# You signed at the kitchen table. Here is how to cancel.

URL: https://bathbudget.com/bathroom-remodel/cancel-a-bathroom-contract
Updated: 2026-09-18
Review: Reviewed by BathBudget Editorial Team, editorial review: primary sources checked and independently fact-checked

Federal law gives three business days to cancel a contract signed at your home. How to count them, what to send, and what the seller owed you.

If you signed a bathroom contract in your own home and would rather not have, federal law almost certainly gives you three business days to undo it, with no reason and no penalty.

- **Three business days**, from the day after signing, for a sale of **$25 or more** at your home.
- **No reason, no penalty.** Money back within **ten business days**.
- **Cancel in writing** and keep proof of when you sent it.
- The seller had to give you **two copies of a dated Notice of Cancellation**.
- Alaska gives five business days; California gives five if you are 65 or older.

## The rule

The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule, [16 CFR 429.1](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-429/section-429.1), covers sales made at your home. The thresholds are $25 at a residence and $130 at a seller's temporary location, set out in the [definitions](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-429/section-429.0).

## Counting

Start the day after signing. Skip Sundays and federal holidays; Saturdays count. Signed Tuesday, you have until midnight Friday.

Tool: [Your right to cancel](https://bathbudget.com/bathroom-remodel/tools/your-right-to-cancel). The three business days the FTC gives you to cancel a contract signed at your home, what your state adds, and who to call for free.

**Cancel the contract you just signed.** Good when: You signed in your own home in the last three business days and you'd rather not have. Watch out: It's three business days, not three days, and the notice has to be in writing. Don't wait for the salesperson to call you back.

**The seller had obligations too**
Two copies of a dated Notice of Cancellation, the contract in the same language the sale was conducted in, and an oral statement of the right to cancel at signing. If none of that happened, put it in writing when you cancel and tell your state consumer-protection office — the free directory is at [usa.gov](https://www.usa.gov/state-consumer).

## If you are unsure

Cancel anyway and re-sign later if you still want the work. The window does not come back, and no reputable contractor loses a good job over three days. Then take your time with [what a bathroom quote should itemise](https://bathbudget.com/bathroom-remodel/what-a-bathroom-quote-should-itemise) and [what a bathroom remodel costs](https://bathbudget.com/bathroom-remodel/bathroom-remodel-cost). If you signed a loan at the same table, [bathroom remodel financing](https://bathbudget.com/bathroom-remodel/bathroom-remodel-financing) covers the loan's own cancellation rules.

## Bottom line

Find the signing date, count forward, and send written notice today if the window is still open.

Start the Bathroom Check: https://bathbudget.com/check

## Common questions

### How long do I have?

Until midnight of the third business day after signing, for a sale of $25 or more made at your home. Some states give longer.

### How do I count the days?

Start the day after you signed. Skip Sundays and federal holidays. Saturdays count.

### Do I need a reason?

No. No reason, no penalty, and anything paid comes back within ten business days of the seller receiving your notice.

### What was the seller required to give me?

Two copies of a dated Notice of Cancellation, the contract in the language the sale was conducted in, and an oral statement of the right to cancel when you signed.

## Sources

- [eCFR: 16 CFR 429.1 — The Rule](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-429/section-429.1)
- [eCFR: 16 CFR 429.0 — Definitions](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-429/section-429.0)
- [FTC: Cooling-off Period for Sales Made at Home or Other Locations](https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/cooling-period-sales-made-home-or-other-locations)
- [FTC consumer advice: Buyer's remorse — the FTC's Cooling-Off Rule may help](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/buyers-remorse-ftcs-cooling-rule-may-help)
- [USA.gov: State consumer protection offices](https://www.usa.gov/state-consumer)