Nevada Handyman License Requirements
- Nevada has stringent and extensive contractors licensing codes that limit services a handyman can provide.hitting nail image by msw from Fotolia.com
"Handyman" is a catch-all description of people who have building and property maintenance skills and market them to property owners and managers. In every state, including Nevada, regulations dictate what qualifications are needed --- and certifications required --- for handyman businesses. If you plan to do handyman work, one rule of thumb is that licensed contractors, plumbers, electricians and landscapers can charge more for fix-it services than non-licensed handymen; but you can make a decent living as a jack-of-all-trades, even without certifications. - Nevada does not require a handyman to have a license, but work on any projects that require a building permit requires a contractor's license. Nevada's different municipalities have their own requirements for handyman business licenses and insurance. Mesquite, for example, requires a city business license and imposes limitations on the work handymen are allowed to do. If you do not have a contractor's license, Mesquite allows you to perform most lawn services, heating and air conditioning unit maintenance, plumbing and electrical repairs --- but not new installations --- and swimming pool and home cleaning and general maintenance. You may not, however, do stucco, painting, drywall, carpentry, weather stripping, caulking or concrete work; penalties may apply. The town of Pahrump limits handyman activity to $1,000 per job only on services that do not require a building permit; the city will prosecute violators. Your city building and zoning office can provide you with regional handyman licensing information.
- The Nevada State Contractors Board publishes an information packet titled "When Work Would Not Require a Nevada State Contractors Board License." It lists all the work the state permits a handyman to perform --- but remember that local government may impose additional restrictions. Contractors in Nevada are permitted to build, alter and demolish residential and commercial structures, including roads, railroads and other non-buildings. Handymen are not. Nevada contractors work on projects that require building permits and must apply for a license, pass an examination, and be bonded and insured.
- Electricians and plumbers are classified as C-2 and C-1 contractors, and must be licensed. C-3 licenses are required for maintenance, repairs or carpentry that require a building permit. Landscapers in Nevada are required to have a C-10 contractor's license. Other licenses include, but are not limited to: airport construction, reservoirs and dam building, grading and excavating, swimming pool installation, building wrecking, farm irrigation implementation, guardrails and fencing fabrication and asbestos removal.
