The TrustPro Blog

Straight answers for contractors — vetting customers, getting paid, and what your software really costs. Written by a working contractor, not a content team.

How to vet a customer before you quote: the 5-minute phone screen, the money questions, the deposit test, and when to walk away from the job.

August 17, 2026 · 12 min read

Win Jobs

How to Get Google Reviews as a Contractor (Without Breaking the Rules)

Most contractor review advice now breaks Google's policy. What's banned in 2026, what's allowed, and the ask that works — with the exact wording.

August 21, 2026 · 7 min read

Win Jobs

How to Write an Estimate for a Construction Job (7 Steps)

A 7-step process for writing a construction estimate that protects your margin — including the markup-vs-margin math most contractors get backwards.

August 21, 2026 · 7 min read

Get Paid

Is QuickBooks Worth It for Contractors? An Honest Answer

QuickBooks is accounting, not job management — and its price keeps climbing. When it's worth it for a contractor, when it isn't, and what it won't do.

August 21, 2026 · 6 min read

Get Paid

Net 30 vs Due on Receipt: Which Should a Contractor Use?

Due on receipt gets you paid faster on residential work; net 30 is the cost of commercial. How to pick terms by customer type, with the wording.

August 21, 2026 · 6 min read

Pricing & Comparisons

Workiz Pricing (2026): They Stopped Publishing It

Workiz used to publish its prices. As of 2026 all three plans say Request pricing. Here's what it listed before, what's still disclosed, and what to ask.

August 21, 2026 · 5 min read

Pricing & Comparisons

Housecall Pro Pricing (2026): What It Actually Costs by Crew Size

Housecall Pro's plans start at $59/mo, but extra users cost $100/mo on Essentials. The real cost by crew size, what's gated, and where the money goes.

August 21, 2026 · 5 min read

Win Jobs

Can a Contractor Run a Credit Check on a Customer?

The FCRA answer for contractors: when you can pull a homeowner's credit, when you can't, what it costs, and the free checks that predict nonpayment better.

August 21, 2026 · 7 min read

Win Jobs

Is There a Database of Bad Customers? What Contractors Actually Have

Contractors keep looking for a bad-customer blacklist. What exists, why most of it is abandoned, what you can legally record, and what works instead.

August 21, 2026 · 7 min read

Win Jobs

11 Red Flags a Client Won't Pay (Spot Them Before You Quote)

The 11 red flags a client won't pay — why each predicts nonpayment, when to walk away, and the exact protective move. By a working contractor.

August 17, 2026 · 11 min read

Industry Data

Contractor Failure Rates: The Real 2026 Numbers (and What Actually Kills Small Contractors)

How many contractors actually fail? Current survival rates from Census and BLS data — not the recycled 2007 numbers — and what the failures have in common.

August 17, 2026 · 12 min read

Win Jobs

Why Customers Ghost After an Estimate — and the Text-First Follow-Up That Revives Them

The four real reasons customers go silent after an estimate, and a day-by-day text-first follow-up cadence — with copy-paste scripts — that revives them.

August 17, 2026 · 11 min read

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The TrustPro Blog

How to Vet a Customer Before You Quote: The Contractor's Screening System

How to Get Google Reviews as a Contractor (Without Breaking the Rules)

How to Write an Estimate for a Construction Job (7 Steps)

Is QuickBooks Worth It for Contractors? An Honest Answer

Net 30 vs Due on Receipt: Which Should a Contractor Use?

Workiz Pricing (2026): They Stopped Publishing It

Housecall Pro Pricing (2026): What It Actually Costs by Crew Size

Can a Contractor Run a Credit Check on a Customer?

Is There a Database of Bad Customers? What Contractors Actually Have

11 Red Flags a Client Won't Pay (Spot Them Before You Quote)

Contractor Failure Rates: The Real 2026 Numbers (and What Actually Kills Small Contractors)

Why Customers Ghost After an Estimate — and the Text-First Follow-Up That Revives Them