I saw another one of those TV news sting operations the other day. You know the kind, where they get repairmen in to fix something that's not broken to see how capable and honest they are. This time it featured chimney sweeps. The news show found a cooperative homeowner with a chimney and hired a professional chimney expert to clean it and examine it for cracks, etc. When he had finished, they brought in various area chimney "experts." The cute blonde homeowner told the chimney repairmen that she had just bought the house and didn't know the condition of the chimney and could they please look at it and clean it if necessary, to get the chimney ready for winter use. About half of them recognized that the chimney was fine and left without charging anything. There were several however, who claimed the chimney needed cleaning and insisted on major repairs.
These kinds of scam artists scare the bejeezus out of homeowners who don't want to get ripped off. Fortunately, there are now three major services available online that can help homeowners find skilled people from reputable companies to do their repairs.
• Redbeacon: Owned by Home Depot, this is a free service that lets customers submit projects and get up to four bids on their job from Redbeacon's list of vetted local service providers. The service isn't nationwide yet but is available in most major metropolitan areas. It even offers a mobile app. Go to http://www.redbeacon.com for more info.
• HomeAdvisor: Their angle is they offer speedy service from more than 80,000 prescreened contractors. It too is free - the contractors pay for the leads it generates. HomeAdvisor also has a mobile app: Home911, for emergencies. Go to: http://www.homeadvisor.com.
• Angie’s List: This rating service has grown exponentially over its lifespan and now has a huge supply of consumer-rated contractors. It does require you join, and costs vary by area. A subscription is available for monthly or annual plans for access to its lists of home repair, auto service and for an extra fee, healthcare providers. You even get a monthly magazine. (Woo hoo!) Angie's List is big - about 1.5 million paid households belong, with 3.5 million reviews on 970,000 service companies. It also offers a call-in center and (you guessed it) a mobile app. Go to: http://www.angieslist.com
Even though the above serivices are deemed reliable, you should still check that the contractors they recommend are licensed and have no record of complaints. Here are a few places to look:
Westchester County:
Westchester County’s Office of Consumer Affairs keeps a list of notoriously "bad" contractors. They also offer a lot of information on how to choose a contractor. http://consumer.westchestergov.com/home-contractors/choosing-a-contractor.
Westchester County Clerk: Always a good resource for checking up on licensed contractors. Call 914-995-3082 or go to http://www.westchesterclerk.com
Rockland County:
Rockland County Department of Consumer Affairs: Go here to find out if the contractor you are planning to hire is licensed, for consumer tips or to file a complaint: http://www.co.rockland.ny.us/.
Putnam County:
Putnam County Office of Consumer Affairs: Check out complaints and find lists of licensed professionals. Call them at 845-808-1617. http://www.putnamcountyny.com
Better Business Bureau:
Always a good way to search for complaints (or to file one) on any business or contractor. Go to the the New York site at: http://newyork.bbb.org/consumers.
For more household hints, go to Wesellny.com's Pinterest page on household tips and ideas. And check out Vanessa's List of services, providers and sites we love!
Originally posted at "Need home repairs? There's an app for that."
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