Every other trade on this site has a license that defines it. Handyman work is defined by a dollar figure instead, and most homeowners have never heard the number. Reliable.Work connects homeowners with one vetted handyman company per market, so you get a straight answer from the person who would actually show up.
The $1,000 rule
California’s minor work exemption, Business and Professions Code section 7048, lets an unlicensed person take a job as long as the whole thing, labor and materials together, stays under $1,000 and needs no building permit. AB 2622 raised that ceiling from $500 at the start of 2025, and it came with strings: the work cannot be split into pieces to duck the cap, and the person doing it cannot have employees on the job. Above that line, or the moment a permit is involved, you need a licensed contractor. Not a preference. The law.
Which is why the honest handyman companies are usually the ones that hold a B General Building license anyway, and tell you when a job has crossed out of handyman territory. The ones to avoid quote you $960 for something that is obviously a $3,000 job and figure out the rest later.
What a handyman is actually for
The punch list. Gutter cleaning before the first November storm. A door that has not latched right since the house settled. Rotten fascia board. Pressure washing a driveway. Mounting a television so it does not come off the wall. Fence pickets. A deck board that flexes when you step on it. Caulking, weatherstripping, dryer vents, the smoke detector nobody can reach.
The value is bundling. A handyman who is already on site for four hours can knock out eleven small things for what one specialist would charge to drive out and do one. Save them up. Do not call for a single hinge.
Where we operate
Looking for another trade or city? Browse all handyman services by city, or browse all services across every market Reliable.Work serves.
Run a handyman business?
One company per market. Flat per-lead pricing, weekly ACH billing, no monthly minimums, and no auction where four companies race to undercut each other on the same job. Read more on the partner side →