Home Service Price Data Project
Homeowner-reported prices can add useful local context to national estimates. A submission system is not currently active on this site; this page describes the data we plan to collect and the privacy standards it must meet before launch.
Why Local Price Reports Matter
Our cost guides use public sources and published market ranges, but anonymized local invoices can show how location, timing, and job scope affect the final price.
What we publish: monthly roundups like “What People Actually Paid: [Month] [Year]” — job type, city, quoted vs. final price, and whether you’d hire them again. What we never publish: your name, address, email, or anything identifying you or the contractor’s pricing terms covered by your contract.
What We Plan to Ask
| Field | Why we need it |
|---|---|
| Type of work (dropdown: HVAC, roofing, plumbing, electrical, foundation, etc.) | Sorts your data point into the right guide |
| What exactly was done (1 line) | “Capacitor replaced” vs “whole compressor” — precision is the value |
| City + state | Local averages are the whole point (we never ask for your street address) |
| Quoted price / final price paid | The two numbers that expose lowball-then-upsell patterns |
| Year of the work | Keeps the dataset fresh |
| Was it an emergency call? | Emergency premiums are real — we track them separately |
| Would you hire them again? (yes/no) | The satisfaction signal |
| Optional: what surprised you | The quotes we feature in roundups |
Our Promise on Your Data
- Anonymous by design — no street address, contractor contact details, or required email
- Aggregated in public — individual reports would be summarized with enough detail to be useful without identifying the homeowner
- Not sold as leads — submissions would not be sold to contractors
- Quality checked — unusual values would be labeled or excluded from aggregate calculations until verified
Where the Data Goes
Once the collection system is live, this page will identify the form provider, retention period, review process, and the first published dataset. Until then, no price submissions are being accepted.
Questions about the program? See our editorial policy or contact us.