I have not purchased this type of business, but have owned a few.

This is typical in many states that require licensure for this or similar industries. You have three options:
1. Get qualified and come back in the future. (This can require between 2 and 8 years depending on the state and trade involved.)
2. Hire a qualifier. This is not difficult to do, but can vary in practicality based on the size of the business. In some cases am employee may be freely willing, in many cases an employee or even outside party with charge a fee for this relationship that can be fixed or a percentage of profit.
3. Negotiate to have the seller remain as the qualifier for long enough for you to become the qualifier. (For timeline required, see #1.)

While some states and trades will only require experience/time in the business, some will specifically differentiate between management and in the field trade experience.

I have looked at a number of businesses in the "construction adjacent" space (piping companies, wiring companies, and others). As said above, you need to have a RMO (responsible managing officer) for these types of businesses. In general, the minimum amount of experience for California is 1-2 years with direct construction experience to get a license (school counts for the other 1-2 yrs that are required). I have found this need to make deals a little more complicated but not totally un-doable. Keep in mind the construction license process can also take 4-6 months. There are also differing types of licenses A. B, & C (specialty) so all of this will depend on the type of construction business you are looking at. Feel free to reach out with questions - I am pursuing the contractors license as a nice to have for a separate business.