I’ve just been alerted to a possible handyman job from an online job registry.

A guy wants a handyman to renovate a bathroom ... completely ... in 7 days. It will need demolition, full waterproofing, full tiling, carpentry and plumbing.

Not counting demolition, that's 4 skilled trades – one of which (plumbing) is illegal to carry out by anyone but a fully licensed plumber.

We handymen pride ourselves in having a wide skill set, but this is ridiculous! A big part of being a Mosman handyman in is knowing when to say NO. I tried to give this guy my opinion but I think I have to pay to reply!

Maybe he thinks he’ll save money. He won’t. A good handyman will tell our friend to use specialist tradesmen. A bad handyman will have a go and do a very bad job.

I hope he goes for the former.

(PS. If this sounds like you and your name is Luke I’m talking to you)

I just had a ‘discussion‘ with the irate neighbour of a client. The clients house is on a very busy main road in Mosman. Parking there consists of indicating for about 30 seconds, slowing down a bit, then at the last minute swerving off the road and onto the grass median in front of the houses.

I made the mistake of parking in front of the neighbours house not my clients. Or should I say, I made the mistake of being the 10th person to park in front of the neighbours house.

OK fair enough. But it did make me think. Providing parking for tradesmen and handymen if at all possible is a good idea. It’s considerate and will help the job move more smoothly. But perhaps more importantly tricky access will actually turn a lot of good tradies off quoting.

On a recent flyer drop I avoided a strip of homes for just this reason!

Conversely a client who moved her car early every morning so I could use the driveway got my super-delux-platinum service.

1. He’s the handyman who promises the world.

2. He's the handyman who says ‘don’t worry Love’ a lot.

3. He's the handyman who doesn’t listen.

4. He's the handyman who doesn’t look.

5. He's the handyman who can't give you a fixed quote.

6. He's the handyman who is very cheap.

7. He's the handyman who can’t provide any references.

8. He's the handyman who makes you feel uncomfortable. 

9. Like this unexpected extra point, he charges a bit extra because you live in Mosman or the Lower North Shore.

As a way of ‘finding’ a Handyman online is fine. But any Handyman who quotes without seeing your job has to be a worry.

A lot of websites effectively get tradesmen to enter a bidding war assuming cheapest is best.

I once hired a labourer for $10 per hour. Bargain, I thought. Until he turned up and only had the use of one arm! True story.

My experience is that you usually get what you pay for.

When people ask me this I tell; them I don’t have one.

What you really want to know is how much your job will cost to do/fix.

I once hired an electrician who had the cheapest hourly rate in Mosman. Guess what? He was also the slowest in Mosman … and not very good either. I spent the whole time looking at my watch.

It's far better to get me (or any tradie) to quote upfront in writing. That way you know exactly what the job will cost and you can say yes or no, then relax.