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.
I charge 50€/h including VAT. It’s true that small jobs like this don’t really pay much - but it’s also true that they sometimes lead to bigger jobs. One of the customers I’ve charged the most over time originally just had me come over to install a washing machine.
If my schedule is full, then obviously jobs like this get put on the back burner, and bigger jobs always take priority. Still, there are days when I’ve got nothing else to do, so I might as well go hang a shelf and chat with some granny.