If you’ve got a job that’ll take a week, contractors will basically fight for it - but if it’s just something that takes a few hours, it’s apparently a real struggle to get anyone to show up.
I just installed a new kitchen sink and hooked up the faucet and dishwasher for a client. He said they had called eight plumbing companies, and all of them either refused outright or said they’d get back to it but never did. One company agreed to come install it but wouldn’t do the hole in the countertop for the sink, so they would’ve needed to hire a carpenter separately - and you can imagine how thrilled a carpenter would be about a job that takes less than an hour.
This is an incredibly common story among my customers. I’m a plumber by training, but when I went self-employed, I expanded my services to cover all kinds of handyman work. Clearly, I’m filling a niche, considering the amount of gratitude I’m getting from customers. I literally received a gift basket from one just last week. I should’ve made the jump a decade ago.
Yep,
I’ve got a part of the house which needs new render and new capping on a pallisade wall. Cannot for the life of me find anyone that wants to do it. Whole house render, no problem. Turn up and just render every wall in site, no problem.
I had a long discussion with a builder who suggested I remove any lead flashing from the pallisade wall so he could render that. After going and investigating what I could, the lead is what’s keeping water out of the house. No, no thankyou do I want to remove that.
As it goes, I might just have to learn how to render myself as it might be easier than learning how to find a reasonable handyman.