I’ve had numerous people come to my house offering “great deals” on home repair services over the years.
You know the type. Most of these guys wouldn’t know what a contractor’s license looked like if it hit them in the head.
One hustler knocked on my door recently. This was our exchange:
“Good afternoon, sir! I’m with Speedy’s Chimney Sweep. When was the last time your chimney was inspected?”
“Hmmm … good question,” I said, scratching my chin and looking towards the heavens. “I think it was about 85 years ago.”
“Sir, I’m pretty sure these homes were built in the late 90s.”
“Then maybe it was 20 years ago.”
“Right. Anyway, we’re having a chimney inspection special today, complete with top hat and tails, for $39.”
“Nineteen dollars, huh? Well, I don’t get paid until next Friday and all I’ve got in my wallet is $35 and a Wienerschnitzel coupon.”
“That’ll work, sir! When can we start?”
“Now. But only if I get to keep the coupon.”
“I’ll get my top hat.”
Okay. I may have embellished this story just a bit — but you get the point: these guys can be real shysters. Their “inspection” always “finds” a major problem that would easily wipe out anyone’s emergency fund — and I’m certain that’s what my huckster had in mind.
Reputable chimney sweeps typically charge between $100 and $300 for a cleaning — and that usually includes the cost of the inspection for a properly-functioning stack.
Here’s eight more common home repair scams and some tips on how you can avoid them:
Termites
Termite treatment is typically required only when there is evidence of termites inside the house or close to the foundation, which is why any warnings about termites in wood piles or fences unconnected to your house can be taken with a grain of salt. Also watch for unscrupulous bug guys who try to pass off flying-ants as termites — so do a little research and understand the difference beforehand.
Driveways
Another common ruse is perpetrated by roaming contractors who offer to seal your driveway — usually for a ridiculously low price — using leftover sealant from a local job they just finished around the corner. Instead, they’ll apply a cheap imitation that doesn’t seal at all and usually washes away after the first big storm. Speaking of big storms:
Roofs
Traveling shysters often follow natural disasters and look for vulnerable homeowners, offering to fix roofs at a discount. Other hustlers will try to assess your roof from the ground without a thorough examination, and then claim you need a whole new roof — even if all that needs to be replaced is the flashing, which is often the case. Shady roofers will also say you need to replace the the wood base beneath the shingles, known as the deck; in reality, that expensive repair is rarely needed. Your best defense is to get multiple contractor estimates and references.
Heating and Air Conditioning
Be wary of dubious repairmen who try to replace perfectly good parts with new ones, or replace bad parts with used ones that still work. You can protect yourself by making sure you ask to see all “broken” parts before they’re replaced — and then verify the packaging and documentation for any new parts before they’re installed.
Basements
Whether it needs it or not, deceitful contractors who are asked to rectify a damp basement will always recommend digging out your entire foundation and waterproofing it — a humongous task that can run $20,000 or more. In many instances, the problem can be easily fixed for far less by simply reducing moisture along your foundation. So rule out clogged gutters, errant lawn sprinklers, and improper land sloping first before calling anyone.
Plumbing
Watch out for problematic plumbers who try to up-sell services or cut corners in order to beef up their bottom line. Common ploys include recommending an expensive repiping job when a less-expensive rooter service is all that’s required, and using pipes that are insufficiently-sized or made of inferior metal or other material. Getting multiple estimates, and a list of all repair materials included in your contract helps avoid these scams.
Mold
There are vendors out there who offer expensive mold identification services, and then send you to a remediation company that’s in on the hustle. Here’s the thing: The CDC does not recommend testing for mold — in most cases it is totally irrelevant — and homeowners can easily clean small areas with bleach and water.
Painting
Fly-by-night painters will cut corners by doing very little prep work. Even worse, others will tell you they’re using a high-quality enamel when, in reality, they’re either watering it down — or using substandard paint in premium-brand cans. Although there are exceptions, at the start of the job you should check to ensure that any paint cans brought to your house are properly sealed.
The Bottom Line
Contractors and handymen who are willing to do house repairs for significantly less than the competition are most likely going to cut corners that will cost you more in the long run.So always be sure to get multiple estimates. And remember, like most things in life: If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Photo Credit: lmldolz
I 100% agree with the obtain multiple bids advice. It can save you a ton and give a great idea of what fair market value is for a given service. I also agree with the caution of people who will accept anything as well. It certainly can be more trouble than it is worth from what I have seen (not experienced though).
The house on the head image is like a castle!!
Thx for the info!
It seems that when you are not a handyman, you always end-up as a victim when repairing your house!
I had trouble with my pool over the weekend (there was sand thrown in my pool by my filter). The first guy I called told me that I had to replace my filter and it would cost $300 + his man’s work (minimum 1.5 hours).
I went into a store and they told me to empty my filter with a shop-vac and look at a piece of plastic. That piece was broken and it still cost me $100 but at least, I have saved my filter ;-D
I was suckered in by a scam like once (although not a chimney sweep one). The real clue should have been when they refused to take a check for the “work” they had done, and instead followed me to the ATM so I could give them cash. Live and learn….
Great article. And you started it off with an important concept – the unsolicited hard sell. Whenever someone’s trying to sell you something unsolicited it’s often a scam. Even worse is when it’s an “exploding offer” like you have to act now or I can’t get you this deal later. So many scams out there and so many people are taken, it’s a shame – the human condition.
Interesting list Len! What about those $5 dolla chimney sweeping logs u burn? Sounds good to me no?
I’ve never been scammed by contractors yet. Although, I’ve had to drive SUPER HARD bargains and watch them like hawks. They are a shady bunch!
Sam
The unsolicited hard sell is like a face to face telemarketer. I see a common theme with these contractors: fear. If they can convince us that our home is about to self destruct unless we take immediate remedial action, they have us.
This is a great list and gives peace to quiet those fears. I never would have dreamed that new roof decking is needed in only one out of 1000 cases! Good to know!
One more thing: moving one gutter downspout location solved my leaky basement. Cost for labor and materials about $120.
When the economy went south, we had armies of people showing up at the door to fix both real and imagined problems. Some were legitimate. We’ve used a couple of people to clean our gutters and they’ve done a good job for not a lot of money. Most I think are just looking for work–any kind of work and I have a bit of a soft spot for that.
The ones I worry about are the more polished ones who won’t take NO for an answer. I never entertain these guys for long, because all I can think of is that if they’re that determined to get my business, they must be getting one heck of a commission, which means I’ll be paying an even larger fee.
Great information. I’m not a homeowner yet, but at least I have some clues as to what kind of scams I may be in for. When I do buy a house, I’ll be sure to check out your site along with Consumer Reports. Both are most informative!
I’m renting by choice now, but when I owned a house I was very wary of random offers. We had most work done by our general contractor (2 brothers). They were cheap and did a great job. I found them by calling a few out of the phone book and checking references. Most of their references wanted to adopt them 🙂
I fell victim to the basement waterproofing scam once, to the tune of $3600 and a still leaky basement a month later when the rain came again. Turns out that the area the house was sitting on was subjected to run off from a nearby field and this was always going to be an issue. lesson learned more research and closer inspection before purchasing the home were in order.
@ Darwin: Ugh, I hate the hard sell. Unless it’s for a legit charity, my default reaction is to close the door on them. I used to have a dentist with the same tactics until I got rid of him. Of course, it’s hard to leave with hands in your mouth!
Jennifer–you must go to the same dentist I do! The past 2-3 years he’s been trying to upsell us at every turn, my wife in particular.
I had to tell him (and tell my wife to tell him) that the well is dry and we can’t afford it. That seems to have shut him up. For now.
@Jen, @Kevin: I have a few coworkers who were recently complaining about the same thing! One of them, though, took the bait and he really regrets it.
I hate the scare tactics. My husband and I left for a new dentist when we realized he missed a big cavity until it almost needed a root canal. Obviously too much time was spent on sales and not enough on diagnosis.
I pay $250 a year for some sort of termite detection traps and having my house “bonded” (the company will pay for the termite damage) Wonder if it is worth it? Found some old termite damage in an out building and found evidence there may have been some in a small place in the hardwood floor of my 1940’s house that probably occurred decades ago so I signed on the dotted line … the exterminator was telling me that termites are “everywhere” in the soil and he is right but do I really need this service I wonder …
Dentist story: as mentioned in another thread I lived in Japan for 15 years. When I would visit the States with my wife I’d go to the dentist here because I like American dentists’ teeth cleaning better than Japanese dentists’ even though dentists are covered under Japan’s reasonably priced single payer healthcare system. I once convinced my Japanese wife to go to the American dentist with me and the dentist claimed he found a cavity and showed her the X-ray. She asked if she could have the X-ray to take back to Japan with her (she didn’t let the American dentist repair her tooth because she could get it done much more cheaply in Japan). When she showed the same X-ray to the Japanese dentist he told her she didn’t have a cavity …
When we first moved back here to the States I was sitting in an American dentist’s chair and looking at a poster designed to scare me into paying for a oral cancer exam. Never once saw this kind of upsell in Japan … my wife detests all the marketing and upselling done by medical professionals here and I do too.
I have friends who have gone through similar things with dentists. My one friend had a dentist who made her go every 4 months, because she had “bad teeth”, even though insurance only pays for every 6 months.
I have a great dentist. She was on my insurance, and then not (got a new job), but we kept going and paid out of pocket. My husband needed a root canal and a crown. She doesn’t do root canals. She looked through the list of covered dentists for us, picked one that looked to have the latest equipment (she also knew from word of mouth who to avoid). The other covered dentist did the root canal and she did the crown.
I 100% agree with the obtain multiple bids advice. It can save you a ton and give a great idea of what fair market value is for a given service. I also agree with the caution of people who will accept anything as well. It certainly can be more trouble than it is worth from what I have seen (not experienced though).
Hello Len,
I just had a guy come out today who says he knew roofing. I only paid him $40 and I bought the shingles, but he didnt use roofing cement and only hammered “roofing” tacks into the shingles. These are asphalt shingles. The rest of the roof has them layered with half the shingle under the one on top. With his repair job he didnt layer them, but placed the shingle in line under the one above it.
When I asked him, he told me that if he lifted the shingles above, he would have to glue or tack those down and then the ones above them and so on like a domino effect. I wonder if he was just trying to get out of bringing roofing cement up on the roof. I saw those containers at Home (ripoff) Depot and they are only sold in those huge 5 gallon containers.
Do I have to buy the materials and do this myself? Or is this going to be ok? The roofing tacks are exposed on those shinges. Is that going to be a problem?
Thx.
If people only knew what water can do. Getting to a leak, moisture issue or even crawlspace issue cause by water or leaking early saves you so much money later. Too often I have seen people ignore it and wish they did not. Not just about property, but conservation and safety as well.
i always do some home repair at least once a year to ensure the integrity of my home
You have no idea home many times my customers tell me they they have been ripped of by at least one of these methods that you describe. I honestly don’t know how people can live with themselves when they know they perform services that are below the cut. Very bold to risk the safety of peoples home to try to make a profit.
That’s why I research the best and the most reliable repair service or would get recommendations from friends. Or most of the time I hire those whom I really know so that I can avoid this kind of scams.
Owning a large number of rentals I had to learn how to do many things myself through the years. There were occasions that because of a number of issues popping up all at the same time that I would have to hire a handyman. Sad to say,but most of the time I would have to redo their work in order to make it right.
Another lesson I learned was in pest control. Often in the lower income rentals tenants scrounge stuff that others had thrown out and would get roach infestation. In the beginning I would hire a pest control company that would come out once a month or so and the roaches just kept coming back. An acquaintance of mine got a job with one of these companies and admitted to me that they only control…..not get rid of roaches. That way they can keep billing every month.
So……a little studying was called for. I started doing it on my own with first a bait and then a growth inhibitor. Since then I never had to do the same unit more than twice and the cost would be under $10. a treatment rather than $50..
A plumber would charge well over a $100. to clear a clogged vanity sink. It’s a two minute job to remove the p-trap,clear it and then replace it.
Sadly,much of todays world revolves around scams and it gets worse every year.
Don’t get me wrong though. There are many good and honest trades workers. Problem is though…..there are fewer and fewer folks getting in the trades. Kids today have it pounded into their heads that they need college in order to survive. Not everyone is college material though.
We need blue collar workers just as much,if not more than another business b.a.. The trades may not be glorious work,but it is good steady work that pays well. I’m also saddened that the apprenticeship programs are just about a thing of the past.
So I take it that growth inhibitor is the secret to getting rid of roaches?
And you’re right, Ray. I constantly complain to my high school administrators that they need to bring back vocational classes with a dedicated vocational track for kids who don’t want (or have the skills) to go to college. Thirty years ago, my high school had wood shop, metal shop, electrical shop, drafting, and even an auto shop with three bays where kids brought their cars to work on. Try finding that at most high schools today. Sad. Today, it’s college or bust — and that is an extremely misguided strategy, especially considering how overpriced college is today.
Outside of the science, technology, engineering, and math majors, colleges offer students very little in the way of future job opportunities with a REAL future.
Good plumbers, carpenters, mechanics and electricians will always be in demand.
Great tips! How about the carpet and rug cleaners? Seems like a legit business operations.
Thanks for these tips. Sad to know that there are still lots of people who will fool you for a quick buck.
Coincidentally, I’m offering, for the introductory price of $109.99, a complete carpet cleaning package that kills roaches and termites while it cleans your carpets! Heck, it’ll even keep your mother in law away! I can’t offer this deal all day though, so hurry up and send an order to “notashyster @thepersistentitch.com”
On a serious note though, ALWAYS HIRE BONDED AND INSURED CONTRACTORS! If a contractor isn’t insured, you don’t want them working anywhere near your house, and the bonding insurance gives you nice peace of mind that any major projects will be completed.
Jason,
There’s something wrong with “notashyster @thepersistentitch.com”
I sent the following email to it:
“Please send me 10 kits. The check is in the mail. Honest.”
It was returned as “undeliverable”.
Grandfather,
The kits are in the mail. Honest.
Solar Salesman! These are also one of the new shysters here in Florida. They tell you how much you will save with generalized numbers. Then when you ask exactly how much it will cost they want you Social, DOB etc and they will run it an get back to you. Yeah right maybe next time.