Hiring a remodeling contractor is a big decision. You are letting someone into your home for weeks or months, and you are trusting them with a lot of money. Most homeowners check reviews and look at photos. That is a good start, but it is not the whole picture.
There are three things you can verify before you sign anything: a contractor's license, their bond, and their permit record. Here is what each one tells you, and how we approach all three.
Why the license comes first
In California, a contractor doing work over a certain dollar amount must hold a state license. A license number is not just paperwork. It means the contractor has passed state testing, carries the required bond, and answers to the Contractors State License Board if something goes wrong.
Any legitimate contractor will give you their license number without hesitation. Ours is #743872, and it is verified active. Look it up. Check the status, check the classification, and check whether there are any complaints on file. A contractor who bristles at this question is telling you something.
A license also protects you in a practical way. If a job goes wrong and the contractor will not make it right, the license board is a place you can turn. Without a license, you have far fewer options.
What a bond actually does
A license has to be backed by a bond. This is a policy the contractor pays for that protects you, the homeowner, if the contractor fails to meet their obligations. If work is left unfinished or a problem comes up that the contractor will not fix, the bond gives you a path to recover money.
We carry a $15,000 bond with American Contractors Indemnity Company. That is part of holding an active license, not an extra we added for show. But it is worth confirming on any contractor you consider. Ask for the bond company and the bond amount. It takes two minutes to verify, and it tells you the contractor is set up the way the state requires.
The permit record is the proof of real work
Here is the check most homeowners skip, and it may be the most useful one. Permits are filed with the local building department when real work is done and inspected. A contractor's permit history shows what they have actually built, not just what they claim.
Permit records for our work show 230 permitted projects totaling $1,784,700 in declared value. That is a track record you can look at directly. Each permitted project passed inspection. That matters, because a remodel is not finished when it looks good - it is finished when it meets code and passes the inspection.
When you evaluate any contractor, ask what permits they pulled on recent jobs. If a contractor suggests skipping permits to save time or money, walk away. Unpermitted work can cause problems when you sell your home, and it can leave you paying to redo work that was never inspected in the first place.
Questions worth asking before you sign
Beyond the three checks above, a short conversation will tell you a lot. Ask things like:
- Who will be on site every day, and who do I call with questions?
- What is the schedule, and what could change it?
- Which parts of the job need permits, and who pulls them?
- How do you handle changes once work has started?
You are not trying to catch anyone out. You are confirming that the contractor communicates clearly before you have signed anything. If answers are vague now, they will be vague once your kitchen is torn apart.
Why this matters more on a full remodel
A single-trade hire - one plumber, one electrician - is a contained job. A full remodel is different. A kitchen renovation alone touches cabinets, counters, flooring, plumbing, electrical, and walls. A whole-home remodel or an addition touches even more.
When several trades are involved, the license and permit questions multiply. Who is responsible when one trade's work fails inspection? Who pulls the permits for the overall project? This is exactly why we handle every type of remodel under one contractor. One license covers the work. One party answers for the inspections, the schedule, and the result. Homeowners across Los Angeles come to us because they do not want to manage that puzzle themselves.
We are open about all of it
Everything we have described here, you can verify about us today. License #743872, active. A $15,000 bond with American Contractors Indemnity Company. 230 permitted projects on record. That is the track record behind every kitchen, bathroom, whole-home remodel, and addition we take on.
If you are planning a remodel and want a contractor who will walk you through licenses, permits, and the plan before any work starts, call us at +8772494210 or email info@hhbuildersinc.com. We are open 8am to 10pm, every day of the week. Ask us the hard questions. A contractor worth hiring will welcome them.