The Five Most-Read Ask The Surety Pro Posts of Q2 2026
Every week, Ask The Surety Pro tackles the real questions contractors are asking about their bond programs. Not theory. Real guidance on the financial decisions, balance sheet realities, and relationship dynamics that shape how much bonding capacity a contractor can access and how fast they can grow.
Q2 2026 is in the books, and a few conversations clearly resonated more than the rest. Here is a look at the five episodes contractors watched most this quarter, and why each one is worth a few minutes of your time if you missed it.
- How Sureties Evaluate a Note Payable Due From an Owner
A note payable from an owner on your balance sheet does not automatically raise a red flag, but it does prompt underwriters to ask a pointed question: did value leave the company at the expense of the balance sheet that supports project performance? Chris Ruck, Vice President at Anderson & Catania, unpacks how sureties weigh owner notes and the circumstances under which a surety may write off the full value when calculating working capital.
If this situation applies to your business, knowing how it reads to an underwriter before your next renewal is worth the few minutes it takes.
Watch it: acsurety.com/surety-note-payable-owner-evaluation
- What to Tell Your Surety When You Are Closing Your Construction Business
Winding down a construction business is one of the most sensitive conversations a contractor can have with their surety, and timing matters more than most owners realize. Joe Catania, Co-Founder and CEO, explains why your surety needs to hear about a closure early and directly from you, and what specifically they need to understand about your project status, financial position, and completion plan to keep claim exposure off the table.
Waiting too long is the single most common and costly mistake contractors make here. This episode lays out what to do instead.
Watch it: acsurety.com/closing-construction-business-surety-communication
- What Profit Fade Tells Your Surety
Profit fade is more than a margin headache. It is one of the clearest signals a surety underwriter reads about how a contractor's projects are actually performing. Brent Headley, Surety Account Executive, breaks down what consistent profit fade reveals about estimating discipline and project controls, and why underwriters lean on the WIP schedule rather than waiting for year-end numbers to tell the story.
Watch it: acsurety.com/profit-fade-surety-wip-schedule
- Is Surety Bond Capacity Available for Small Contractors in 2026?
Heading into the back half of the year, the surety market remains strong for small contractors, particularly those working in federal infrastructure, manufacturing expansion, energy, and data centers. Joe Catania breaks down exactly where surety appetite is concentrated and what a contractor needs in place to access the best terms available right now.
If capacity concerns have kept you from chasing bigger work, this episode answers the question directly.
Watch it: acsurety.com/surety-bond-capacity-small-contractors-2026
- How to Make a Strong First Impression When Meeting a Surety Company
Your first sit-down with a surety company is about far more than your financials. Underwriters want to understand the person behind the business: your experience, your reputation, your operational discipline, and where you intend to take the company. Brent Headley walks through the ideal agenda for that first meeting and the key points every contractor should walk in prepared to cover.
If a first meeting is coming up, or you simply want to get more out of an existing relationship, this is a strong place to start.
Watch it: acsurety.com/first-meeting-surety-company-what-to-cover
Why We Keep Making These
The contractors who grow their bonding capacity fastest are rarely the ones with the biggest balance sheets. They are the ones who understand how a surety thinks, show up prepared, and have a broker in their corner who can tell their story clearly.
That is the entire point of Ask The Surety Pro. New episodes drop every week. Subscribe to keep up.