Wisconsin Administrative Code
Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
ATCP 90-139 - Trade and Consumer Protection
Chapter ATCP 110 - Home Improvement Practices
Section ATCP 110.01 - Definitions

(1) "Buyer" means either of the following persons who is a party or prospective party to a home improvement contract:

(2) "Home improvement" means the remodeling, altering, repairing, painting, or modernizing of residential or non-commercial property, or the making of additions thereto, and includes, but is not limited to, the construction, installation, replacement, improvement, or repair of driveways, sidewalks, swimming pools, terraces, patios, landscaping, fences, porches, garages, basements and basement waterproofing, fire protection devices, heating and air conditioning equipment, water softeners, heaters and purifiers, wall-to-wall carpeting or attached or inlaid floor coverings, and other changes, repairs, or improvements made in or on, attached to, or forming a part of, the residential or non-commercial property. The term extends to the conversion of existing commercial structures into residential or non-commercial property. "Home improvement" does not include the construction of a new residence or the major renovation of an existing structure.

(2m) "Major renovation of an existing structure" means a renovation or reconstruction contract where the total price of the contract is more than the assessed value of the existing structure at the time the contract is initiated.

(3) "Residential or non-commercial property" means a structure used, in whole or in part, as a home or place of residence by any natural person, whether or not a single or multi-unit structure, and that part of the lot or site on which it is situated and which is devoted to the residential use of the structure, and includes all appurtenant structures. The term extends to all other existing non-commercial structures and the immediate premises on which they are situated even though they are not used for residential purposes.

(4) "Home improvement contract" means an oral or written agreement between a seller and an owner, or a seller and a tenant or lessee, of residential or non-commercial property, or a seller and a tenant or lessee if the tenant or lessee is to be obligated for the payment of home improvements made in, to, or upon such property, and includes all agreements under which the seller is to perform labor or render services for home improvements, or furnish materials in connection therewith.

(5) "Seller" means a person engaged in the business of making or selling home improvements and includes corporations, partnerships, associations, and any other form of business organization or entity, and their officers, representatives, agents, and employees.

(6) "Warranty" means any warranty or guarantee made with respect to labor, services, products, or materials provided under a home improvement contract. "Warranty" includes a seller's warranty and a manufacturer's product warranty.