Home services

Marin resident co-creates matchmaking service for owners and residential professionals – Marin Unbiased Journal


Corte Madera resident Andrew Hoskins, left, and Thomas Stephens founded Upfront to pair customers with home improvement needs with local professionals. (Courtesy of Upfront)

“Homeowner with project seeks tradesperson with skills. AI help a bonus.”

That’s a matchmaking post just made for Upfront, an artificial intelligence-powered platform that pairs up homeowners with vetted tradespeople to tackle various home improvement projects.

Thomas Stephens and Corte Madera resident Andrew Hoskins just launched their company, Upfront, this month.

To celebrate, the company will donate $25 to Marin Humane through August for anyone who books their first Upfront project.

Initially, the duo formed Upfront to help streamline energy efficiency rebates for homeowners but, after speaking with them, the two soon learned that the real challenge for customers was finding the right contractor for the job.

“We realized that homeowners needed an expert in their pocket, and wanted time back in their day, without compromising on the quality of the pros they invite into their home,” says Stephens, of San Francisco.

Upfront can help with any size project, he adds. “We’ve helped customers with everything from one-off house cleaning to room renovations. It’s all about finding the right pro.”

An Upfront customer hired a professional company to power wash a patio. (Courtesy of Upfront)
An Upfront customer hired a professional company to power wash a patio. (Courtesy of Upfront)

To do that, Upfront speaks with every pro on its platform, cross-references their reviews across multiple platforms and get referrals from professionals or homeowners that are already in its network.

“Our top priority is getting the highest-quality pros on the platform, and the fact is that most of the good pros are already 80% to 90% busy,” he says. “Our platform is designed to get customers the bids from the best possible pros.”

Not every professional is accepted onto the platform.

“We exclusively work with pros that have a great track record of trade knowledge, trustworthiness and professionalism,” he adds.

Upfront suggests professionals who are licensed and insured when the project or customer requires it, but when that’s not required, there are other options.

“A handyman can only charge up to $500 before they need a contractor’s license,” Stephens says. “Licenses are expensive, so often license holders focus exclusively on larger projects and need to bake the cost of their license into their fees.”

So, for jobs under $500, “we help customers find talented unlicensed pros because they take those projects on and they’re affordable,” he says. “We approximate the size of the job before dispatching it out to our pros to ensure that if a job is going to be over $500, we send the customer a pro that’s licensed.”

This is especially important to homeowners who would be liable to their insurance companies if anything goes wrong.

An Upfront customer had a patio redone and a retaining wall repaired recently. (Courtesy of Upfront)
An Upfront customer had a patio redone and a retaining wall repaired recently. (Courtesy of Upfront)

“For smaller jobs, especially where customers are trying to hold to a budget, an unlicensed pro is a great option,” he says. “From personal experience, we know that many unlicensed pros are extremely talented, and we’ve worked hard to get them on our platform.”

The service is free to homeowners or renters, who pay the professional directly for any work performed.

It’s also free to professionals, who list their services or respond to a bid. They are charged a small flat fee once they’ve accepted a job.

Here’s how Upfront works:

• “A customer texts us what project needs doing at their house, anything from housekeeping to HVAC, when they’re available, where they’re located and any other details they think we should know,” Stephens says.

• Upfront then sends the bid out to its roster of appropriate professionals, keeping the customer’s personal information confidential.

• The professionals interested in bidding on the project respond to Upfront and, within four business hours or sooner, customers receive contact information for three vetted professionals.

• Once the customer selects the ones they’d like to meet, Upfront coordinates the appointment with the professional.

• “We check in with both the customer and the pro throughout the job until completion,” Stephens says.

If customers aren’t happy with their suggested options, Upfront will find new ones.

“For us, it’s all about setting you up with the perfect pro for the job,” Stephens says. “Whether it’s just some irrigation for your existing garden or you want to re-landscape with native plants, there’s a right pro for the job in your neighborhood, and we find them for you.”

And, while “pros are truly experts at what they do,” and Upfront counts on their skills and knowledge for each project, Upfront can serve as a third-party resource for customers who have questions about the job, including whether a proposed appliance is eligible for rebates or tax credits.

“The beauty of using Upfront is the amount of time you save without sacrifice,” Stephens says. “You’re delighted with a great pro that you’d never have found on your own, and your information is kept private, secure and in your control.”

Currently, Upfront is available only to Marin residents but growth is in its future.

“As we hit the milestones we’ve set later this year, we’ll expand throughout the Bay Area,” Stevens says. “We’ve already had San Francisco residents request the service, and next year, we’ll be expanding outside of the Bay Area.”

To try Upfront, go to tryupfront.com and enter your telephone number or text “Hello Upfront” to 530-419-5739.

Show off

If you have a beautiful or interesting Marin garden or a newly designed Marin home, I’d love to know about it.

Please send an email describing either one (or both), what you love most about it and a photograph or two. I will post the best ones in upcoming columns. Your name will be published and you must be over 18 years old and a Marin resident.

Don’t-miss events

• Join Marie Narlock of the UC Marin Master Gardeners when she presents an “Introduction to California Native Plants” from 4 to 5 p.m. Tuesday in the third-floor large conference room at the San Rafael City Hall at 1400 Fifth Ave. in San Rafael. Call 415-485-3323 or go to srpubliclibrary.org/events.

• All levels of artists are invited to join the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art and architect David Rinehart for plein-air sketching at the Palace of Fine Arts, including a brief historical walking tour and guided instruction, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Aug. 3 at 3601 Lyon St. in San Francisco. Fees are $40 for ICAA members; $60 for nonmembers; and $20 for students and emerging professionals. Call 415-309-6520 or go to classicist-nocal.org.

PJ Bremier writes on home, garden, design and entertaining topics every Saturday. She may be contacted at P.O. Box 412, Kentfield 94914, or at pj@pjbremier.com. 



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