Importance of Hiring a Licensed Contractor

You may be tempted to hire an unlicensed contractor to work on your home in order to save money. This may seem like an attractive offer, however this route is fraught with risks. By using an unlicensed contractor, not only do you risk a great deal financially, but you may even put your family in danger.
First, an unlicensed contractor is going to be less likely to do a professional job for you. The licensing requirements of the different types of contractors range, however a great deal of the point is making sure that they are competent to do the job. They may need to have a certain amount of education or training. Sometimes they need to be an apprentice for a certain amount of time. They may have to pass tests to ensure that they know what they are doing.
You have no idea whether someone who is unlicensed has any idea of what they are doing. They may have just decided yesterday to become a contractor and have no experience or education whatsoever. A license gives proof of the minimum requirements to get the license; without it you have no proof of anything, no matter what they say.
It is extremely important that a job is done to code. If it is not done right, you could actually get stuck ripping everything out and doing it again. An unlicensed contractor may not know how to do something to code. Also, they may not be able to get the required permits for the job. Without these you could end up facing big fines.
You may actually end up in a dangerous situation if you hire an unlicensed contractor. For instance, if someone does electrical work incorrectly it can start a fire. If they do not do a roof correctly, it could possibly collapse.
A licensed contractor may be more likely to have insurance. This can protect you from liability. Without it you may be liable if problems occur.
The license usually holds the contractors to high standards. This is very important.
You can even have problems far after the work is done. For instance, if an unlicensed contractor does bad electrical work and the house catches on fire, then your insurance company can actually decline to pay for it because you hired an unlicensed contractor. Even if you have a policy covering it still you could be stuck paying thousands of dollars.
It is not worth putting your finances and your family at risk by hiring an unlicensed contractor. For the above reasons, make sure to get one that is fully licensed. Check to make sure it is valid.