8 Things to Expect When a Handyman Visits Your Home
What do you see when you imagine a handyman visiting your home? Do you see someone in overalls, or the popular joke of low-hanging pants?! Do you imagine dust, or furniture shoved around, or hammering from four rooms away?
Is that scene in your head STRESSFUL? Exhausting? Expensive?
Knowing what to expect out of the right handyman experience—the one that gets the job done correctly and quickly—is something that can give you ENORMOUS peace of mind…and it can also set the standard for what kind of handyman service you SHOULD hire in the first place.
This is the list of the EIGHT things you should expect when a handyman comes out to your home…trust us, THIS is the level of service you want to get for your money, and it’s absolutely what you deserve!!
0: First, you will know who’s coming and when…
This is a pre-step, really, so we actually have NINE items on the list! But this is so basic that we would LIKE to assume every handyman provider does it…
Simply put? When you book a handyman service, you should have not only a reasonable window of time the handyman will arrive, but should also receive a day-of call and text when the handyman is on the way to your home.
You should also know exactly WHO will be coming to your door. That text message, for instance, can include a photo. You need to know that you’re letting the right person into your home! The handyman should arrive with a company-logo shirt and a name badge, too.
1: PPE and “hello”
PPE, or personal protective equipment, is a fundamental standard for professional handyman work. In the context of these jobs, after smiling and saying “hi,” your friendly handyman should then step into your home and immediately place shoe coverings on.
Don’t bother saying, “Oh, that’s not necessary!” The highest standard of handyman services requires their employees to use shoe coverings, so the handyman will still politely insist on putting them on.
2: Your handyman will bring his own tools
This is a question we’ve gotten before, and even if it seems self-evident to some of y’all, I have a hunch that some people have still seen some WAY sub-par handyman services where this doesn’t take place…
But, to my point, handymen will bring their own heavy-duty, professional tools. This will include their own ladders—if any handyman asks to use yours, that’s a red flag! Professional handymen use professional-grade tools for their safety as well as yours.
3: Evaluating what needs to be done
After saying hello and coming inside, the handyman will ask about the issue he’s come out for. Yes, he has a lot of details already, and you might not tell him anything new! However, this gives him the chance to talk to you and ask any questions he has (which is how he starts troubleshooting), and also gives you the opportunity to add anything you might have forgotten when you first booked your appointment.
After you go over the problem and make your way to the work area, the handyman will put down floor protection. This is another one of those things that the highest-rated handyman services will require of all their employees.
4: The estimate is prepared
Professional handyman service is not just a matter of “eyeballing” something and then landing a handshake! After your professional handyman has assessed the job, he will ask for a space he can sit down to get all the details into a formal estimate.
Once the estimate is prepared, he’ll go over it with you. This is your opportunity to ask about discounts and offers, as well as other saving opportunities like maintenance clubs. It’s not “haggling” if you’re just asking for the existing programs the company has!!
Do note that the handyman might have listed other optional items he saw while he was reviewing the job. These aren’t “upsells” if you’ve hired a real professional—they’re just the systems or fixtures of your home that are either in trouble or could be soon. If you’re not sure how to navigate these extra items, ask how pressing each fix is and what the fix might cost if it’s done later. This will help you decide what you’re comfortable doing while he’s already there, and what you’ll have him do on the next call.
Once you agree to the final estimate, you sign off!!
5: Then you kick back
Once work starts, you can leave the handyman to his work. If he has any questions, he’ll find you. And before he even starts, you might notice him taking “before” photos. Some of these might have already been taken and included in the estimate. The important thing—for your protection and for his—is that the whole process is documented.
There can always be additional questions or cases that pop up during a handyman job, too. Just take a look at what happened to this handyman on this outdoor job when the neighbors stuck their nose in another homeowner’s business…
6: You’re then given the walk-through
And just like that…the work is done! Can you believe it?! All that waiting and suffering and worrying (which I REALLY hope didn’t go on too long before you called) is DONE. The job has been completed.
Once work is finished, the handyman will walk you through everything that was fixed, replaced or updated. You can expect this conversation to take several minutes, since you might have questions. You could even walk away from the walk-through as your household’s “local expert” about that system or fixture!
And you’re not only learning here; you’re also checking the handyman’s work. Don’t be scared to ask questions—a proud handyman LOVES to talk about the work he does.
This will also be when the handyman takes “after” photos.
Then, final payment is made.
7: 100% satisfaction
As the handyman goes through WHAT was done, he will be actively checking against whether the work meets your expectation for the job. If there is ANYTHING outstanding—any doubt or concern on your part—he will work to gain your 100% satisfaction. If it’s within his power, he will do it.
8: Adios for now
This is when the handyman cleans up, and then packs up and leaves. Any professional home service provider will leave your home at least as clean as it was on arrival, if not cleaner (yay)! Your handyman will even wipe high-touch surfaces down.
After that, you’re left to your newly-fixed space, and you’ll see a thank you card at some point in the mail. The company will also send you some kind of survey to fill out about your service. Don’t dawdle on those! Surveys are SO important to handyman providers that we even give ALL our clients who fill ours out a $5 Amazon gift card…
You can imagine: NOT all handyman services are this professional. Your feedback is not only important to the company, it’s also important for other homeowners nearby who want to know who to trust!! So fill that survey out, and tell the NEXT person exactly what to expect from a handyman visit…
If you haven’t already seen it, download our Home Check-Up Score Worksheet to get a “health score” for the state of your home!
