While State of Michigan law allows homeowners to secure permits to work on their own homes, it is against the law for a hired contractor to perform work under these permits. Any contractor or person you hire for a construction project on your home should be responsible for obtaining any required building permits from the governing building department.
Homeowner permits are not less expensive than contractor permits, not processed any faster than contractor permits, and not held to a lesser standard or inspection requirement than a contractor permit.
So you may ask yourself, then why would a contractor ask or require that I pull a homeowner permit for them to do the work? They offered a much lower price than the other guys, wouldn't it be worth it? The answer is no, and there are two main reasons why.
First, the contractor is likely not licensed or insured, which would be required for them to pull a permit. It is not improper to ask any potential contractor to provide license and insurance information.
Second, you as the permit holder will be responsible for all work performed. If any of the work is done improperly and fails inspection the building department cannot intervene.
Always hold your contractors accountable for their work and insist they obtain they're own permits. This permit protects both you and your home. Remember, if they are asking for you to pull the permit there's likely a reason for it.
