All advices from outside CA is irrelevant, you are in CA, and I would say you can go lower ONLY with an unlicensed contractor.

Hi, I'm in California, my wife and I are real estate investors (both unlicensed) I'm looking to hire a licensed agent to do some tasks for our company, mostly driving to look at properties, taking pictures, dropping off and picking up contracts and meeting with sellers.

My private money lender at the time knowingly or unknowingly hired the unlicensed contractor to do the work.

That's my educated but unlicensed opinion.

Not sure if it is available to unlicensed people. 

Yes it is likely too good to be true and unlicensed in this case is basically paying a random person $5 for his or her opinion that is no better than yours, it will not hold any weight with anyone.  

Account Closed is trying to express is that he knowing hired an unlicensed contractor and probably didn't pull permits for the place he was renovating either.

So, essentially, you would be acting as an unlicensed contractor.

Remember, most are unlicensed and brokering without a license, have no accountability to state boards, operate as fringe operators skirting laws, may be correctly called public nuisances, have no insurance, etc.

That they would deem an offer from an unlicensed person to be of less validity or worth is not illegal.