How To Start A Handyman Business: Step By Step Guide

🤠Welcome to the Bulletproof Handyman Business Channel. These videos represent everything I’ve learned in my journey building a successful Handyman Business. The links below represent brands that I personally use to run my own handyman business. Utilizing their services through my links helps to offset the time and resources that are required to keep this channel running.
COME TO MY BIRTHDAY CAMPING TRIP Sign up for the campout here! forms.gle/nn8G... I can provide camping gear if you don’t have any. This is a non-sponsored campout which means we’ll be including some shooting sports and you’ll need to take care of a fair amount of your food needs. I’m willing to provide meals for $100 per person for the weekend if you’re not experienced with cooking for yourself in the wild. I will be filming throughout and attendance is considered to be consent to your image appearing in the videos made during the campout.
👨‍💻Sign up for my Free Work Flow Webinars which I’m now hosting weekly. Here are the dates and registration links.
Saturday, October 12 streamyard.com...
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These free webinars will cover a quick start guide for creating estimates, creating jobs, and creating invoices. After that I’ll open it up to any specific software questions, which will then be followed by a general open question session. I’ll be using Jobber CRM but you can transfer most of these skills to your CRM. If you’d like try Jobber out yourself you can get a free 14 day trial with an exclusive 20% discount here go.getjobber.c...
🚑🆘NEXT Insurance - My Preferred Business Insurance Provider For The Last 4 Years. These guys know our industry and they’re the leader in small business insurance for the trades. nextinsurance....
👨‍💼⚖️Northwest Registered Agent - Save tens of thousands in taxes by filing as an S-Corp, but you’ll need to be an LLC first. Form Your LLC Like I Did In 5 Minutes For Less Than $40 Plus State Filing Fees. shareasale.com...
📽️Watch My Video For Step By Step LLC Formation Instructions Here • Form Your Handyman LLC...
🏆Jobber - The CRM I Run My Entire Business With For The Last 4 Years. Get My Exclusive 20% Discount go.getjobber.c...
If you’d like to be interviewed on the channel, send me an email at [e-mail] and we’ll get you scheduled!
🆓📖Take My FREE "How To Start A Bulletproof Handyman Business" Master Class Here! ray-s-site-188... or go to www.bulletproofhandyman.com
💲📋QuickBooks - Every Small Business Needs QuickBooks! For Tax Season www.anrdoezrs....
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🧰 🪚 Wix Has The Simplest Interface For Any Handyman To Build Your Website Just Like I Did On Wix With No Experience - Fast And Easy - wixstats.com/?...
🐸Have your website custom built and optimized by Green Frog Web Design. They offer a special deal for Bulletproof Handymen for $1 for the first month and then the balance paid over the remaining 12 months. handyman-webde...
🏠🤠Check Out bulletproofhan... You Can Find The Master Class Here
This is my website for the Bulletproof Handyman that I built on Wix. It currently hosts the Master Class but soon will grow to include much more.
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🎁Cabinets.com has been kind enough to offer free cabinet installer referral program to my subscribers. They build and sell cabinets but they do not install and they have created a referral program for us so that we can obtain high quality leads at no cost. Click on this link to sign up for the referral program www.cabinets.c...
📁Download My Free Pricing Documents, Custom Line Items, And Other Business Documents Here clienthub.getj...

[@willw3900]

Master Sensei.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

😆

[@mikeneal4297]

Still solid info.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Thanks Mike!

[@emann3]

Great job! I’m inspired. What has been your experience with firing customers or PMs and how would you suggest going about it?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

When I want to get rid of a client I just raise the prices and bump their jobs down the priority list. However, don't do that unless you are certain that you wouldn't want them as a client even if you lost other clients and needed the work. Otherwise I would just raise my prices on them. Then, if they stay you're making good money. If they go you didn't lose anything that you didn't want to lose.

[@bryancorrea3347]

Thank you for this video. It was very informative!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Glad it was helpful!

[@youtubecontractor]

The best handyman in Florida checking in

[@bulletproofhandyman]

yay!

[@RobDeelComedy]

Good info as always. Thank you!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

You're welcome!

[@Delcid101]

Thanks 🙏

[@bulletproofhandyman]

You're welcome!

[@Marokajer]

Most fkn useful video about the subject. Big thank you !

[@bulletproofhandyman]

You're welcome!

[@unclealley]

Great video! Thanks again for this!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

You're welcome!

[@pauldardeau5532]

Great video! Question about 2 things you didn't mention. What about getting set up with a separate phone number strictly for business (VOIP account)? What about business cards?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

That's a good point. I use one phone for both, but some people might want to set up a separate line at the very beginning.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Business cards aren't necessary working with property managers. Once you have a few PMs you're good to go. I say no to every home owner before they ever get a chance to tell me what the job is.

[@jeramypeoples8828]

I couldn’t find your join group for the templates you use can you send me a link to do so thanks in advance .. Awesome info and content !! Glad I found your channel ..

[@bulletproofhandyman]

If you go to my youtube main page it there will be a join button next to the subscribe button.

[@theastuteangler]

good video, better audio please :)

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I've improved audio lately, and still working on more improvement. Thanks!

[@theastuteangler]

@@bulletproofhandyman thank you sir!

[@cap_speedracer10]

someone should time stamp this video and put it in the comments. that would be amazing, great info here.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I'll be doing a new one soon too.

[@cap_speedracer10]

@@bulletproofhandyman Great! I’m starting a handyman business in Las Vegas and would love to see that 🙏🏼

[@swamphox1]

Thanks for the videos. I have joined and I would like to have access to your list of rates. Is this something I have to request with an email? Thanks

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Yes that's correct. Instructions for that are in the membership info.

[@ChapterfromWW3]

Can you make a video on pricing and break down how to charge for trip fees. I’m a bit confused on this. Love the content

[@bulletproofhandyman]

There are no hard and fast rules on this. Here is something that might be somewhat helpful. Think of the $125 as a minimum charge no matter how small the job is, even though every now and again I will charge $100 just to be nice. Thats what I charge when a job takes something like 30 or maybe 40 minutes, but again there are no hard fast rules on this. If I'm there an hour doing a couple small jobs I will likely charge $150 or $165. These decisions are based on experience, not a spreadsheet. If it's complex, like electrical or plumbing, I charge more. If it's more than an hour or two, I switch over to just trying to make sure that I'm getting minimum $100 per hour. If it's a full day then I'm just trying to make sure I get a minimum of $600 for the day, although I'll shoot for something closer to $1,000 for the day. The real answer here is that you're going to have to make it a practice to feel out your managers and your economy. For every job there is a window within which the pricing can be considered fair and reasonable for the service you are providing. If you're charging at the bottom of that window you're losing money. If you're charging at the top of that window you're gaining a reputation as being too expensive. Over time you should be constantly adjusting your pricing on every individual job and for every individual manager so that you're always approaching the top of that window without living there. I think I'll do a livestream today if I can find the time so that I can go more in depth on this, but realize that this isn't a system with hard rules. You'll ultimately have to figure that out for yourself.

[@lexxs21]

do you have workers? do you pay them hourly rates every day? or only when on order from the owner

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I'm slowly finding other handymen that I'm subcontracting work out to. I bill for their services the same that I bill for mine, and then they keep 73% of the labor bill.

[@b.michaelbrown1117]

Have you been getting cold calls from some of these larger pm companies like blackstone? They started calling me out of the blue a few months ago. I did two jobs for them both large retail stores in my area. They seem a bit disorganized. I believe their dispatchers are calling from overseas.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

They call me multiple times per week because my number is in their system but they never want to pay my rates and they always need it done immediately. I haven't said yes to them for probably 6 months.

[@onnesaitjamais1386]

MY QUESTION IS. DO YOU NEED A HANDYMAN CERTIFICATE TO BUILD A HANDYMAN BUSINESS ?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Every state is different so unfortunately there is no single answer to that. You'll have to make some calls and get your particular state and county and city figured out.

[@paulmurad4553]

Great video and content as always. I’ve put together a price sheet and visited about 20 property management companies in my area. I’m finding that they want you to have a contractors license to work with them. My state doesn’t have a handyman or remodelers contractor license available. Only up $1,000 material and labor allowed for handyman. Do you have any suggestions for this? Thanks in advance.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I say just keep looking. They aren't all only using contractors to hang blinds and fix drywall holes. You can build a great business out of trip fees for small jobs.

[@HandymanNate]

I would like to keep my day job and do handyman jobs on weekends. What are your thoughts on sole proprietorship instead of LLC to keep things simple?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

The LLC protects you and your assets if the business gets sued by a homeowner, also something to consider, and will save on taxes.

[@Clay_Town195]

Hey man, thank you for your videos. They’re really helpful, and I look forward to your future content. I wanted to get your advice on this. I’ve worked building maintenance in the past. Mostly small electrical, plumbing, drywall, appliance, etc stuff. I wanna’ start my own handyman business, but I’m worried that I won’t have enough skill considering that we do a little of everything… Do you have any advice on how to go about this? Maybe offering a discount on a job if I haven’t done it before so I can learn? Or is there enough business to just focus on smaller things? What skills would you recommend someone have?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

This is an awesome question. Is there anything you think you can't learn? The truth is that nothing is ever as complicated once you dig into it as you think it would be. The truth is you actually will learn the skills you need to learn when you go ahead and dive in and figure it out. It will take longer the first time than it does the second time, and you don't need to tell them that you're learning. Just figure it out and by the time you get it done you'll have a good idea of how long it should have taken and you can charge that amount. You still make less while you're learning but your property managers should see you as the guy who solves problems without the details of which ones were a learning process... As long as you do get the job done and done right.

[@Clay_Town195]

@@bulletproofhandyman Those are some good words of wisdom. Thank you! I’ll start off with what I know, and learn what I don’t as I go along. Best wishes to you and your family 👍🏻

[@lawrencekdog6243]

Great video Ray--thanks

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Thank you. I wish I had time to do a couple a week

[@A._.A._.]

Hi, thanks so much for taking the time to make these, and lots of respect for sharing secrets without having something to gain from it. I'm not sure whether you've covered this in some other video but if you haven't, can you make a video explaining which are the minimum most necessary tools one should have before starting to work as handyman?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I just put a video out that answers this and more yesterday. Enjoy!

[@A._.A._.]

@@bulletproofhandyman amazing... can't wait to chill out and enjoy it

[@mexicanivan2]

Great video! I’m in the process of starting my handyman business and have basically followed all these steps so far. The only thing I’m hung up on is how to invoice. Do I separate labor and materials? What do I tax? Do I send in electronic ones or a paper invoice once job is done ? Would appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I separate labor and materials. Tax is figured into the rates already. Electronic and professional invoices.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I don't separate labor and materials for estimates unless they're multi day jobs.

[@stoneyface65]

Do you mainly work on houses or apartment complexes?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

85% Single Family Hoses 10% Duplexes 5% Condos 0% Apartments

[@michaelnapper4565]

Great video my friend. I am about to go back out on my own and I am just trying to soak up as much council as possible. I subbed to your channel, and look forward to hearing anything you may share with us. Thanks and God bless

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Go for it!

[@lexxs21]

how to download the table with prices?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

That would be through my memberships that I offer on the channel page.

[@TrullaCæmentarìí]

How do you pay yourself when you are just starting out?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Starting out I had to work for home owners to keep the bills paid, but every time I had a property management job I recycled that money back into more materials for more property management jobs until I finally built up a bank account with enough capital to sustain itself.

[@mikemazzoli1990]

Good stuff ! I'm a handyman for a property manager here in Hawaii, I've been working for them for almost 8 years, but I know I can make more $. Getting ready to go out on my own because i work directly for one property manager for a salary and know I can make more charging by the job. I haven't had a rate increase in 2 years and they support me in my choice to go on my own. they have over 300 property's and I do at least 3 work orders a day. they will still give me the work but i will invoice for each one. But no more salary no more mileage or health care. no more company CC to buy supplies. but i need to get my pricing RIGHT! i would say i could do about 4 work orders a day max on small jobs, i don't want to do larger remodels because it ties my time up and save that for the young bucks. I'm 55 now. Thanks for all the videos !!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

4 per day is a nice place to be, especially when it's consistent.

[@mikemazzoli1990]

@@bulletproofhandyman Yeah i like to group them by location so I'm not driving half the day. but it is a small island Kauai. I'm from the east coast and moved here 10 years ago. rent is crazy high here and so i need to get my numbers right

[@miketolson2915]

Great info, as usual brother! Really appreciate guys like you that are willing to share there experience in there start up business. I’m almost there, just waiting on one document from my County, and I’m good to go. Already, I have work lined up. Crazy! Should have not been so scared, and done this years ago!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I know the feeling sir. I get the same fear welling up every time I make a big move in life. I just trust myself and put everything into it, and if I fail then I pick myself back up and move on. I wish you all the luck in the world. Just be reliable and consistent and they will love you.

[@miketolson2915]

@@bulletproofhandyman Thanks again.

[@hogantezza6469]

Great info but you would really benefit from a new microphone 👍🏼

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I'll be working on that. Thanks!

[@Allwayzfishin]

You forgot to mention how material cost is covered by the customer. For example, the job requirements are for a door replacement. You show up for the first hr to measure and get information on the door to be replaced....$125. Then locate the appropriate replacement door at a local home improvement store, and then go pick it up with hardware needed. That can be two hrs with drive time and consumer traffic in the store. Do you charge for the time to physically get the door on top of the cost to purchase it?

[@gracefellowship9494]

Hey bud, I wanted to reply to you but I’m driving atm so here is a really great quick video walk through for you. kzbin.info/www/bejne/d4LCnoiYZqpsg7M

[@bulletproofhandyman]

A standard interior door replacement takes about 2 hours. Thats maybe 20 minutes to drive to the job, 10 minutes to measure, 45 minutes to get to home depot and back with the new door, and 30 minutes to change the door. That leaves 15 minutes for any possible complications. In the end, we charge about $200 for that, plus the cost of the materials, which is all paid out on invoices a week or two later. I'll go into more detail on that in a future video though.

[@travisgibson2366]

@@bulletproofhandyman Do you typically include painting the new door and trim if applicable?

[@danielj.schneider5162]

Just to be sure I'm clear -- we're not talking about installing a prehing door, just swapping the hinges and drilling/swapping the knob?​@@bulletproofhandyman

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Good question actually. No that does not include paint. One of the things I've had to work with my property managers on is that my words are very precise as they should be in business. If I bid to replace the door then the price is purely for replacing the door. Paint is extra if they want it. I run into this a lot, where certain clients want to assume that certain things are naturally included. I have my quotes set up with a disclaimer that "no work not specifically mentioned here is to be assumed"

[@bmak5405]

Great information Ray. Thank you for putting this information together and for sharing with everyone.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

My pleasure!

[@mossycup6974]

I feel like I might be doing my first test by a PM visit tomorrow🙏

[@bulletproofhandyman]

That is awesome! Go in with confidence, not cockyness. They want guys with the confidence that makes them feel like you'll make it happen whatever it takes.

[@charlesjacksoniii8787]

Hello i went to school for carpentry and masonry i plan on starting a business like this can i call myself a carpentry or handyman

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Well if you're offering lots of services other than carpentry then I would call myself a handyman.

[@charlesjacksoniii8787]

I will mostly be doing carpentry, masonry, and painting.

[@travisgibson2366]

Perfect timing with this video! I have set up my LLC and the business license with my city should be issued any day now. I have been struggling to decide at what point I should actually start talking with potential clients and trying to book jobs and this video has really helped out with the timeline. Maybe something you could answer here or in a future video is- how did you decide whether to start and stay a one man show vs. what you are doing, growing the business and hiring employees? Was that your plan from the start or did it come about as you got more work? Thanks for another informative video!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Honestly when I started this it was just me tying to get out of a field that I hated and into a field that I enjoyed. I figured if I could just make enough to replace my $25 an hour avionics job, then life would go on as usual but with me being more happy. Once I discovered property management I saw an opportunity to build something that would allow my wife to stay home and raise the children and maintain a household that our kids deserve. At that time, I wasn't planning on growing, although I had a gut feeling that it would happen with or without me. My property managers were so happy with my service that they sent more and more, and I saw that the growth would have to be soon, so I started planning for it. I'm constantly in a state where I can see the growth and new challenges coming, and trying to stay one step ahead so that I'm never caught off guard failing to deliver. I still feel that way today. I'm constantly trying to figure out not how to make the business grow, but rather trying to figure out how the business is going to grow regardless so that I can be ready for each new phase because they're coming with or without my planning. I'm sorry I took so long to respond to this comment. I saw that it needed a well thought through answer and I haven't had much time to put that together.

[@travisgibson2366]

@@bulletproofhandyman I really appreciate the well thought out response and the time you took to post it. You have looked at growing your business in a way that I hadn't event thought of. I have always thought there were three camps; 1. the person that wants to stay small or remain a one person show; 2. the person who sets out with the goal of growing into something bigger right from the beginning and focuses on the things that will propel them there; 3. the person who never thinks about it, just starts going and saying yes and ends up overworking themselves and getting overwhelmed. So your point of view is really interesting to hear. And it helps me keep my runaway brain in check because it often wants to jump way into the future instead of focusing on the steps that need to be taken in the present. Good luck moving forward!

[@ramkrishnapandey2796]

Congrats man, btw I Think you should start talking with potential clients to book jobs because I think the hardest part as a handyman is to get the first job and then to get it consistently. Ya that's my opinion and wish you a very successful business life

[@somenecool]

Hey man I really appreciate your videos! I am thinking about starting my own handyman business and have already took a few steps in that direction. I believe I have all the experience necessary to start my own business. I grew up working with my father who owned his own business as a general contractor. Have done everything from fencing, foundation, flooring, framing, roofing, add ons, and even working on my grandmother’s rent houses. I currently work as a maintenance man for an apartment complex and I only make $14.75/hr. Which equals about $34,000 a year. It’s become very apparent to me that I can make so much more than I do at the moment if I just do it by myself. I like to believe My quality of work is well above my co-workers due to the fact that previously working for my father I understood most business is by word of mouth so you have to present a good quality work. I constantly have to go behind my fellow workers to fix their mistakes and getting in trouble for their screw up which leads to me doing almost double the work. My question is, with these certain skills I possess, do you believe it would be possible to do my own thing. I know it is possible but I would like to hear from someone who knows exactly what it takes! I appreciate all your time and effort you put into this channel to help people like me.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I believe that anyone can learn anything. But for you it sounds like you've already got a good foundation of knowledge. For me, the work itself is secondary. Anyone can fix a running toilet or a leaky sink. What will dictate your success will be your ability to make your client feel like you are the only reasonable choice for who to send the work to because you're fast, efficient, reliable, clean, sober, professional, etc... They should feel like sending you a job is as good as having the job done already, and correctly.

[@somenecool]

@@bulletproofhandyman thank you for the response! And again I appreciate you for your time!

[@thatexperimentguy]

GREAT INFO. I am super glad I discovered your channel. You are doing what I have wanted to do with my handyman business. I hear somewhere, "If your not doing what you want to do, find someone who is already doing it and follow them unitl your doing it too". I want to say :Thank you" for inspiring me and sharing your knowledge with us. I am rooting for your success! Keep it coming!

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Thank You! Thats exactly what I love hearing every single time. I want everyone succeeding.

[@thomasmacokatic6219]

My friend, please look into a simple audio setup. if you have any questions feel free to ask, i am sure there are plenty of great youtube videos regarding the topic also. your making such great content it needs to be presented with clear audio.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I agree. My time is severely limited and I had too many guys asking for the video. I do have a mic on order now. This channel is important to me, but it's secondary to running the actual handyman business. I hope you find the next videos to be of a much better audio quality.

[@AnthonyFloresCPA]

Your audio is SO bad. Please use a separate mic or change camera and mic setup.

[@bulletproofhandyman]

My apologies for the audio. I had to choose between waiting another week to have a day off to put together a video or recording with what I have. I decided that getting the info out was higher priority than having better audio. However, I'm going to be ordering one today so it should be here before the next video. My business takes priority over the channel and often I have to let the channel suffer so that the business and family get the attention they need from me.

[@bigdadynickable]

Whats your Instagram?

[@bulletproofhandyman]

I think it's bulletproofhandymanbusiness, but honestly I don't use it yet. Maybe I'll log in today and start doing a few posts. Just so limited on time!!!

[@bigdadynickable]

@@bulletproofhandyman ok did and done.

[@toddz9344]

💋 𝓟Ř𝔬𝓂𝔬𝐒ϻ

[@bulletproofhandyman]

Thanks!