Home Buying Tips
Lessons From a First-Time Home Buyer: The Problem with Appliance Repair “Quotes”
When we were buying our house, one piece of advice we were given was, “Get three quotes before hiring someone for repairs.” While this sounds like a lot of work, I can absolutely appreciate this tip. After all, even when you’re potentially spending thousands of dollars, saving any money you can is still important.
As I shared, a few months ago, our water heater broke, ultimately leading us to replace it. When we did, we were asked if we’d followed the advice and retrieved three quotes before buying. The truth is that we didn’t — but there’s a good reason for that: it really wasn’t practical.
So why does this otherwise solid advice miss the mark in some cases? And how can you avoid overspending anyway? Here’s what we’ve learned about appliance repairs in the year since we’ve become homeowners.
Why getting appliance repair quotes can be pricey
Here’s the thing: as it turns out, getting someone out to your house to look at your troublesome appliances typically isn’t free. Instead, in the case of the devices we’ve had to have inspected, the companies charge a “diagnostic fee.” What’s more, this fee may be per machine (although there may be a slightly reduced fee for additional appliances).
The good news is that, in our experience, companies will waive this diagnostic fee if you end up going through with the repair. That’s how I ended up in a situation where I could basically pay $200 to have them not repair something or pay $300 to have them fix it. Overall, this is an understandable system — but it doesn’t always make things so easy.
As you can imagine, thanks to these diagnostic fees, calling out multiple companies can add up quickly. In turn, any savings you might ultimately see could well be exceeded by the fees you paid along the way. With that in mind, in these cases, it’s best to do some research ahead of time rather than bet on soliciting bids.
Looking up possible repair pricing
I’m not going to lie: trying to determine what’s potentially wrong with your appliance can be difficult — let alone attempting to price out repairs. However, looking online might at least give you a few ideas.
To get started, you can often run a search for your appliance, the brand, and a short description of the problem. Hopefully, this will lead you to sites or forums that could give you ideas of what might be wrong, allowing you to essentially assemble a short list. From there, you can also look up average pricing for these repairs.
I’ll also warn you now that there are some pitfalls to doing this pricing research. For one, if you’re just looking at a site snippet in a search engine, the number you see may only be indicative of the pricing for parts — excluding labor. In that case, you may be in for a rude surprise as labor costs can make up a significant portion of the final bill. You’ll also want to see when the examples were posted as prices do (of course) tend to change over time. Lastly, repair pricing can vary by region, so try to find as relevant as possible pricing during your search.
Ultimately, the point of this research is to give you a very rough ballpark estimate of what you could be in for. That way, if your repair quote ends up being outrageously higher than this, you can decide how to proceed.
Finding a solid repair company in the first place
For all of the negative ways that Google has evolved in recent years, it can still be good for something. In particular, I’m a fan of Google Reviews — which is why I’ve relied on the platform to help me find repair vendors. That said, there are some rules to keep in mind when using this method.
First, be aware that the first companies listed might not be there because they’re the best but because they paid to be there. This should be disclosed as an ad, but you’d be forgiven if you didn’t notice the small tag denoting it as such.
Next, in addition (obviously) to looking for businesses with high ratings, you’ll also want to look at the number of reviews that have been submitted. In my recent experience, I opted to go with a company that had a 4.7 and more than 200 reviews over a company with a 5 but only two reviews. You can also read a few reviews if you want — while keeping in mind that people on the Internet can be straight-up ridiculous.
In terms of alternatives, you’ve probably heard about the site Angi. This site apparently helps you find home services and even get quotes. That sounds pretty good… but I haven’t personally used the service, so I can’t speak to how well it works in practice. Perhaps I’ll get around to that one day, but I’ve had success scouring Google Reviews instead.
That said, there is one resource I’d easily rank over any other: recommendations from friends. Since, as I mentioned, Internet reviewers might not always be the most reliable sources, asking those you trust for their opinion can be a much better plan. Then again, if you’re like us and don’t know many people in the area, then you can make online options your Plans B, C, etc.
Of course, if you’re concerned about a diagnostic fee because you aren’t sure if you’re going to make the repair, then it may behoove you to seek a company with the lowest fee. Unfortunately, this will probably require calling several companies, but could be worth it depending on the variance.
To be clear, even though the “get three quotes” advice sadly doesn’t quite work out for appliance repairs, there are other household projects to which this can definitely apply. When it comes to remodels, major repairs, and other upgrades, companies are far more likely to offer free quotes since the value of landing a job is often much larger. Alas, in the case of appliance fixes, you’re probably better off doing some leg work ahead of time to ensure that you hire the right people and get a fair price. Otherwise, you risk overpaying — or racking up fees before work even gets underway. It’s all just part of the fun of being a homeowner, isn’t it?
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