How do you find a good contractor when something breaks?

Question

Hey everyone, when a repair comes up at one of your rentals, what’s your go-to way of finding someone to fix it? Do you have a trusted list, ask other landlords, use an app, or search online each time?

And how often does the first person you call actually work out? Thanks!

Andrew Postell · Answer

@Matteo Scali this is a super important question and it doesn't just apply to contractors. How do you know that a lender is any good? An electrician? A title company? Anything? Even if they do have 20 years experience...how do you know really? And while nothing is foolproof the most consistent method of finding good vendors is relying on OTHER real estate investors that have worked with those vendors. This is why we network with other real estate investors - kind of like what you are doing here!

So, let's try some local real estate meetup groups. Meetup.com is a good resource for those but some of the groups will also post here on Bigger Pockets Marketplace too. Even facebook might have some good local groups for you. Some of those facebook groups have thousands of members. The priority is consistent recommendations from active investors. Oh, eventbrite too. But post locally for this. That’s the best bet.

Leo Stein · Answer

Matteo, the first call working out is rare, so I stopped treating vendors as a search problem and started treating them as a bench. Ask other landlords you trust, then give a new contractor a small, low-risk job before you need them in an emergency. Watch how they communicate: do they confirm the time, send photos of the finished work, and invoice what they quoted? Those habits tell you more than reviews do. Keep two names per trade, because the one you love will be booked the week your water heater fails. Write down who did what, what it cost, and how long it took, so you aren't starting from memory each time. For urgent repairs, decide in advance what you will authorize without calling, such as a spending cap, so nobody waits on you. Pay promptly; good tradespeople prioritize the owners who do. Happy to compare notes by message.

Rosina Persaud · Answer

Agree with the "before it breaks" crowd — that's the whole game. Here's how we run it across 236 doors in Memphis.

We keep a bench, and we build it with small paid tests. Every quarter or so, a new handyman or trade gets one small job — a lock change, a caulk refresh, a minor drywall patch. Small ticket, paid immediately. We're grading three things: do they show up when they say, do they communicate without being chased, and is the work clean enough that we'd put a tenant in front of it?

Pass all three and you're on the shortlist for real calls. Fail one and we don't argue about it — we just don't call again.

Two names per trade minimum, because your first call is always busy during a freeze. And the unglamorous part: get the license and insurance cert on file before they ever touch a property, not after.

How many trades do you have on your bench right now?

Clever Mukori · Answer

The best tip I got was to find people before something breaks. Give a new plumber or handyman a small, non-urgent job first, like a running toilet or a dripping faucet, so you see how they communicate, show up and invoice when nothing is on fire. Ask the counter staff at your local plumbing or electrical supply house who the reliable pros are, since they see who buys the right parts and pays their bills. And before anyone works on the property, get a copy of their license and certificate of insurance and keep it on file with their contact info.

Richard (Ryszard) Cieplechowicz · Answer

Build the list before something breaks. Ask two or three trades for a small job first, like a faucet or a door lock, and see who shows up on time, quotes clearly and sends photos or an invoice you can file.

Keep two names per trade, because the first call is busy when you need them most. Pay on time and the good ones keep answering.

James Jones · Answer

Matteo, you do not find a good contractor when something breaks — you find him six months earlier. At 236 rentals I keep a bench: at least two names for every trade — plumber, electrician, HVAC, roofer, handyman — because the first call is busy exactly when you need him. My bench comes off my rehab crews. Running BRRRR rehabs year-round means the same trades see steady work from me, so a tenant emergency gets answered. Two rules keep them: pay fast, and never bid-shop a proven guy over fifty dollars on an emergency call. The cheapest new name online costs you three days of vacancy. Build the list before you need it.

Vaibhav Puranik · Answer

Lately, I have had some good success with Thumbtack. It's an app where you can submit your job and multiple people will contact you. It might not be available in really small areas, but their coverage in metro or even B tier cities is good.

How do you find a good contractor when something breaks?

How do you find a good contractor when something breaks?

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