7 Profitable Handyman Business Models That Can Replace Your Income

The handyman business is surprisingly versatile.

While many outsiders assume that all handymen businesses are identical, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Since starting my business over ten years ago, I’ve seen a wide array of business models in this industry and had the opportunity to speak with several handymen who have carved out interesting (and profitable) niches for themselves.

Each model has some unique benefits and, of course, some disadvantages. Some are more profitable. Some are easier to set up. Some require minimal experience. And some of them might even surprise you.

In this article, I’ll provide insight into each business model so you can pick the one that works the best for your goals, skills, and lifestyle.

#1 – The “Do It All” Handyman

When I say do it all, I mean everything.

I once spoke with a contractor from Atlanta who prides himself on serving all of the customer’s home needs. It doesn’t matter what it is.

Whether it’s plumbing, electrical, bathroom remodels, a leaky faucet, or just mowing the lawn.

His “We do it all” approach aims to provide the customer with the benefit of never having to call another contractor or handyman. That means he keeps them in his little web.

This model often cashes in on bigger jobs like remodels and additions by providing small repairs and maintenance at very little or no charge.

Although this was more common in the past, it’s rare now due to complexity and contracting laws. To pull this business model off legally in most states, you’d need to have dozens of different trade licenses, which would take decades to acquire for a single person.

Of course, many people still do it; they just aren’t following the contracting laws 100%.

Additionally, as homes get more advanced, many improvements require specialized knowledge to offer the highest quality products and services. Since it’s impossible to be an expert at everything, the quality of work will likely suffer with this model.

But there are some advantages. The biggest one is that you’d have to invest far less in marketing because you can stay busy with just a few clients. So if you have an aversion to marketing, this might be a decent model for you.

There’s also a lot of variety in the projects you take on, and you practically become family to those you serve.

However, this model gets a big thumbs down from me. Other than the issues I mentioned, it’s far too complex and challenging to streamline with no added profit advantage.

Plus, if I operated this way, I’d have to offer many services I hate providing to get the jobs I want.

While this can be a profitable and enjoyable way to run a home repair business, it’s not my favorite.

#2 – The To-Do List Handyman

I didn’t know about this unique handyman business model until I interviewed Jim Copenhaver from Chicago. Since, I’ve tried it in my own business with success and have helped many others take this approach.

This model takes advantage of the opportunities created by our overly busy lives.

Busy working parents don’t have the time (or skills) to take care of simple repairs and maintenance, wealthy people simply don’t want to, and the elderly can’t or don’t want to either.

The type of work with this model usually includes hanging pictures, small painting projects, hanging shelves, adjusting doors, furniture assembly, and countless other small things that homeowners don’t get around to.

Since this model only requires basic handyman skills, the barrier of entry is pretty low from a skill perspective. A handy teenager could easily start this type of business.

I’m a big fan of this business model. Even though there are more profitable models out there, this is a low-stress, simple, and reliable way to build a handyman business. It’s also easier on your body than many other models since you are doing a wide variety of small projects instead of repetitive and labor-intensive big projects.

Of course, there are downsides as well. The work is often not very challenging and can be tedious at times. Secondly, while you can make a solid six-figure income doing these types of services, there are more profitable models out there (I’ll talk about those next).

Making this business model work requires just four ingredients:

• Good customer service and communication
• Attention to detail
• Good marketing to attract customers who are willing to pay higher rates for convenience and service.
• The right pricing model.

#3 The Specialist

Don’t assume that to start a handyman business you have to do everything. In many cases, it can be more profitable to specialize.

For example, you can start a business just mounting TVs. I’ve seen it done many times.

Or a business that just installs trampolines.

Or a business that just focuses on pressure washing.

Of course, there are also the more common specialties like painting, window cleaning, Electrical, or plumbing.

This business model has several advantages:

• It’s efficient since you only need limited tools, and you’ll tend to get faster the more you do similar projects.
• It’s much easier to do flat-rate pricing, which can be more profitable than charging based on time.
• Many people want to hire the best of the best. By specializing, you’ll likely surpass the generalist in skill and knowledge for your specialty.
• It can be easier to scale and hire employees if that’s your goal.
• It can be more profitable.

However, this type of business will typically require better marketing skills to stay busy. Since you are only doing a particular service, you will need more customers than a To-Do-List or Do-It-All Handyman since you won’t have as much repeat business. Customers may only need your service once every few years as opposed to the previous two models, where some customers would hire you monthly or even weekly.

I like this business model. If making a lot of money is your primary goal, then this is usually the best model to go with because once you dial in your systems and marketing, you can crank out jobs super fast, optimize your pricing to generate very high income per hour, and implement other strategies for boosting your profits.

#4 The Cherry Picker Handyman

This is the type of handyman business that cherry-picks jobs based on the skill set and interests of the handyman.

It’s a mix between The Specialist, The Do-It-All, and The To-Do-List Handyman, except in this model, you only take on jobs you enjoy or are profitable. You can then recommend other contractors for the jobs you don’t want.

I like this business model because it allows you to enjoy the higher profits of having a specialty service or two while still allowing you to enjoy the security and variety of general home repairs and maintenance.

The key to making this work (as with many of these models) is to have good marketing systems. You want to get to the point where your schedule is booked out several weeks in advance so you can be picky about which jobs and customers you take on.

Additionally, your marketing will help fill your schedule with your most profitable services.

This is an excellent, low-risk way to transition from a general Do-It-All Handyman to a Specialist because you can rely on your repeat customers for security while moving your business in a more profitable direction.

Another benefit is that this business model is enjoyable because of the variety and excitement of growing profits.

The downsides are that this business is not as easily systemized or scaled and is more complex than The Specialist. But it’s important to note that it’s not all about making money. Personally, I’m happy to take a minor hit to my profits for a bit of variety in my day.

#5 The Franchise Handyman

The fifth handyman business model is investing in a handyman business franchise.

If you prefer working in the office and still want to be in the handyman industry, here’s an option for you. You won’t be swinging a hammer, but you can take an established brand and run with it if you’re a good businessman.

This is a higher-risk business to start because of the upfront costs, but handyman business franchises come with all of the business systems in place, plus some training, so you don’t need to figure it out by yourself.

The downside of this model is that it’s expensive. According to this website, you’d need to invest at least $117,000 to get started.

This model gets a big thumbs down from me because I don’t think the cost justifies the value. For fast-food restaurants, I think franchises are great because you get a well-known name, systems, and food that is consistent with what customers expect. With a handyman business franchise, you get the name and the systems, but the name isn’t that powerful. You’ll still need to invest in the same amount of marketing to get it going.

It’s just too easy to set up a business yourself to justify the expense.

In this interview, I discuss franchises with another handyman if you want to learn more about them.

#6 – The Home Maintenance Membership

If none of the other business models were new to you, perhaps this one is.

The Home Maintenance Membership model is when you sell a monthly or quarterly maintenance package for a monthly or quarterly membership. Just like a lawn care company, you would ideally set up automatic billing and scheduling.

Services might include changing air and water filters, changing light bulbs, inspecting fire and carbon monoxide alarms, winterizing irrigation systems, fertilizing lawns, trees, and shrubs, cleaning gutters, and inspecting areas of the house like a roof and crawlspace that aren’t accessed often.

This is perfect for selling to second homeowners or other wealthy clients who want hands-off home maintenance and a bit of peace of mind. Another benefit often offered to members is a discounted rate on repairs and materials.

This can be a great business model because you can lock in a consistent income month to month, there is minimal skill required for most of the tasks, and it would be easy to hire employees to tackle the easy stuff.

The downsides are that unless you are hiring employees, the services may get boring. This model will also usually require more direct face-to-face sales since fewer people are proactively looking for this service. You’d have to sell it to your existing customers. If you don’t like to sell stuff, this wouldn’t work well.

This business is a bit more complex as well. You’d need more sophisticated software to automate customer follow-up, billing, and scheduling. Dealing with membership payments can also get annoying when people fail their payments.

However, if you’re a proactive, systems-based thinker, this is a great model that will increase customer retention and build a consistent income. The inspections you’d perform would often lead to bigger and more lucrative jobs.

#7 The Weekend Warrior

Let’s not forget the part-time handyman business. Maybe you don’t want to leave your cushy job with full benefits until you know you can make enough to support your family and lifestyle.

If that’s the case, then starting a handyman business on the side is a great option. Many homeowners are happy to get their repairs done in the evenings or on the weekends.

The advantages are all pretty evident with this model. The main benefit is minimal risk because you still have your day job to fall back on if things don’t work out.

The only disadvantage is your business growth will be slowed because you won’t have as much time to work on it. But it’s better to get started slowly than not to get started at all!

Final Thoughts

As you can see from these examples, the handyman business is one of the most flexible businesses you can run.

If you only want to work on the weekends, you can. If you get tired of doing certain repairs, you can stop doing them. If you only want to work in a small area within your city, you can do that, too.

If you want to start as a Do-It-All Handyman and transition to a Specialist later and then dabble with memberships, you can do that.

If you want to combine two or more of these business models, why not?

If you want to run your business solo, that works great, but you can also hire employees and scale things up.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that if you start a handyman business, you will be stuck doing hard labor until you’re 75 (better than working at a desk). You can go in many directions, and if you stay consistent and work smart, profitability is unlimited.

If starting a handyman business is something you are serious about, check out my step-by-step guide to starting a profitable handyman business here. From setting up your business to attracting customers, it will give you all of the information you need to start making money from your home repair skills – starting today.

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