Complete Scam! Stay away, they just want to saddle you with astronomical fees for garbage leads. Stick to social, word of mouth, local advertising mediums. Buyer beware!
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That’s fairly common knowledge. I’m assuming you didn’t use the search button here before signing up
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Most of us probably know this one, but I will like the post anyway simply because it’s a true statement. They have been offering free signup. Still no.
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What about Angies List?
I had been with them once before and it was garbage. Got reeled back in by the $200 in free leads line. Leads are garbage and pricey garbage. They make up their “free leads” real quick.
I believe Home Advisor owns Angie’s List now. I’m not sure if it’s a separate platform though.
I’ve been getting calls from Home Advisor every week since last spring. I just don’t answer. The first message in the week is just them they’re looking for a contractor to wash a house in “…” and can’t even pronounce the name of my town right. They also say they have a high number of leads in my town which I know is a lie. We have less than 1800 here. They second message towards the end of the week says if they don’t hear back from me they’re going to be forced to find a different contractor to give the leads to…lol. Like I’m the only one they’re calling in my area.
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Very similar design, I’d say, and it’d make sense if they merged at the ownership level. What really bothers me about AL and HA (along with BBB) is how they advertise the ones that paid to sign up with them and pay fees for the leads as the “better-qualified and vetted” contractors when the fact is you just have to pay to be on their platform. A degree of deception is present for sure. “Home Advisor” is a genius name and I applaud the founder for taking that domain, but they are kidding themselves if they think they’re industry experts for all the services they list and the contractors on their platform are somehow more trustworthy than the rest of us with dozens of positive reviews on multiple platforms.
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Haha. They really want to give you the work but unfortunately they’re going to give it to someone else now 
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Yes HA and AL are under same ownership. And, if you get a (cough) “lead” on Home Advisor via AL, they charge even more for it. The real scam of it all is that any Joe or Jane can “originate a lead” and then HA just charges willy nilly for any lead/request regardless of quality. What’s more, you have to assume multiple companies are paying for the same garbage lead. It is a very well designed scam indeed.
I unfortunately feel for both services. HA racked up over 800 in lead fees for me one month and I ended up with 3 maybe 4 actual jobs from that. I don’t think they even paid off my lead costs if I wasn’t up selling. Angies list charges $300 a month for about 2-3 leads a week, it’s absurd. Pricing aside my biggest issue with them is they encourage the contractor to take on jobs he is not qualified for to get more work from them. I ended up reaching out this year and offering free house washes to anyone who I ended up doing piss poor Handyman work for when I was starting out.
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I’ve been in business 27 years and have never used any online services. If you do good work, reasonable prices and can be trusted you will get the work. Word of mouth is very powerful.
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HA owns Angie’s List now
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Amen! And congratulations on your successful business! 27 years is quite an accomplishment, and something you should be proud of.
It all depends where you are located… Here in California it’s almost a trend not to Refer people over…
I’ve noticed that envy among neighbors is a real thing, in the areas I work in at least most neighbors aren’t in good terms.
And the people who do refer us are usually the older folks… Times are changing
Especially here in skeptical, suspicious Kentucky.
I guess out west is different 
I get majority of our business through referrals, which are the best. They already want you to do the work before they meet you. High rate of closing on those calls.
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Word of mouth is great. HA unfortunately targeted me before I even had the chance to get my word of mouth out there. No sane person would signup with them that’s why they target the newbies
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