Are you making the right decision when choosing a contractor to perform work on your home? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of dealing with unlicensed contractors.
Pros
• An unlicensed contractor can cost you less money in the short term because they have virtually no overhead.
• You may get brownie points for giving your friend or neighbor some work to supplement their income.
• You can cut corners and save on material and time since it will be “your secret”.
• You made a new friend for possibly saving you a few bucks.
Cons
• Having an unlicensed contractor perform work on your home can cost you thousands of dollars in fines and you may be required to undo their work and have a licensed contractor fix it according to code.
• You hurt the local economy because an unlicensed contractor does not pay taxes, which go to our children’s education and community resources.
• You hurt the licensed contractor who pays taxes and employs people in our communities because they lose this income.
• If you are dissatisfied with your unlicensed contractor or have issues with his work, there is nothing you can legally do to get a resolution.
• Work that is not performed according to code can cost you money and stop the sale of your home.
• If an unlicensed contractor gets hurt on your property, they can sue you and win.
Why choose licensed?
Pros
• Your licensed contractor is registered with the state and has insurance.
• Your licensed contractor has a legitimate business and pays taxes.
• Your licensed contractor complies with all laws, all municipality codes, and they will not take short cuts.
• You have someone to go to if you have a problem.
• The work is done according to municipality code and national standards to ensure longevity.
Cons
• It may cost a little more to cover insurance and overhead as with any legit business.
• Your friend or neighbor may stop calling you since you did not hire their unlicensed brother in law to do the work.
• Just because an unlicensed contractor is retired from any government or state employment does not give them the right to run an illegal business.
While we would love your work, we encourage you to use a Local Licensed Contractor regardless of your choice. If you give us the opportunity to perform work on your home, you will be pleased with our professionalism and craftsmanship. Over 99% of our clients come back to us and there is a reason for that.