What to settle before anyone opens a wall in Smyrna, Marietta or Mableton

Four kinds of contractor license, and a dollar line

On the Georgia Secretary of State's FAQ page, residential and general contractors can hold one of four license types: General Contractor, General Contractor Limited Tier, Residential-Basic and Residential-Light Commercial. A state contractor license is not needed for certain specialty trades or for work under $2,500, the page says. Which trades count as specialty is not spelled out, and neither is whether the $2,500 applies to one job or a whole project.

Water damage, mold, restoration and remediation are not mentioned on that page.

The statute behind the license

O.C.G.A. 43-41-17 sets the rule: no person or business may take on general contracting, residential or commercial, without holding a current, valid license. A business can use a qualifying agent who holds the license for it. The section then lists exceptions, and subsection (h) covers an owner building for his or her own use or the family's, who may act as his or her own contractor and supervise the work.

Which trades the Attorney General names

In its storm and fraud advice, the Georgia Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division tells homeowners to confirm through the Secretary of State's website that general contractors, electricians, plumbers and heating and air conditioning contractors hold a license. It says roofers, tree removal services, painters, drywall contractors and repair handymen are not required to hold a state license.

Water damage restoration is on neither list. The useful question for any contractor is which Georgia license, if any, covers the planned work. Repairing a split pipe is plumbing, and rewiring is electrical.

Looking a license up by name or number

The Secretary of State runs a lookup headed Search for a Professional Licensee at verify.sos.ga.gov. It takes any mix of profession, license type, license number and first and last name. The page lists no phone number, but it links to forms for filing a complaint against a person and for reporting an unlicensed person or facility.

The contractor can name the license that applies to the job, and the lookup shows whether it exists.

Put every promise in writing

The Attorney General's advice is to insist on a written contract that carries every promise, and to treat a contractor who will not provide one as a warning sign. It says never to pay for the entire project before work begins. It suggests a down payment of no more than one-third, with the final payment due only after the job is complete.

It also advises avoiding door-to-door offers for home repair, asking for three references from customers with similar projects, and checking them. Complaints about home repair fraud go to (404) 651-8600, or (800) 869-1123 for calls from inside Georgia.

Each town also wants a local business certificate

Smyrna's Business License Division says every person or business operating within city limits needs a current City of Smyrna Occupational Tax Certificate. That office sits at 3180 Atlanta Rd SE and answers at 678-631-5363.

Marietta's Business License Division is at 205 Lawrence Street, phone 770-794-5520, open Monday through Friday from 8 to 5. Its page does not say who needs a license. Mableton's page says any business, large or small, needs an Occupational Tax Certificate before it begins operating, and it lists contractors among the service businesses that do.

Why a call to the building office comes first

None of the three building pages mentions water damage. Smyrna's list reads: interior remodeling, structural and interior demolition, replacement of mechanical equipment, and projects involving two or more trades. Marietta names building, altering, repairing, moving and demolishing structures, and installing or altering electrical, gas, mechanical and plumbing systems. Mableton names structural, electrical, plumbing and mechanical work indoors.

To learn whether any of that applies to a given job, describe the planned work to the office.