🎯 The business: the small jobs licensed contractors will not come out for: a sticking door, a leaking faucet, a ceiling fan, a run of shelves, a dozen things on one list. “Handyman” is the most-searched trade in nearly every zip code, and the supply of reliable ones is thin.

Homeowners with a list, landlords with turnovers, realtors with inspection punch lists, and older people who no longer climb ladders. A half-day minimum of $250 to $400, or $75 to $125 an hour, is normal in most metros. Realtors and property managers give you repeat work; homeowners give you reviews.

Learn your state’s handyman cap, the dollar amount above which a job needs a contractor’s license, and quote under it or refer it out. Set a half-day minimum so a ten-minute job pays for the drive. Hand cards to three realtors and two property managers. Post finished-work photos with a one-line story on Nextdoor every week.

Two half-days at $300 is $600 a day with maybe $40 of materials billed on top. Four days a week is about $9,000 a month of revenue before insurance, fuel and the lead app. The upgrade path is specialties with higher tickets, such as TV mounting, deck repair or drywall, and a second truck.

Every state is different. Many cap unlicensed work at $500 to $1,000 per job, some require handyman registration, and electrical, plumbing and gas beyond the cosmetic almost always need a licensed trade. Lead-safe certification for pre-1978 homes if you disturb paint. Get this right before the first ad.

Scope creep: the one-faucet job becomes the whole bathroom, and you are over the cap and out of your depth. Unpaid invoices from one-time customers; take a card on file. And the quiet cost of underpricing because the customer is nice. The survivors write the list down, price it line by line, and say no to the fourth item.