A printable handyman quote that survives a surprise behind the wall

What must a handyman quote contain?

A task list in the customer's own words, turned into specific work: two shelves in the hall, a curtain rail in the bedroom, a new lock on the side door. For each task, say what you will do and what you will not do, because a task that says fix the door invites a customer to expect a new door.

Then the materials, and who buys them. Then the basis for the number: an hourly rate, a day rate, or a fixed figure per task. Then the access facts: who is home, where the tools go, and whether the space will be empty. Finish with payment terms and a validity date. A short quote that is specific beats a long one that hedges.

Hourly, day rate, or a fixed figure per task?

Fixed figures work when the scope is clear: a shelf, a rail, a lock, a tap washer. The customer knows the total, and you are paid for knowing how long it takes. Hourly suits exploratory work, like finding a leak or chasing a fault, where the first hour decides what the next three look like.

A day rate fits a list of small jobs that add up to a day, and it needs a definition of the day: how many hours, whether travel is inside it, and how a half day is billed. Whatever you choose, write it on the sheet, and put the same wording in the message you send with the quote.

Who buys the materials?

Decide per job and write it down. If you buy, list the items on the sheet and say how materials are handled: at cost with receipts, or at cost plus an agreed handling amount. If the customer buys, say it plainly and add a line that the work assumes those items are on site when you arrive, because a missing box of fixings turns a fixed figure into a wasted trip.

For anything ordered or custom-made, take a deposit that covers the materials, so a cancelled job does not leave you holding a door that fits nobody else's frame.

When should a handyman job take a deposit?

Take one when you are buying materials that cannot be returned, when the job blocks most of a day, or when the customer is new and the address is far enough that a no-show costs real time. For small tasks with materials you already stock, a deposit is more friction than protection.

Show the deposit and the balance on the sheet, say what the deposit covers, and say when the rest is due: on completion, or on the customer's walk-through, whichever you already do. A customer who sees both numbers at the start does not feel ambushed at the end.

What if the wall is worse than it looked?

Stop, photograph what you found, and write a second sheet before you carry on. Rot behind tiles, a joist where the shelf was going, or wiring where the picture hook was going all change the job, and none of them are your problem to absorb silently.

The terms on the quote should say that hidden conditions are quoted separately and that the original figure covers only the work listed. Then the conversation is about the new sheet, not about whether you are trying to add to the bill. Customers accept a second sheet far more easily than a surprise at the end.

How long should a handyman quote stay open?

Long enough to be useful, short enough to stay true. A fixed figure on a task depends on materials you can buy this week, so a quote with no end date can become a loss the moment a supplier moves. Put a date next to Valid until, and say what happens after it: the customer asks for a refresh and you check the materials again. For a day rate the date matters a little less, but the sheet should still say when the rate was written, so a job that waits two months is not quietly done at last season's numbers.