How to Choose a Handyman

There are 3 general categories of handymen or women:

Licensed Handymen – those that have contractors licenses or are licensed to do handyman work.
Unlicensed Legal – no license, but work strictly within the state laws governing incidental home repairs.
Unlicensed Illegal – handymen who work under the table, ignoring the construction laws and regulations.

Let’s explore the three categories further:

Their contractors license number will be included on all of their signage and business cards.
Will be easily identifiable by their telephone manner, their vehicles and their uniforms.
The handyman will usually be a worker who is operating under his employer’s general contractors license or on rare occasions will be the contractor himself.
This category of handyman will be the most expensive from a rate standpoint but will carry liability insurance and workman’s compensation insurance.
Workers will have at least a minimum required level of training and experience.
The contractor will pull building permits when required and can do any job that fits under their contractors license.
If something goes wrong, you have legal recourse and the contractors license board to turn to for assistance.
Will have contracts for you to sign before the work is started and upon completion.

Will be less expensive than a licensed contractor, sometimes significantly less.
Usually have business cards, will supply references and may have a sign on their vehicle.
May or may not be easily identifiable by their telephone manner, their vehicle signage and their uniforms.
Will carry liability insurance that will cover jobs performed up to their legal limit.
Will not do jobs that are outside of their legal limits. ($500 in California, all inclusive) Staying within the law, they will not ask for a large deposit before starting work.
Some will have contracts for you to sign, many will not.
May or may not pull building permits if required.
Will usually have at least the minimum amount of skills required to do the work they are agreeing to do.

Will be the least expensive quote you receive.
May or may not be willing to give you references.
Usually will carry no business cards, have no signage and no uniforms.
They will do any work you ask them to do.
May or may not be experienced or trained in the work you are hiring them to do.
Size of the job won’t matter – remodel a bathroom, remodel a kitchen, build a garage.
Will not pull building permits.
Will often ask for large deposits to start the work – this is illegal.
If the work was illegally performed or contracted, no agency will stand behind you if there is a problem with the work or the worker.
No contract will be enforceable if the work performed fell outside of the law.