Unless you have a background in construction and repair work, you can't handle all maintenance tasks by yourself. At one point, you will need to hire a maintenance vendor to handle certain maintenance issues for you. The ones you hire depend on the service/s you need. This can be a handyman, a licensed contractor for remodeling, a painting company, or a carpet company. You can have a multitude of different vendors that you can rely on. 

This can be a handyman, a licensed contractor for remodeling, a painting company, or a carpet company. You can have a multitude of different vendors that you can rely on. 

On this topic, several questions arise:

1. Should you hire anybody who is unlicensed?

2. What should unlicensed operators include in their advertisements?

3. How can you verify a contractor's license?

4. What are some good practices to follow when it comes to payments?

Let's talk about the first of these 4 questions. Should you hire anybody who is unlicensed?

When it comes to looking for the right maintenance worker or company, it's important to get the right professionals who have the knowledge and skills to deliver quality work. 

Persons who are not licensed may not have insurance. This can be a problem for you because it is possible that these unlicensed workers may not be covered by your liability insurance in case something goes wrong.

There may also be issues with these people's ability to handle bigger projects. Because in California, a handy person can only do work valued at less than $500 - that includes materials and labor. As you can imagine, there are a lot of jobs that go over the $500 threshold. 

Another risk of hiring an unlicensed contractor is that you may be denied coverage from the insurance company in case a major damage occurred as a result of bad repair work. 

For example, you hired an unlicensed handyman to fix a small leak in your unit. Because the work was done improperly, the leak comes back and floods your entire kitchen. As you submit an insurance claim for your damages, the company will find out that the contractor who fixed the leak is unlicensed. You will not receive coverage unless the work was done by a licensed person. 

Always make sure that you hire a licensed and an insured contractor even if it costs a little bit more. Doing this will save you from a lot of headaches and expenses in the future. 

For the rest of this lesson, existing Landlord Prep students should log-in to the module entitled During the Tenancy - Hiring Help - Hiring Vendors, Managers, & Attorneys.

Not a member yet? Join the Landlord Prep: Video E-Course and How-To Tutorials so you can access this section and get the complete DIY landlording course. This will help you stay knowledgeable and confident as a landlord.