One of the requirements is that you have experience in the field. While the amount of experience varies depending on your intended specialty, you need at least five years’ working experience to qualify. This working experience is called verified 1099 experience, and is required by the State. If you have worked off the books, or perhaps had another position but assisted with some construction, such as a dockworker that assisted with remodeling at a business, this doesn’t meet the criteria.

You also need a minimum of two years of management experience. This will help you learn how to oversee a crew, create a cost estimate, make sure a project is hitting milestones as expected, and other business aspects of construction and general contracting. It will also help you gain the experience you need to learn how to handle the intricacies of the many elements that are often included in a project.

As a subcontractor, you need to understand the commitment to your future that will be required in order to obtain a Utah General Contractor’s License. If this is a job you want to turn into a career, take the time to determine where you are on the path to success, and what you need to do in order to fulfill the necessary requirements.

If you don’t have the required 1099 experience, make sure you start working toward that goal by finding general contractors who need extra subcontractors for a project. If you lack the management experience, set a goal to find a way to manage a project.

Make sure you exhibit the qualities a general contractor would look for in a manager. Arrive at the project early, work with little supervision, be willing to help others to make sure the project is complete on time, and show that you are more concerned about the project then your own personal gain.

As you work towards your goal of meeting the field qualifications of obtaining a Utah general contractor license, keep in mind that you will also have to take two different exams. One exam covers the business aspects, while the other covers the general skills requirements. UTCLC can help you prepare for both exams, and will help you with other important facets of starting your own general contractor’s business. Go our FAQ page to find out how we can help you meet the goal of switching from subcontractor to general contractor.

In order to be able to maintain your license you have to take continuing education courses. When you renew your license every two years, you have to complete an application and prove that you met the education requirements with qualifying courses that meet Utah’s standards.

This can often be a difficult requirement to fulfill. Trying to run a business is a difficult task, and trying to keep a new business going often means long hours. You also may have family obligations in the free time that you do have.

Then there is the money. With a new business, you often lose money the first year, and sometimes your only break even the next. Finding the money to pay for these continuing education requirements isn’t always easy when your budget is already tight as it is.

Nevertheless, there is a way to meet the continuing education requirements without spending a lot of money or sacrificing time with your family. If you choose an online course, you often have the ability to complete the course at your own pace, or log on at night after the family has gone to sleep. This helps you to take these courses when they are convenient for you, and it makes it easier to meet state requirements.

Financial aid is often available for those who are taking continuing education classes. This helps to offset the expense and can mean the difference of being able to afford the class or fail to have enough credits to renew your general contractor’s license.

UTCLC is able to help many general contractors with the continuing education they need to renew their contracting license. Visit our main page to see what we can do to help you with continuing education.

Sites like Facebook, twitter, and FourSquare are considered important business tools. They help businesses and customers form relationships that often aren’t possible with traditional marketing tools. They are a great way for businesses to let people know who they are and what they do. Businesses that are in a similar market often share information on social media sites, such as referrals, resources, and new products that are helping to change the way a company does business.

Contractors can take advantage of the growth and viability of social media. Social media sites can be used for local purposes as well as global. FourSquare, in fact, is a social media site that is designed to target local traffic. Since many people conduct research on the Internet before they make a buying decision, this is a great way to get the name of your company in front of your local market.

Many customers follow a brand on a social media site, and the brand followers often buy from that brand because of the information they learn on those sites. This means that it is important to offer valuable information that customers need to have in order to make an informed decision about their next construction or remodeling project.

If you are unfamiliar with how social media works, you may want to hire someone with experience to conduct your social media marketing. You can also learn on your own and start your own campaign. Businesses courses are a part of the continuing education requirement necessary to renew a Utah General Contractor’s license. If you find an approved marketing course that includes social media marketing you can improve your ability to find new customers for your business while fulfilling part of your continuing education requirement. You may be able to receive financial aid to pay for the course as well.

UTCLC is dedicated to helping people obtain and maintain their Utah General Contracting license. If you are a current contractor who needs to take continuing education courses, visit our FAQ page to see how we can help.

The economy hit the Utah construction sector harder than many other sectors. According to projections, construction employment for 2012 will be 69,700. Compared to 103,450 positions in 2007, this is a 32% drop in a five-year period. If you obtain your general contractor’s license, you can be the one placing the bids on smaller projects and protect your income this year.

The overall construction outlook for the US is a lull in the recent turmoil. While some sectors will increase, such as the private sector, other sectors will decrease, such as the public sector. The projection for 2012 is $412 billion, a slight increase over last year’s $410 billion.

Since 2009, the construction industry has had a rough road as it endured a series of vicissitudes. While the difference hasn’t been as extreme as the 24% drop in 2009, there was a 4% drop in 2011.

What this means is that a general contractor’s license should be a first step. If you specialize in a specific area of construction such as energy conservation, solar, or electrical, you can take advantage of growing trends in the construction market.

Continuing education courses can help you hone your skills in any particular market. Core and professional courses help you to learn more about a specific field of construction, while professional courses can help you improve your general business skills.

UTCLC can help you on your path to professional improvement. We can help you with pre licensing prep courses to ensure you pass your tests. After you achieve this first goal, you need to take six hours of continuing education within a two-year period. We can help you with this requirement with courses that are more convenient for you. Visit our home page at www.utclc.com to learn about how we can help you with your construction career goals.

Real estate companies are often in need of general contractors. When a potential seller approaches a realtor, their property may need some work done before it is ready for sale. Often, the seller doesn’t have anyone in mind to complete these renovations and may ask the realtor for suggestions. The ability to have contact information for a reliable contractor helps the realtor sign more clients, and helps the contractor with a reliable source of income. Not all of these projects will be large, but it they may be enough if you are just starting out.

In addition to realtors, banks are another potential resource for work. With the fall of the housing market, there are many bank owned homes for sale. Some of these homes are in a state of disrepair and need to be maintained. Many local governments are considering passing laws requiring banks to maintain abandoned foreclosed properties, because of the health issues that are arising in particular neighborhoods.

With banks, you may be able to obtain a position of repairing and maintaining their properties. Some entrepreneurs have created successful businesses just repairing and caretaking bank owned properties. Taking advantage of a poor economy may seem strange, but it is a necessary function that will help improve the neighborhoods.

In order to find these types of alliances you will need to conduct some marketing. Networking, using social media sites and having a website are all different ways you can reach out to potential markets. Taking a marketing course may help you learn effective marketing strategies.

UTCLC can help with marketing and other continuing education classes. We can help you take the courses you need in a way that is convenient for you. Visit our FAQ  page to learn more.

There are specific qualifications a contractor needs to meet with the continuing education requirement of license renewal. The requirement includes 3 hours of core courses and 3 hours of professional or core related courses. These courses need to be approved by the DOPL (Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing).

Core courses include material such as OSHA 10 or 30 Safety training, governmental regulations pertaining to construction, construction codes, and laws pertaining to construction, employee verification, and payment practices. These courses also need to be in a specific format in order to qualify.

Professional courses include information related to construction core courses. This information includes energy conservation, planning and zoning, land development, and/or land use. These courses can include business development courses such as marketing techniques, customer retention, bookkeeping, and finance.

These courses are more than just a way to fulfill your continuing education requirement. It is a way to help improve your business and increase your chance of success. A business owner should always be looking for a way to grow and learn new skills, this state requirement helps you to do this.

UTCLC can also help you with this requirement. With all of the obligations of a business owner, it is often difficult to find the time to take the courses you need to qualify. With the flexibility of online courses, you have the chance to study when you need to, whether its two o’clock in the afternoon during a lunch break or two o’clock in the morning when your family is asleep.

UTCLC has a variety of options available for different core and professional development courses to fit your needs. Go here http://www.utclc.com/continuing-education/ to learn more.

In order to qualify for a license in Utah, contractors need to have a combined four years’ experience, two supervisory and two general. A contractor also needs to have general liability insurance of approximately $300,000 total coverage.

Contractors also need to be able to pass two different exams: a business/law exam and a trade exam. Once a person obtains his or her license, they need to obtain 6 hours of continuing education every two years.

The two exams are both open book. The trade exam is a three-hour test comprising of 80 questions on the topics of drywall and finishing, safety, thermal and moisture protection, doors and windows, code, plan reading and estimating.

The business and law exam is a two-hour test of 60 questions. The topics included in the exam are project management, labor laws, financial management, risk management, tax laws, contract management, estimating and bidding, and lien laws.

The trade exams have reciprocity with the states of Arizona, California, Nevada, and South Carolina. If you are from one of these states, you will have to take the business and law exam but not the trade exam. For the Business and Law exam, there is no reciprocity.

For both exams, an individual has to receive a grade of at least 70 in order to pass. If you fail one of these exams, you can take them again after a 30-day wait period. You have three attempts at these exams to provide you with an opportunity to pass and obtain your license.

If you want assistance in preparing for either of these exams, help is available. UTCLC offers test preparation services that will help you feel confident when scheduling these exams. Visit http://www.utclc.com/what-do-i-need/ to learn more.

Because of economic conditions, the construction industry has seen many changes over the last two years. Flexibility and adaptability are two watchwords to help individuals and companies succeed. Creating your own destiny with a Utah General Contractors License can help adjust to the changes that are occurring here and all over the US.

For some people, this fact stops many people cold. They are intimidated by having to pass a test in order to obtain a license. Perhaps you don’t test well, or you are afraid the test will be overly difficult. You need to find a way to build your confidence that it is possible to pass the test and get that contractor’s license.

Preparation is the best way to build that confidence. The ability to take sample tests and learn what kind of questions will be asked can help you to see that it isn’t impossible for you to succeed in this goal. It also helps when you can go over the information with someone who has experience and can help you see where your strengths and weaknesses may lay.

While you have been dreaming of becoming your own boss, you may not have considered everything that is involved in the new phase of your career. Obtaining a license is only one aspect of this dream. You will also have to create an entity and complete all of the paperwork the state requires.

On the other hand, perhaps you have looked into everything that is required in order to start a Utah General Contractor business and feel that it is just too much hard work. All that red tape and additional steps are going to get in way of doing what you do best. It is easier to keep things the way they are and work for someone else.

It doesn’t have to be that way. UTCLC can help you prepare for the test, and with our “No pass, no pay,” guarantee you can be assured we are as dedicated to your success as you are. We can also help you complete the paperwork to create your business and handle all the state’s red tape involved with a Utah General Contractor license. Visit http://www.utclc.com/faq/ today to see why there is nothing left standing between you and your dream of a new business.

Using new forms of energy, such as solar and wind power, can help protect the environment. Reducing the pollution produced by coal and gas will decrease the damage caused to birds and water life. It would also reduce the amount of drilling conducted, protecting environment, and water tables from accidental contamination. Energy audits, however, perform a different function for homeowners.

These audits help homeowners find out where their homes are vulnerable. They reduce the amount of warm air lost in the winter and the cool air lost in the summer. The result is a way to help furnaces and air conditioners work less but keep the home comfortable for inhabitants. Another result of weatherizing a home is a significant reduction in energy costs.

Like many remedies, weatherization is a holistic approach. An effective energy audit will show homeowners several different ways to make their home efficient. As a general contractor, you have the ability to offer individuals a whole home solution to save energy and money.

Performing energy audits takes some expertise. You need to be able to know the tests you need to perform on a home and how to interpret the results. You also need to be able to know how to calculate costs in order to create an accurate estimate for potential clients.

Often a customer will only have a partial idea of what they need. They will look to you in order to provide accurate answers. You need to have a thorough knowledge of energy saving solutions, tests, and products. Accurate training can help you gain the skills you need to perform this valuable service.

Taking a course in energy audits and home inspections will help you gain this expertise. Visit http://www.ahit.com/affiliates/utclc to learn about an energy audit course you can take online or on location to understand about home energy inspections. Then you can offer this valuable service to your clients to help them save money in the New Year, as well as create a new revenue stream for your company.

A general contractor who has his or her own business has an advantage large corporations don’t have. People buy from other people, and a company that can provide a human element can achieve a competitive advantage. For a small construction company, the owner of the company is the face of the organization, and this image can be groomed and enhanced over time.

A brand image is no different than a reputation. For a contractor, it is important to portray an image of experience, dedication, and skill in their field. Showing knowledge in construction is important when reviewing a potential project with a customer. This person wants to know that the contractor they hire will complete their project on time, on budget, and without destroying their property in the process.

A client also relies on a contractor to know the latest technologies and development in the industry. Some customers may have a firm plan for the project, but most want suggestions form a contractor on the best way to accomplish a task. The more experienced and confident a  contractor is when discussing plans with a client, the better the chance they will win a bid.

This is where continuing education can help a contractor build a brand. While licensed Utah contractors are required to have a specific number of continuining education hours, a contractor should understand this will help their business grow as well.

To prove you are an expert in your field, you need to become a lifelong learner dedicated to increasing your skill sets. UTCLC can help Utah contractors fulfill this need for knowledge. Contact us today to find out how we can help you maintain the edge in your field.