Licensed and bonded contractors vs non for home repair

[Bearded Man]

I've hired three contractors in the past for work on one of my rentals in the past, but only one was licensed and insured.

I have some exterior painting, gutter replacement, flooring, etc. work needed and I am having a real hard time finding a licensed and bonded contractor. My only hesitation with hiring an unlicensed for this work is if they get hurt on my property. For past projects there was little risk of this, but this one, there will be some work on ladders for painting trim, and replacing gutters. I'm not sure the legalities on this, but how much risk am I exposed to by hiring a guy off CL rather than a bonded guy?

[Bearded Man]

Maybe my best bet is to do the gutters and painting myself and hire someone just for the flooring and door replacements? Pretty low risk of anyone getting hurt doing those things.

[KaizenSoze]

I would strongly recommend against using non bonded-insured contractors. There might be some variation between states but you're on the hook if they get hurt and aren't bonded.

It's like driving without a seatbelt. Nothing bad will probably happen but if it does...