I get an average 5 calls a week from my clients asking for referrals to service people or Handyman’s. I usually give out from the list of personnel I have for every job which I either used them myself in the past or got their name referred by other clients. If I refer people for a service, I usually send few with my personal comments and ask them call and find the right person depending on the cost and job accordingly. I also try to get feedback about their service from the clients afterwards and try to weed out bad ones in the list and add new ones. That’s how I have used many handyman’s in the past either by taking a chance trying them out first time to judge their capability on the job and decide to keep them in my list to refer to clients.

So my question to you all, How do you choose a right Handyman for the right job? It may be easy nowadays to go to craigslist.com or angielist.com to find an handyman to do any job. But how do you know whether they are really qualified and capable to do the job they say can do it. Let me share few hints which I look out in a service person/handy man depending on the job.

First of all, no handyman is made equal. They are all different depending on the job they do, amount they charge and what they say they can do. Don’t underestimate or overestimate an Handyman by just how much they charge. A right man knows how much is worth for his job and at the same time a landlord/homeowner should know how much a job usually could cost. If a handyman calls himself as jack of all arts, they may be but its a very rare commodity. As they say, it is too good to be true. Don’t hesitate to doubt them and don’t waste all your money. Good idea, try them out for small jobs and make your decision accordingly. I usually differentiate handyman’s two types, Investor Handyman and Homeowner Handyman.

Investor Handyman
An Investor handyman usually works with flippers or real estate investors who usually have to do fix lot of things in a property which they bought and need to go back to the market. They are also called as rehab handyman’s. They work themselves in the field with other helpers to get the job done. There is also another type, they are called rehab contractors who hires subcontractors or handyman’s to do the job. If you are an investor looking for a handyman, it may be good idea to give the job to a contractor and forget about it. But first thing, he won’t save you money because he has to put his profit on top of paying those handyman’s doing the job which will be always expensive. It may cost you more to hire them compared to hire handyman’s separately to do each job. For Investor’s, it is important to limit the expense to get some ROI on your investment. Think about it.

Many Investor handyman’s know that the house fixed by them might be a rental property or property which needs to go back to the market. They suggest you to NOT to spend too much on fixing everything with every expensive part to make it look like your own house. They like to do a good job, inexpensive way to save you money so they can be called back again. They also like to fix all problems themselves if they are related instead of giving to another handyman. If you feel they are capable, go with them otherwise check them out first and make your call. You may also be able to learn few things from them like how to fix few things or buy cheaper/used parts around town. Keep your eye and ears open.

Homeowners Handyman
These type of handyman’s are specialized in their job and always like to do a good job by fixing to make it perfect. They also like to charge little bit more as they won’t get called back again by the homeowner. If they are lucky, they might get referrals from the Home owner. If they cannot fix it, they usually tell you and refer you to another person to get it done. They also like to use parts which are good quality and not used part to make the Homeowner feel good about it. They take pride in their job and don’t like to do for cheap.

Depending on your preference you can either settle for better quality provided by homeowner handyman or reasonable quality for less money delivered by Investors Handyman. If don’t want to bother with it, you can always call me and I can send the right list of handyman’s for you to choose avoiding confusion in your decision making process. I know it is always a tough process and I am happy to help you.

About Vijaianand Thirnageswaram

I am a Proud Realtor of Texas, trying to guide and help clients to find their dream home and educate them to buy them for right price. I am also a Candidate for CFP who has more financial knowledge which allows me share and educate clients in any financial decision making process.

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