. She designs and general-contracts residential and commercial projects across the Park Cities, Preston Hollow and North Dallas. Read her full profile →
Written and reviewed by Jan Revels before publicationWork with Chateau Concepts
Jan Revels handles both sides of a project in Dallas and the Park Cities — the design and the build.