Renovate Wisely: Always Hire A Licensed Contractor

By Jenni Boucher

   At some point during the course of home ownership, most people will want or need to renovate or add-on to their existing home. The causes of renovations are many, such as updating for more modern features or adding space for new family members, just to name a few. Whatever your reason for renovating, make sure that you hire professionals to do the job so that it doesn’t cost you BIG.

   The most obvious reason to hire professional, licensed contractors is the quality of work. Licensed contractors are required to attend numerous courses prior to being licensed and continuing education courses after licensing, understand the Florida Building Code and pass a test before their license is issued, as well as carry liability insurance in the event of a mistake. A licensed contractor can only have so many complaints before the state will step-in and take their license. This is extra motivation for the contractor to do the job right, the first time.

   I have heard from numerous homeowners in my 10 years of working in the construction industry that price is often the issue determining whether they will hire a licensed contractor or “someone else”. I have always told these same people that 9 times out of 10 they will get exactly what they paid for, i.e. cheap and/or unprofessional work, and a lot of headaches.

   What kind of headaches am I talking about? MANY! To start with, many homeowners end up paying for their renovation twice (or more) due to bad work being done and having to pay a licensed contractor to fix it. This same bad work is most often not up to building code standards and will have to be partially or completely removed WHEN (NOT IF) the government finds out. Numerous local municipalities require two – to –three times the original permit fees if a homeowner has been busted with un-permitted work, or any work done by an unlicensed contractor who cannot pull permits. Code Enforcement can also (in addition) fine you up to $250 per day for un-permitted work from the date the work was caught until a permit is pulled or the work is torn down. Homeowners also need to consider the consequences of what could happen to their home and family because un-permitted work has not been verified by a licensed inspector to meet code or safety standards.

   Even if Code Enforcement doesn’t catch you right away, the Property Appraiser will when you go to sell the home. Too many times I have seen real estate transactions be halted temporarily or indefinitely because of un-permitted work. The types of un-permitted work that the Property Appraiser is most likely to catch are changes in the number of bedrooms or bathrooms, changes to the square footage of the home, or homes that are in flood zones that have illegally closed in the open lower floor of the home, creating a non-conforming space.

   Remodeling or adding on to your home is something that most homeowners will do at some point in time. Protect yourself and your real estate investment by hiring a licensed contractor the first time.