How to Check a California State Contractor's License

Any contractor who completes more than $500 worth of work---including labor and materials---must have a contractor's license. That's according to the Contractors State Licensing Board (CSLB), which is the agency all California-based contractors must go through to become licensed. Hiring a licensed contractor protects consumers, as contractors must have at least four years experience, an FBI background check, and they must be bonded. So before you give anyone the green light to begin your renovations, know how to check a California state contractor's license.

Yellow pages directory
Internet access

Instructions

- 1
  Choose a contractor. You can either look in your local yellow pages directory or online.
- 2
  Call the contractor and ask for their license number. If they're a legitimate company they should have no problem giving it to you.
- 3
  Check the license number on the Contractors State Licensing Board website. A license number doesn't contain any letters.
- 4
  Search for licensing information by company name. You can also check on licensing information by entering a business name in to the Contractors State Licensing Board website.
- 5
  See if the license is valid. If you're searching by company name, you may have to go through a list of companies to find the right one. But if you're searching by license number, you'll see immediately see if it's valid or not.

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