Handyman Connection of Austin-Westlake

We have a problem with the flashing between the brick and an eave on the side of our house. It's been particularly difficult to find someone who handles this as it involves brick and "roofing" work in addition to repairs on the ceiling between the first and second floors of our house. I explained the issue, and mentioned we needed flashing repair given we were getting competing bids for this work. I asked the dispatcher multiple times if they handled this type of work. Despite being told they did (and could handle many thing) when the guy showed up he proclaimed "I don't do roofs or brick or flashing... sorry" Even if the company *could* do this work, the utter lack of follow through despite me trying to do upfront work to ensure they did this turned me off. The guy that showed up was very interested in hearing about a future bathroom remodel (which I also mentioned in the initial call saying if this goes well, we'll have future work), but apparently that's all they heard.

Handyman Connections (HC) suggested we have one of their Handymen come out and look at the work to be done, a list of 5 items with photos attached, which I had already sent HC through Angie's List's messaging system. I scheduled an appointment with HC to get an estimate for Friday, June 27, 2014 at 2pm. At 1:15pm the Handyman called and asked if he could come earlier than scheduled. I agreed. Several minutes later an elderly man with no badge or company business card identified himself as a Handyman from HC. I was surprised and concerned to see someone so elderly working in a Handyman capacity. My concerns grew as we went through my 5 item list. He seemed a bit confused the entire time he was at my house. I was also concerned because some of the work would require a 6' ladder to replace lights. I couldn't imagine him on a 6' ladder. i scratched out part of one piece of work on the list because it just seemed too much for him. He assured me he would be able to do the work. I do not want to be harsh because I have grave concerns about anyone having to still be working, especially as a Handyman at such an age. But I can not let HC continue to use personnel so frail and fragile appearing without speaking up. After the Handyman made several notes on the list of work items I printed for him, he then started to try to calculate prices in his head and wasn't making any progress. I felt sorry for him. I gave him my email address so that he (or HC's office staff) could email me the estimate as soon as possible. We didn't receive an estimate from HC. Wednesday morning, July 1, 2014, through Angie's list I contacted HC requesting the estimate. After receiving my message, HC must have put together the estimate quickly. I called them. The estimated amount was way out of line with the work and any parts needed. One female employee at HC said she asked the Handyman to call me the day before and he must have forgotten. She made many attempts to justify everything, but by this time, I wasn't buying excuses or a quite elderly Handyman. The last straw was was when I saw he was charging me for a flapper for a toilet that flushes every few minutes. I had specifically told the Handyman we had some very recent plumbing work done. The plumber put in a new flapper but that didn't fix the self -flushing problem. But this Handyman was going to buy another new flapper. I felt uncomfortable with HC from the moment I opened the door to see their Handyman through the moment I told the female office worker thanks, but no thanks. I didn't want their services. I could have had the work completed by now if I had chosen another Handyman service and for less than HC's estimate. Words of caution for folks who may be thinking of using Handyman Connections.

We used them for 5 years. The experience was good so we kept calling them back. We like that they assign you a handyman so we got the same person every time. He could do anything that we threw at him. He pretty much did everything.

The handyman replaced the door frame for the back patio door. There were a couple of serious issues with this job: 1. No attention to detail at all. I still see nail holes, improper caulking and lousy paint job. The paint was not matched to the existing stain and now it looks awkward. 2. In a hurry to get on to the next job. The door latch was not carved out proper and the door was not locking. I had to call him to come back and redo it. I will never hire this provider again. They are focussed on making money with NO ATTENTION TO DETAIL AT ALL!

The work went well. The repair man was punctual but the original estimate was 2-3 days of work at $1120 labor. It took them only 5 hours and we were still charged $1120. That's $225/hr. We complained and they gave us a $120 discount. We trusted the estimate/bid because they were "super service" winners. Would not hire them again.

From the original review: We had purchased attic stairs with the same specs as our old ones. Provider removed the old ones, installed the new ones, but they would not open correctly. There's a possibility it was a problem with the stairs, but the handyman basically just told us "oops, they won't work, well, I have to go now" and left us in a lurch. If it had been a problem with the stairs I would think he would point it out to us and suggest we contact the manufacturer. Instead he left as quickly as possible, and already had the payment. I was very upset at the time and it took 3 days for the office to get back to me. Update: After 3-4 days, they did call back and sent out a manager/expert to check out the problem. They were apologetic for the original service problems & had ideas to make the stairs work. Another expert came out a couple of days later and tried a couple of creative solutions. The fixes didn't end up working well enough (due to the manufacturing of the stairs, we're all thinking) but they gave it a great shot. All of this extra work was included for the original fee & the follow up people were very helpful. Overall I'm very pleased with their resolution & have changed my review from F's to A's & B's. I would use them again.

We needed a fan switch installed but he was unable to do it. He did not know how to set it to a low, medium, or high setting.

Noted (via site) a need for an estimate within the next two days and job completion within the week. Received a note back from Rebecca that they could not get someone out for an estimate but, asked when would be the next available time to schedule. Responded with options and Rebecca called back. Was able to describe the job in detail over the phone and Handy Man Connection was able to provide an estimate and schedule an appointment to do the job two business days later; noting that the installer would need to return the following day to complete the grout work. JR (the installer) arrived promptly to start the job. Turns out, he's the house expert on travertine tile. JR took a look at the job, reviewed the materials we'd purchased, and reconfirmed the quote (was actually a better value than we'd been quoted on the phone). As luck would have it, we didn't have the correct spacers or adhesive. JR made the trip to the big box store nearby to pick up the correct materials and returned to do the job. Prep for the job was top notch; covering the counter and floors with plastic made for much less mess. At the end of the 1st day (4 hours later), JR had installed the tile with spacers, created and installed a center focal piece (different tile), wired for the under cabinet lighting, and cleaned up. The following day had JR showing up to grout the job and finish the light installation. Of course, we had purchased the wrong grout (unsanded) and caulk (wrong color) so, true to form, JR went to the big box nearby to get us set straight...NOTE: at both trips to the big box, JR would find what we needed, take it to the counter, the store would call us and describe exactly what was being purchased over the phone and the total, for which we would finish the transaction over the phone with the clerk; leaving JR clear of handling any money or credit card info. Very smart and reassuring, if you ask us. Anyway, JR returned and completed the job within 2.5 hours and completely exceeded expectations. The install was top notch (equal to or better than that which was done by our builder). At the close of the job, Rebecca was called and the transaction was completed via the phone. Would definitely recommend JR for any work around the house.

They were very friendly. Arrived when they said they would. They had to go get the part so it took a little longer than they expected. The only issue was when I called to set up the appointment I asked the lady that scheduled the work if they could bill us as there is generally no one here to write a company check on the day they were doing the work. She came back and said that as long as it was paid that week that was no problem. But this did not get communicated to their technician. So they expected payment. Fortunately I was in that day and so I wrote them a check. But there was a communication snafu that could have been a big problem.

I liked that the guy who came out showed up on time and he was very professional. He did a wonderful work and I have not had any issues since the service was provided other than my dog is trying to eat the door frame again. They were a wonderful and very responsive company. I really enjoyed working with them. I would not hesitate to use them again in the future.

It turned out fine but I do not remember how much it cost. They did a good work. We had a project that needed to be done and they did it very well and we had no issues with what they did. They have also done other work for us prior to that when they worked on a fence in the backyard that was problematic. We did not have any problem with their pricing. We arrived at a price and they lived up to it but you could always spend less. We had no problems with the quality of their job. They actually did some very good things because we had problems visualizing how the television was going to fit and they did a lot of little things to make sure that the whole system fit together. They were always there on time so we had no problems there too. I am sure that we would use them again in the future.

Service appt. was scheduled for 9am. Received 2 calls the day before from the provider confirming their arrival the next day. Received another call the day of the appt from the provider 2-hours before the scheduled appt time affirming that someone would be out to perform the work. Received last call from provider ~45-minutes after the scheduled appt time, not to apologize for failing to show up, but to reschedule on a day of their choosing. I took off work to be home, that's expensive for me.

Everything turned out well. The gentleman did a good job with both tasks and showed up on time. Unfortunately, he finished about 15 minutes ahead of schedule, and any other tasks would have cost extra since they would have taken longer than 15 minutes to complete. Thus, I don't feel as though I got the full value of the deal.

When there were tasks (mailbox, garage door) when Gary was unavailable, and the work wasn't satisfactory, owner Rene Salazar was prompt to correct the situations. I haven't used the company in several years, primarily because of family issues which kept me out of town. My impressions, since Gary settled into retirement from this extra incomes, is that it's somewhat difficult to find experienced and reliable handymen/women in South Austin (the reason for the B in quality). Then again I haven't needed to call anyone yet, so haven't looked into finding someone to handle those odd jobs. That last date is approximate, and the costs for the work varied, but always reasonable. Rene S. is definitely responsive and aims to provide excellent service.

It went fine. It was just a little pricey, but the house is old & a couple of doors were not exactly standard size.

I was a little concerned when I went with this franchise company but concerns went away completely after a few conversations with Bill. He gave us a step by step outline of what was going to be done. He gave us excellent suppliers to contact to purchase new tub and fixtures. My wife told Bill what she wanted in a new shower and they built it. It is more than a shower, it turned into a work of art. The tile setter, Cipriano, not only laid the tile perfectly, but because each tile was slightly different, he placed them so that they would blend in with each other. We were very happy with the office staff and had no problems with payment or getting supplies when needed. I really enjoyed working with Bill , Cipriano, and the Handyman Connection staff! I would use them again in a heartbeat!

I was happy with their service. They are a very well organized organization and the people they send out to do the job are professional. I was happy with their price and quality of work. They were very responsive. When I told them I had another problem upstairs and that I wanted my tiles sealed, they sealed it for me. At that time, I was trying to get some LED lights in the bathroom and I was having trouble with it and the man who did the tile just said here, let me take a look at that and it took him five minutes to fix the problem.

Job was nicely done, but took 3 days. The guy could have used a helper, as it was a two man job.

I called to have someone repair stripped screws in our front door hinges. From my first call to completion of the work, everyone was polite, professional and prompt. The work was done on time and on budget. The "handyman" was personable and completed the work with a professional demeanor. I will not hesitate to call Handyman Connection the next time I need a handyman to do some work around our house!

Due to the fact that anything but a simple drywall repair takes more than 2 hours, the work was not really 'completed'. The person doing the work realized this and I could tell hated to leave it as it was - no finish sanding, no finish layer of mud, etc. I could have paid extra to have him continue with the work, but he was unable to stay that day due to another job scheduled after mine. I 'finished' the work he did as best I could. I can't complain about the professionalism or the work actually done. The only thing I'd suggest to this company is to give potential customers an honest idea of how much work can be done in 2 hours. If the technician arrives and sees that - to do the job right - it will take more time than that, then offer some type of discount on the remaining time OR offer to refund the price of the 'big deal'. Give the customer a chance to reschedule if the tech is not available for more than 2 hours that day. Yes, it's a problem when I have to take off work in order to be home for work to be accomplished, but if the company will give a little then so will I.

Did not see pattern change in title until too late to fix

I had been trying to find someone to do a tile backsplash in my kitchen for about a year. Since the job wasn't a big one, I couldn't even get people to bid the job. I noticed on Angie's List that Handyman Connection had done a similar tile job. So I gave them a call. Since I was having a handyman service coming out I added a few other things that were on my "things that have to be done" list. They gave me a bid for everything, and the work started about a week later. I already had the porcelain and glass tiles for the kitchen. They did a glass-tile accent stripe and did a diamond pattern of tiles over my stove. Looks fantastic. Then the installer started working on our shed and found that the damage was worse than expected. Three layers of siding had to be removed right down to the framing. Then he installed pressure-treated plywood under hardy board siding. He also repaired some of the trim. Then he made a couple 3-sided boxes to cover pipes that go through the shed wall to our well pump. Finished all the work off by re-caulking our shower. The only thing that could have gone a little better was communicating the increased cost for the extra work that had to be done on the shed wall. The installer couldn't get in touch with the estimator, so I ended up approving the work without knowing what the extra cost would be. I settled it later with the estimator. I believe the price is fair for the work that was done. All in all, I think they did a very nice job, and I would call them again!

Technicians completed all the jobs to my satisfaction, for a reasonable price.

He was punctual and friendly. My new microwave works great.

This project was split into two separate visits. On the first visit one guy came on time, removed the old ovens, installed a new piece of red oak on the face of the cabinet, and built a solid support platform for the new oven. He did a really nice job on the woodwork to make sure the platform was strong and the dimensions of the cabinet opening were correct. I provided the red oak lumber as he had requested. We planned for him to return for the oven installation after electricians from another company installed a new circuit with junction box and after I finished painting. When trying to contact the handyman by phone for him to return, his responsiveness was inconsistent and our schedule kept getting pushed out. Finally, I requested the Handyman Connection office to send two strong guys to install the new oven. The office administrator was very helpful and sent a couple of guys out a few days later. I was surprised that neither of them was legally allowed to connect the wires at the junction box, but they waited patiently for me to get it connected. They were very careful lifting the oven into place. The project came to a successful conclusion, but better communication and coordination was desirable.