Unlicensed Contractors In California Running Rampant

cueball707

I need to vent. I'm soo tired of getting outbid by these unlicensed hacks. I don't understand why craftsmanship and doing things the right way are not valued anymore.

I just got and email from a customer that I submitted a bid to recently. He explained to me that another contractor (unlicensed, no insurance, etc) beat my bid on a $2,200.00 project by $150.00 so he was going with him. Are people really that stupid? How much money is this idiot going to save if that hack falls off a ladder and breaks his back?

The thing that really bothers me is that no one cares. I would love to turn these unlicensed guys in to the CSLB but they make it very difficult. They want you to have all the info on the guy (name, mailing address, ph number, license plate, date they will be on the job site) before they will even consider the case. This is bull*#$%. What the hell are we paying them for!! They should be doing all the leg work.

Am I crazy or is there something wrong with the way that works?

Darwin

For just $150? This is classic. I wouldn't even consider your competition as a low-baller (WTF??)!!

Seriously, the other guy is bidding close to your number, then your potential customer is a JACKASS However, all is not lost; you must drill into the HO mind that you are MUCH more qualified for his project.

If HO wants someone with no license-no insurance-and not a pro, for the great big some of $150--drum roll please--he gets to pay the ROYAL STUPID TAX !

J F

99% of the homeowner's don't give a rat's ass how "legit" we are, it's all about the benjamins ... I've watched a few "businesses" go under over the last 5-6 years since we started, that were always under-bidding us, but not pulling permits, etc, blah, blah, blah... and now they're gone...just to be replaced with the next round...it won't ever change, believe me.

Better just get used to the fact and become a good enough salesman to overcome the low price mentality and why being "legit" is worth the extra cost....other wise, just become one of "them"...fvkk unsurance, licenses, etc.

A big part of that will be making sure you're in front of the right clientele to begin with.

I still don't have it figured out to my satisfaction, but life goes on.

J

nlgutters

It's $150 i dont think you can tell if the guy is a hack or uninsured unlicensed scum bag because he is 5% off you?

It would probably have been easier to sell the job and him as a scum bag if he was half your price.

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Handymanservice

That's kinda what I was thinking. Did the customer mention that the competition was unlicensed? uninsured?

Is it possible they operate at a slightly lower margin or have less overhead? Or are you operating at a "cut throat" price and find it hard to believe that someone else can offer a price lower than yours?

If in fact they are unlicensed, I would encourage you to try to assist the CSLB, it is a big problem that cannot be solved by them only. I see unlicensed people working everyday, they even undercut my prices on things, but I am high priced for what I do. Keep in mind, as I say this, I am unlicensed (for now), but, I stay below the $500 cap and refer work to a licensed GC that is a member of this forum.

Good luck and hang tough.

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Darwin

Man, that's the realest sh#t I've ever heard on these forums period.

J F

Yeah Darwin, I bitch an moan about shiite, but normally it comes down to how I have yet to figure out how to overcome stuff that's not bound to change ... it usually leads back to us, as business owners, how we have to overcome objections and somehow find the way to get in front of the right prospects...period.

J

Chris Johnson

You can't win them all, customer choses a guy $ 150.00 cheaper than you, it's one of two things, either they were a price shopper only or you were not very good at your closing. I am guessing they were looking at price only. Don't worry about it, you will get the next one.

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nlgutters

Or there is a chance they either liked him more. He was more professonal maybe had a really nice WEBSITE? Maybe he spent more time wth them.

Or maybe it had absolutly nothing to do with price and they would have chosen him if he was $150 more than you.

Every one is always so quick to blame it on the other guy for stealing your job. Ever think it might be you?

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ladynailbender

Same thing going on here in Florida. The unlicensed contractors are working all over the place. Local government agencies know it is happening, they do nothing to stop it. The local Realestate Brokers are using them for repairs to the homes they are listing. Seems like the only ones governed are the "Licensed Contractors" that will do the right thing with out being told to do so.
Also unpermitted work is a huge issue here.
Venting really helps don't it?

BKFranks

I get where you're coming from. I'm in CA too and see unlicensed and illegals all over the place. You can report people and complain, but no one ever does anything. The only enforcement I ever hear of is maybe once a year the CSLB does an undercover sting and arrests maybe 30 unlicensed people, but that's it.

I don't think the problem will ever get any better around here though. Not with the hacks that run the state. Just give it your best shot and look for better clients. Try to steer clear of the the Craigslist/bargain shopper.

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Aggie67

I day dreamed once about being a superhero, committed to cleaning up the unlicensed contractors. Then I finished taking a pi$$ and walked out of the porta-john.

The rules are there in most states. I report the ads I see in CL to the state's division of consumer affairs. My 3 or 4 emails probably aren't going to get anyone off their duffs. But if there were 20 other contractors sending in complaints, every day? Maybe. And my one call into the town saying there's obviously an unlicensed contractor doing a kitchen at such and such an address? They probably say to themselves "who the heck is this guy and why does he have no life" after I hung up the phone. But 7 or 8 calls from other contractors, maybe even a few days in a row? Maybe.

If we all want it to go away bad enough, we'll all do something about it.

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skyhook

I can't understand why a licensed and insured GC would be going after $2,200 jobs?

One can usually tell on the initial visit if this is a time waster or a buyer. Learn to recognize buying signals, then move in for the kill.
When you had your chance to close, did you walk away and let them think about it, or did you ASK for the job?

Option number 2. Take the little jobs, do great work cheap and hope they will hire you on the next one so you don't have to compete with the hacks.

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JSC

They did a little roundup of unlicensed contractors here recently. A slap on the wrist is all they got. Oh, and an application for a contractor's license.

rmlm78

I see this constantly in Oklahoma and am sick of it. I try to do everything by the rules and it gets us nowhere but lost work and customers that claim they can get the work done CHEAPER, NO WONDER. Another issue I have observed that is "not to be mentioned" many of these unlicensed persons are FIREMEN of the community. I admire firemen but this is not right when they have no license but because they are heroes or whatever, it seems customers are willing to overlook if they really know what they are doing. Customers seem to believe that because of their occupation they MUST KNOW what they are doing which is not correct, they know more about how to put out their own fires and accidents than how to prevent all fires and accidents.
PS: This message is for all unlicensed persons which I believe get off too easy in America.

A W Smith

Isn't California a seismic state??? Where they use chicken wire for stucco lath??? Nuff said. Obvious that even the building departments don't care.

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joelv1967

I need to vent too. I'm not trying to hijack your thread, but I will briefly describe a situation I encountered. I am not licensed in California, but just finished a job in Oxnard. A coworker of mine asked if I would help his mother-in-law who lives in Oxnard because a licensed guy F***ed her and her family out of $40K. The state did nothing about it, and she was left with a huge mess.

Since i am not licensed in CA, I had her ammend the permits to owner/builder, and took a truck and trailer with all my tools, and an 8 man crew. The slab was about as smooth as my gravel driveway, and the idiot use the wrong sized sill plate on a 2 story addition. He framed the second story before ever calling in for a floor nailing inspection.

Needless to say, I spend thousands of dollars of my own money to help a friend of the family who got screwed by a licensed guy, and caught a ton of S*** for it from some contractors who felt I was stepping on their toes because I wasn't licensed in CA.

Long story short, there are times when an "unlicensed" guy is the right guy for the job. But, in your case, I agree with you. These scum bag fly by night idiots need to die!!!! - licensed or not!!!

cueball707

You kinda have to take what you can get in this economy,

cueball707

He said that it was strickly about the money and he did not think it was fair to charge a premium for being licensed. I do quite well and get lots of jobs that unlicensed guys could not touch. Its just really annoying to have to deal with this stuff at all but I guess thats contracting for ya!

apehangeralfy

We have much better luck in getting them shut down by calling WC on them, they respond quick and if found not to have "proper" WC they investigate. I wish the police would do there jobs and arrest these guys, it is a 3rd felony in Fl., I think if they locked up a few dozen unlicensed contractors and made it known that they will arrest and prosecute them and the homeowner for aiding and abetting it would not take long for the problem to go away....