When it comes to licenses, do you really need to use a contractor? The answer may be yes. That’s going to be the opposite of good news when it comes to people that are only interested in saving their budget some by using a contractor that is unlicensed for work.
It can be tempting to use someone that isn’t licensed, especially in the past, to try and save a little change. But for those who have done it, the bad news is that the work that they’ve had done might be illegal.
Take for instance the very populated and sometimes legislated city of New York. In the Big Apple, licensed contractors alone are able to pull a permit. That’s a big deal since they’re required for essentially all types of construction work barring minor repairs and work like that.
Even though contractors that were unlicensed may have charged less, the savings that they would have gotten would be negated if the DOB (Department of Buildings) were to show up and find out that you had the work done on an illegal basis. They would not be happy and people will be facing fines in the best case scenario and when it comes to the worst-case scenario, entire projects might have to be scrapped and ripped out on top of fines and fees.
At this point in the game you definitely don’t want to have a contractor that is unlicensed because it’s gong to be too much of a pain if the consequences come down. The money that you save and the price break that you would be getting is the risk, but unlicensed contractors don’t come with the same guarantee on their work that a licensed one would.
Licensed contractors offer the benefit of knowing what they are doing and also legally being allowed to do their work and it’s not going to be ripped out. You get a lot of protection as well as peace of mind while working with a contractor that has a license. For one thing, you know that they have a ton of experience in the trade and have worked in the field for a minimum of years.
Naturally, those working with a license are going to be able to provide a security level and guarantee that an unlicensed one simply won’t be able to match. You want to be sure that if you do end up hiring a contractor that they are very knowledgeable, experienced, and the right person for the job– and most importantly, that they are licensed.
You can also run a simply background check for licensed contractors. It’s easy thanks to the “Building Information Search” (or BIS) provided by the D.O.B. that lets you search for licensed contractors. You can also find out if they have ever gotten violations. Licensing does provide a way to get recourse if the work that you’ve contracted does have problems.
You can even have the option to file a complaint. If anything goes wrong, you can legally even apply for restitution. An unlicensed contractor must be taken to court and it’s more time and hassle from there. Go licensed and you won’t have any additional worries to deal with!