Finding A Good Handyman

Everyone who owns or rents a house knows the value of finding a good handyman. These men are jacks-of-all-trades that can help you with a lot of the maintenance that you need to get done around your house. Handymen are also beneficial because they can tackle a cariety of jobs (minor plumbing along with, painting, along with fixing the door, etc.) for a lower cost than if you had a professional come to take care of each need individually.

However, finding a good handyman is not always an easy task. There are several factors that can make this industry tricky.

First, there are many people out there who call themselves handymen. Look under ‘Handyman’ in thel phone books and you will see what we mean …there are hundreds of names listed in each area. Also, there are tons of unlisted handymen that are out dropping business cards and trying to get customers. How do you choose between so many people advertising the same service?

Second, the barriers to calling one’s self a professional handyman are small. People don’t necessarily need a lot of fancy equipment or tools to start a handyman business. Therefore, individuals that have painted a few houses can try to trick you in to believing they are a highly skilled and experienced handyman. If you have a truck, a ladder, and a business card you could fool a lot of people!

Finally, there are many different skill levels in this field. Also, some handymen don’t want to admit their skill limits. For instance, a handyman working on installing shelves in your garage may say that he can fix your roof, even if he is not skilled in that area. This can lead to problems. Customers need to be sure that the handyman they hire is actually able to perform the work they require.

So what do you do when looking for a handyman?

We recommend:

* Ask your friends and neighbors to see if they have had good or bad experiences with local handymen. Simply knowing that another person has had a good experience with a handyman prior to calling them lessens your chance of hiring a problem.

* If you have the time, call a few handymen to discuss your needs. This will help you determine fair market price for your job. This does not mean you should always go with the lowest price, you should go with the company you feel most comfortable with and who you feel will do the best job. If an individual is offering a real low price you should ask yourself “why?”.

* Make sure the company or individual has insurance. Most handymen services usually involve plenty of opportunities for injury. As mentioned above there are many fly-by-night handymen that may not be insured. If you skip this part you could be held liable for an uninsured handyman’s injury while working on your house or for costly bills if they damage something in your home.

* Make sure the handyman has experience in the task you require. Not all handymen know how to fix all problems. If a handyman turns down a job ana tells you to call a professional for the work you require, then that handyman may be the one you want to hire to do other things around your house. They are honest and it is apparent that they want things done correctly.

* Ask the handyman what it will take to fix your problem. If you are looking for an extremely low price, the handyman may offer a solution that is really only temporary. It is worth the extra money to make sure that your problem is truly fixed… otherwise you will pay more money in the long run.

* Always get a statement of work performed in writing. Keep this filed away. Make sure the statements clearly describe what work is to be performed.

* Ask if the handyman’s work comes with any guarantees. Make sure you get these things in writing. These are all factors to weigh when looking at the total estimates left by different handymen.

* Some handymen require an upfront payment. If you have hired a smaller handyman service, and they require money upfront to help pay for materials, make sure you have a refund policy stated in your agreement in case they end up not working out. Also, this upfront amount should never be over 30% of the total cost of your job. For more tips: Paying Contractors.

* Check in on the handyman’s progress regularly…try to catch potential problems or misunderstandings before it is too late.

Good luck with your handyman needs!

More information can be found at Finding Handymen in Raleigh-Durham or anywhere.