Guide
Apartment finishing contract in Syria: the clauses it should include
Many finishing disputes start with a two-line contract that says: deluxe apartment finishing for such-and-such an amount. These clauses protect you and the contractor alike.
1. Scope of work, item by item
The phrase “full finishing” means nothing in a dispute. The contract should name every item: electrical and plumbing lines, plastering, insulation, tiling, paint, doors, gypsum board, and also what is outside the scope. The floor plan is attached to the contract and signed by both parties.
2. Materials: the type and who buys them
The type and source of every material is written down: the tiles, the water pipes, the sanitary ware, the paint. So is who buys them and who pays for them. With us, materials are bought with original invoices whose photos reach you before you pay, and labor fees are a separate item.
3. Price and additions
A fixed total price for the scope is clearer than a price per meter worked out at the end. The additions clause matters most: any work outside the scope is priced and approved in writing before it is carried out, even if only in a saved WhatsApp message.
4. Payments
Payments are tied to completed stages, not to dates: one after the first fix, one after the tiling, and so on. The last payment waits until after handover and after the remarks are dealt with.
5. Duration
The start date, the duration in days, and what pauses the count: the owner being late choosing materials or paying, for example. Without this clause, a promised handover date means nothing.
6. Warranty
The warranty is written for each item with its duration, and what voids it. Our written warranty is one year on paint and finishes, and two years on waterproofing and pipework.
7. Documentation and handover
Work that disappears behind tiles and plaster is photographed before it is closed: pipe routes, waterproofing, electrical lines. The job ends with a handover record that lists the remarks and the deadline for dealing with them.
8. Who signs
The contract is signed by the property owner or their agent under an official power of attorney. If you are outside Syria, the power of attorney is prepared before the start, because handover and payments need someone with the authority.
This is general guidance from practical experience, not legal advice. For large contracts, consult a lawyer.
Questions about the finishing contract
Is a verbal agreement or WhatsApp messages enough?
Messages work for documenting additions and approvals during the work. The scope, the price, the payments and the warranty belong in a written contract signed before the start.
When is the price considered final?
After the site visit, when the scope is written with its items, price, schedule, payments and warranty. Anything before that is a first estimate.
Start with a free site visit
Message us on WhatsApp with photos of the apartment or its floor plan and its location in Damascus, and we reply with a first estimate and a site visit date. The visit and the written scope are free, with no commitment.