Self-Performing vs Paper GC: How to Tell Before You Sign
Self-performing contractors own crews, equipment, and accountability. Paper GCs broker every trade. Here's how to spot the difference before you wire a deposit.
The two operating models
Self-performing: crews on direct payroll, owned equipment, in-house project management. Margin sits in execution.
Paper GC: minimal staff, every trade subbed out, margin from markup on subs. Common in residential remodel and small commercial. See our contractor checklist.
Neither is automatically bad — but they fail in different ways under stress.
The five questions that expose a paper GC
1. "Who's the foreman on my job, and can I meet them?" Paper GCs don't have a foreman; they assign a sub.
2. "What equipment do you own?" Self-performers list yard inventory. Brokers list rental partners.
3. "Show me your last 3 workers' comp audits." Self-performers have payroll history; brokers carry minimum policy with no employees.
4. "Who pulls the permits — you or the sub?" Paper GCs push permit liability down to subs, which fails when a sub disappears mid-job. See permit ownership.
5. "Can I tour an active jobsite?" Self-performers run organized sites and show them off. Brokers stall.
When a paper GC is fine
Small remodels with well-defined scope and tight schedules where coordination is the main value-add.
Specialty trades the GC can't reasonably self-perform (elevators, MEP commissioning, low-voltage).
For heavy civil, foundations, demolition, and underground utilities — self-performing is materially cheaper and faster. Get a Bedrock quote and compare.
Frequently asked questions
Ask for last quarter's workers' comp audit — payroll headcount tells the truth in 5 seconds.
Usually less — they cut the broker markup (typically 10–18%) out of every trade.
No — even self-performers sub specialty trades. The question is which trades they own end-to-end.
Get a free quote from Bedrock.
Residential and commercial. Licensed, bonded, insured.