Realty.com

Expert Advice

Do-It-Yourself Compared to Hiring a Pro

A: ServiceMagic is a professional home improvement referral service and my

primary function is advising property owners about the most appropriate

professionals to consult and/or hire to repair, maintain, improve, or

construct their homes.

If you are intent on doing it yourself, I recommend buying an

instructional

book or perhaps a videotape from a home improvement or online construction

book store. A helpful site to reference is DoItYourself.com. Also, home improvement stores often offer Do-It-Yourself

classes and you can even get information from websites by typing your

subject matter directly into a search engine (I have good luck on

http://www.excite.com).

However, after more than a decade in this business, I firmly

believe that hiring an experienced professional is usually the

best, most timely, efficient (and even economical) way to get

a project done right the first time. Poorly done “improvements”

can actually detract from a property’s value and I couldn’t count

the number of consumers I’ve talked to who could have saved money by hiring a pro in

the first place.

At the very least, let me suggest that you compare what you would spend

on the tools and materials (and time and possible frustration) you’d

need

to do it yourself against a couple of estimates from professionals

before

deciding what to do. To get some bids, please return to our site at:

http://www.servicemagic.com, type a keyword relating to your project into the search

box and submit a service request so we can match you with the ideal

service professionals in your area.

Kathy Maynard