Michigan builders license lookup
Where to search, what the record actually shows, why legitimate builders sometimes come back "not found" — and what to save so you can prove you checked.
Michigan residential builder licenses are looked up through LARA's Bureau of Construction Codes portal (Accela Citizen Access). Search by license number for precision, or by individual name, business name, license type, or location. The record shows status, issue date, expiration date, and post-2005 disciplinary history.
Start at michigan.gov/lara and follow the license-search path for the Bureau of Construction Codes.
The four fields that decide everything.
Status
Active is the only green light. Lapsed, suspended, or relinquished means the builder is treated as unlicensed under MCL 339.601(3).
Expiration date
Builder licenses expire May 31 on staggered 3-year cycles. Check the date against your full job window, not just the start date.
Name match
The license must match the legal entity you're paying. "Smith Builders LLC" on your contract and "J. Smith Construction" on the license is a review flag, not a pass.
Disciplinary section
Open formal complaints and final actions dated after January 1, 2005. Pre-2005 history may be incomplete — absence of records isn't absence of history.
Why legitimate builders come back empty.
- The license is held by an individual qualifying officer, not the company name you searched.
- The business operates under a DBA that differs from the licensed entity.
- The work actually requires a different license type — electrical, mechanical, and plumbing are separate licenses, not builder endorsements.
- The license lapsed — and a lapse past the late window makes the record harder to surface.
- Spelling or punctuation differences; the search is less forgiving than a web search engine.
A not-found result is a needs-review signal. Resolve it before dispatch — don't silently pass it, and don't assume fraud.
One lookup is easy. Proving forty of them is the job.
The lookup is refreshed daily and the state disclaims accuracy — so what protects you is a timestamped, source-linked record of what you checked. LicenseWatchMI does that across your whole vendor list.