J&D Handyman Services

Work was fine, but Very, Very, Very expensive. Time and Materials — This is their business model:
1) $ 155.00 per hour, one hour minimum charge for 2 workers (The customer will and must have 2 workers regardless of size of project).
2) All materials that they acquire are marked up 35% (Price +35%)
3) If they, and they almost always will, have to go to hardware store, obtain materials, get material pricing, getting permits etc) the $ 155 per hour charge meter is rolling.
4) They do not give estimates. They will show up and it is what it is.
Payment by credit card adds a 4% feed by JD Handyman.
Warrenton location was closed down. They seem to move offices around like there is no tomorrow.

Just a short note to endorse the previous review from Barbara K. My mother – in-​law just paid this outfit $ 400 to replace two porch screens (about 4′ x 5′), a job that would take any competent ‘handyman’ a half hour. She feels taken advantage of (she is 83 yr old) and so do i on her behalf. The idea that you would charge $ 155/​hr to take trips to Home Depot is a great money-​maker I am sure but is unprofessional in the extreme since they knew what the job entailed. I would BEWARE of using this company unless they give you a firm estimate rather than the ‘time and material’ free license to charge you whatever they want.

I don’t want to get into a cyber argument but I feel compelled to comment on J&D’s response to my original post. I NEVER refused to pay my bill and I was NOT trying to cheat them. As J&D commented, I have ZERO complaint with the quality of work their team did, however I had huge issues with the way the business is run and I was left with the impression that I was being taken advantage of. I know that J&D has been rated #1 for a few years in the annual «Best of Warrenton» voting, which is why I called them for service to begin with and is why I was so terribly disappointed in my actual experience. After I paid off their charges for my porch repair, I talked to people I know about my experience and they all told me I was overcharged and taken advantage of. Two of the people who told me this actually work in the construction business. My dad told me I could have had the entire deck replaced for just a little more than what I was charged for the banister. In the end, as I stated initally, their quality of work is EXCELLENT. But consumers have a right to be told what the will be charged, especially when they specifically ask for this information. I learned the hard way in this scenario that I need to speak up louder next time, and I think other consumers need to know that too. Anyone who thinks I’m being too hard on J&D is welcome to check out my other business reviews … I think you’ll see that I’m rather objective and am quick to point out the good and the bad.