I’m a busy woman. When something goes nuts in our house, like the hot water heater sprouting oil out of the top of the little do-hicky thing, I don’t have time to figure out what that do-hicky thing is called, nor do I have time to find someone to fix it. My husband, though I love him dearly, doesn’t understand that I’m not about to call three, to four, different hot water heater fixing companies to find the best price. My time is just too valuable for that kind of commitment. What I like is to call ONE number, tell them what happened, and have them do the work for me, and not charge me anything. Yeah, that’s right, I want someone to do all that “leg-work” for FREE. I’m not crazy, I’m just busy, and on a budget. Guess what? There’s a website out there that gets it. GETS. IT.
It’s called HomeAdvisor. It’s a free website, and it’s AMAZING.
In all honesty, we have a service contract with our oil company to come and fix a lot of these issues. They come, do it for free, and we’re done. However, not all of our little appliances, and gadgets, around here are under that kind of service contract. I’ve got appliances that are old, and came with my house. I’ve got bathrooms that are attached to cess pools, and that’s always something to worry about. There are millions of things that can go wrong when you own your own home, especially when you’ve got water, heat, and electric. All of these things, when they go on the fritz, need a PROFESSIONAL to come, and fix them for you. Unless you’re married to a plumber, electrician, or HVAC professional – then by all means, let them fix it. However, if not, you’ll want to get familiar with HomeAdvisor’s website, along with their new app, Home911.
It’s not just for finding help in an emergency, either. The amount of information available on this site is blowing my mind. They don’t just help you find someone for home projects, but also provide cost guides, so you know what people are paying for similar projects to yours. The process is fairly simple, you head to the site, choose a project category that matches the closest to your repair, or improvement. You then answer some questions, nothing difficult, but they are important questions, because the answers you provide will help match you to the right pro for the job you want to do!
Once you’ve answered the questions, you will then receive info for the four pre-screened, local pros that best fit your needs. You don’t even have to call them, either. They will give you a call! But if you’re an eager beaver, you are allowed to give them a call. Whatever works for you! After that, it’s all about finding the right ONE, and working with them on pricing, planning, and executing. If you find that you’re into the project, and the pro isn’t right for you, and there are issues, you can call HomeAdvisor and ask for help mediating the relationship.
Yes, we don’t pay a membership fee. It’s completely free for us to use the website. The website is able to do this, because it asks the contractors, and service providers, to pay a fee to be able to be listed on the site. HOWEVER, don’t think HomeAdvisor isn’t doing their homework for us! They put these companies through background checks, financial and criminal, AND they also have a review system for them. These guys can’t have their moms, dads, and siblings, leaving reviews for them. HomeAdvisor makes sure the people leaving reviews on this site, are LEGIT customers, with REAL REVIEWS.
It’s the real deal, my friends. It’s why I’m sharing it with you!
