Hiring a Licensed Contractor

So you're thinking about renovating your home and are looking for Licensed Contractors.

But where do you find them? What are the Pros and Cons? What's the difference anyways?

First off, let's start with saying that you're well on your way towards a successful Toronto renovation project. Would you hire an unlicensed Lawyer? Doctor? Mechanic? No, and if you would then you must love to gamble. A license ensures that the Contractor has undergone training and certification and meets the Ministry's requirements to carry out business in the Province. Right off the bat, you know you're hiring someone with sufficient knowledge and training to handle the project. How? Because the Ministry has done the homework for you. You also know you're not hiring a criminal, because individuals with a criminal record cannot be Licensed in Ontario (except for minor convictions-summary fines). After all, this person is going to be working INSIDE your home, wouldn't you like a criminal background check? Hiring a licensed contractor is the 1st step towards a positive outcome.

So, where do you find them? Unfortunately, the Ministry does not have a website with Licensed Contractors. You have to call them to verify a license. However, there are other websites that you can trust. For example, Renomark has a website with a list of Contractors. These contractors have all been verified by Renomark to be licensed/insured and work within wsib compliance. That's really doing the homework for you, in addition to enforcing code of ethic guidelines for their members. Check them out HERE. Renomark is overseen by The Greater Toronto Home Builder's Association and houses the biggest inventory of Licensed/Insured/WSIB compliant and ethical contractors in Canada.

What are the Pros and Cons? If you're thinking you will pay more for a licensed contractor, well that is partially true and partially not true. The correct answer is, not necessarily. There is a fee for being licensed, so that becomes overhead for the contractor and in turn results in higher fees. Having to carry mandatory insurance, being wsib compliant and playing by the rules costs the contractor money which we know then becomes overhead which then means having to charge more to make the same profit vs the unlicensed contractor. But it doesn't always translate to you paying more. I know plenty of unlicensed/uninsured/non tax paying contractors that charge way more than I do. Contractors set their own price, and in the case of the unlicensed contractor there is little if any liability/overhead/accountability. An Unlicensed contractor is already breaking the law by carrying out work without a license. If he doesn't have a license, do you think he will carry liability insurance that protects YOU, the Home Owner in case someone gets injured on your property? Or if something gets damaged/stolen? Do you think his employees will be covered by mandatory WSIB coverage? Do you think the contractor will have proper training and be qualified to carry out the work? If so, why isn't he licensed? Anyone can "say" they are qualified..."I'm a qualified brain surgeon"...there, I just said it...does it make it true? How can you know? Point being, the headaches are guaranteed for Home Owners that work with unlicensed contractors in the hopes of paying less in the short term and the risks are far far too great.

An unlicensed contractor is less likely to pull permits for the job as well, which is required for any sizable project by law and you can be fined/penalized if found out (and trust me, it's not hard for you nosy neighbours to call the City on you...or a disgruntled employee or sub-contractor).

The lesson here is Unlicensed contractors are a huge liability for the Home Owner. They do everything wrong, you pay the price!

For a list of qualified, licensed Renovation Contractors follow the link below.
If you have any questions, need some advice, feel free to contact me.

Renomark

Toronto Licensed Contractor