It was $269 plus tax to replace the microwave at Home Depot, the install was free but it was going to take 2 more days (five total) before they could do it. The GE lady on the phone quoted the $89 service call plus parts and could get there quicker ... you make the call. On the disposal, I have been pretty handy in my life but I'm old enough now that I don't help people move and I don't do plumbing. I was happy to pay $99 to have a real plumber do it.
For anybody on the West side of town, Church Services is a quality outfit. I have no financial stake, they're just good.
My guess is that the OP is talking about an over the range microwave. Those are more expensive than the standalone units you put on a counter plus you have to mount it over the stove in between the cabinets and re-attach the vent connection. Not everyone can do that.
Church Services maybe friendly and do a good job but they are way more expensive than most other service providers. I use Church Services for Pest Control - that service is really cheap. As part of the membership they come out and do 2 free AC/Heater check-ups per year. So on the last visit the tech says everything is good but he recommended installing a safety shut off switch on the AC/Furnace drain pan in the attic. We have a new home and he said that builders don't usually install it but its highly recommended. He quoted me $300. I said no thanks. Then called around and had Weeks Service Co. install it for $60 (part + labor).
That's cool and yeah, they are good. Had a business and personal relationship, guess we always got a discount.
John Moore sucks ass. Dude tried selling me a whole new unit. **** that. I called up some Vietnamese dude, and all he did was use my hose to clean something, charge something up, and the AC was up and running. Just for ****s and giggles, I asked him how much a whole new unit would cost. I forgot what it was, but it was a **** load cheaper.
I work in Home Services, so my question to you guys is; If the service is of high quality and a warranty is in place, would that justify you to pay a premium for it? I ask this because I have customers come in and tell me that a guy offered them what I am offering for like 1/3 of the price. I work in a store, said guy works out the back of his truck. So my price will never be able to go that low. IDk about his craftsmanship, he may be just as good as my installer, but the one thing I can guarantee is that my store will be here next week if something goes wrong, where as dude outta his truck may never pick up his phone or ever be seen again. I ask my fellow CFers in hopes of bettering my customer experience! Please let me know your feedback!
For me, absolutely. I know some people are cool with inviting a total stranger working from the back of his truck into their homes, but I'm not one of them.
Position yourself as high-end ("cost-effective" since it lasts), make sure they know you guarantee your work and figure out a way to provide convenient financing options if you haven't already.
Eh, I'm probably talking from my anti-microwave bias. I only use mine warming milk for the kids, and it's a 20-year-old hand-me-down unit that was probably $50 new. It never breaks, but if it did, it'd be in the trash in no time. But, what you're telling me is that the repair was a bit cheaper and faster than the alternative, and you're still complaining? I think the hurdles you have to get over are (1) Does a warranty of the work matter? How likely is it to break anyway? (2) Can I really trust this warranty? Do they have something in the fine print that will exclude whatever problem I end up having? (3) How much is the warranty worth? If I can have the initial work done at a third of the price, can't I afford to fix whatever goes wrong with the money I've saved? I could do the floor 3 times over. With the floors I recently installed, my alternative was to have my father help me do it, and I know he's good enough that I can trust his work -- really, it was the first choice, but he didn't want to trouble himself until I told him how much it would cost me to get a comparable installer to do it. But one of the primary reasons I wanted a flooring store instead of some guy with a pickup truck was that it'd give me confidence that it was done right, and they'd fix whatever problem might arise. Still, it's quite a premium to pay for that (especially when you have family who can do it). So yeah, I think you work at a disadvantage from a pricing perspective working out of a store-front. But, you have a marketing advantage -- easier to find, easier to shop, look more legitimate, inspire confience in your ability to handle jobs, be professional and accountable. Just understand you'll pull a different demographic -- more affluent households who put higher-than-average value on quality and convenience and have a lower-than-average sensitivity to price (of course, everyone will still have some sensitivity). You likely won't have a pleasant working relationship with people whose primary concern is price, even if you win the business. Be content with the customers who see value in what you're offering and leave the penny-pinchers to the fly-by-night installers.
I pay around $35 a month for Home Service Plus through Centerpoint at both our house and rental property and just about every appliance I own is covered. This has been a tremendous money and time saver especially at our rental house as I have the tenants contact them directly if anything needs repair. They charge absolutely nothing over and above that $35 monthly fee to fix an appliance. When the A/C wasn't working well, they came out cleaned the unit, replaced something and even installed a brand new thermostat.
You need to read the OP. He's complaining because it was supposed to be faster and cheaper. He was quoted cheaper but the guy came out and wanted to add fees on top that would have made it comparable to a new microwave. You're the one that didn't read and insisted he should have just gotten a new microwave. To which he argued that the reason he didn't go that route initially was that it was supposed to be faster and cheaper to get it repaired.
It isn't really that expensive for a truck to come to your house, unless it is a large distance. Usually what happens is the service call is just a minimum. If their labor + parts costs outpace that, then you pay for that instead. Depends a lot on what you currently have installed in your house and what you want done to how simple the project really is. I've learned that setups for things have changed a lot in the 30+ years since my house was built. Changing my dishwasher the first time was a huge PITA. Changing it a 2nd time would have been much easier, but Lowes did free install anyway. Changing my garbage disposal involved me also replacing all the drain pipes.
I have EOS Digital Services coming out tonight to give me an estimate on security camera installation. I've already found the system that I want and basically just need it installed, but I'm going to get a quote through them though. I'll let ya know.
Quality and customer service is worth a premium, but probably not triple as far as installation itself goes.
Then do it yourself. Getting a toilet fixed seems about as pointless as getting a microwave fixed. Unless you have an expensive Toto toilet or a custom color microwave. No one can make money doing 50 dollar house calls with an inventory of parts in tow.
Never heard of this. Which plan do you have? How often do you schedule service calls? Are they reliable? I'm looking for a good company for my residence and my rental property, but I've had bad experiences with home warranty companies in the past. This seems too good to be true..
