Helping you stay safe and secure living in your home as long as you choose
Would you like to have a relationship that could help you to stay in your home to enjoy it rather than worry about it as a bundle of problems that you can’t or don’t want to have to solve? We are the answer for you.
Our program follows the House Sense Hierarchy of six areas based on the order of importance. We help you decide what preventative maintenance needs to be accomplished for peace of mind while you focus on enjoyment.
Values Hierarchy
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Safety
Unbroken pavement, handrails in place, no gas leaks
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Security
Door and windows securely latched, paths lit at night
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Health
Adequate ventilation, dry under sinks and crawl space, filters changed
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Economy
Adequate insulation, no gas or power weaknesses
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Comfort
Thermostat set appropriately, manuals for appliances available
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Enjoyment
Projects you have always wanted for your home
Our Process
When you contact us, we will ask you about the size of your property and the size, age and configuration of your house and its features, along with your concerns. Then we schedule an appointment for a walk-through.
Our team of home managers begin by interviewing you and inspecting your home and surroundings looking for any issues that might compromise any of the features of the Hierarchy.
We put together a plan for addressing all of those issues, prioritizing their importance and providing a budget and schedule to fix them over a year, on a monthly basis. We do most of the handyman type of work ourselves. We can help you to contract the specialized workers where safety is of concern, such as supply lines to your home from the power and water providers or other work for licensed professionals.
After the discussion and subsequent corrections are completed, we work out a preventative maintenance program to assure you that all of your systems continue to perform for you as they are intended.
The next step is to work out maintenance for everything in your surroundings. This includes driveways, fences and gates, retaining walls, irrigation systems, even pools, ponds and hot tubs if you have them. This is done by establishing a monthly, quarterly and annual schedule of routine review of everything in, above, below and around your home either by us or licensed professional services
All of this is done to the degree that your budget allows and you are interested in having it upgraded. We would love to keep your home at the level of a showpiece; ready to put on the market with no work needed to pass any inspection with flying colors. This level of care isn’t right for everyone. We can tailor a program to fit any budget but we will always assure that your house is kept safe, secure, healthy and comfortable for you.
More About What We Do
Among other things, we look for dangers such as broken pavement, weak or missing handrails, overused wiring circuits and gas leaks.
We check for doors, windows and gates that don’t securely latch and lock. We look for areas in darkness that need to be lit when you approach them at night.
We inspect attics and crawl spaces looking for loose or missing insulation, inadequate ventilation, water intrusion, pests and water, power and gas system weaknesses.
All of your appliances, sinks, tubs, toilets, showers, smoke and other detectors are inspected for any possible problems. We evaluate your water, power and waste systems even if you have wind, solar, septic and a well.
We look for mold, mildew, rot, pest damage, check for gases, drafts and follow up on any concerns you have expressed in our interview to make certain that all the health, security and safety concerns you have are identified at their source.
Pricing of Services
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Assessment - $450
Initial information gathering and contract, walk-through, and recommendations
Ongoing maintenance (content determined by need and budget) -
Gold Plan - $270/month
Preventative maintenance and review
(three hours) -
Silver Plan - $180/month
Preventative maintenance and review
(two hours) -
Bronze Plan - $180/quarterly
Preventative maintenance and review
(two hours)
Additional
Services
Cost to be determined
Bill Review
One effective way to be sure that all is well with your property is to monitor your power and water bills to see that nothing more than seasonal fluctuations occur. A spike in any of these indicates a leak or short that needs attention. As part of our maintenance program, we will check in with you to review your utility bills on a regular basis.
Personalized Home Manual
We are also able to help you build a “manual” that identifies where important shut offs are-like the water main-so that you are prepared to help any service people find what they need. Having all pamphlets for your major appliances all in one place will also give you the assurance, or “sense” that you know what you need to know about your home.
Large Projects
We all have dreams of what would make the house we have into the home we have always wanted. If you are ready to take a step or two in that direction, we are ready to take that journey with you from the planning stage to beyond completion by including your project in your maintenance program with us.
Or perhaps we’ve identified a large project with you that is going to be a problem eventually if we don’t take care of it. This could be something like a new roof or replacement of a retaining wall or an improved drain field for your septic. When the time is right, we can manage and see you through that from planning and permitting through completion.
Promoting the Independent & Locally Owned Business Community of Santa Cruz & Neighboring Counties
Join us on our mission to promote economic vitality and develop our community identity and pride.
Insured for General and Professional Liability by ALIA,
part of Riverton Insurance Agency Corp.
What People Are Saying
"Thomas came to my rescue when I realized that I could not keep up with my home’s regular maintenance and incidental repairs. I have found that he is observant, thorough and does meticulous work. He has smart suggestions for repairs. Because of the projects that he has done for me, I know that Thomas is trustworthy, skilled and has high standards. Thomas is a pleasure to work with!"
— Becky Peters, RN
“I would strongly recommend Mr. Thomas Crubaugh for anyone looking to maintain or improve upon their home. I assisted Mr. Crubaugh in the construction of a wooden deck that needed complete reconstruction. The old deck was two tiered, had a built in wooden bench for sitting, and a built in trellis. He efficiently removed all of the old parts of the deck and cleaned the area so that it was not a safety hazard. The construction portion of the deck was efficient and included the same two tier concept that was constructed in a way that seemed like it would last longer than the previous deck. The deck included a custom wooden bench and trellis. The new deck looked nicer, seemed much safer, and better constructed than the original. Mr. Crubaugh’s work was well planned, precise, efficient, and he informed his client of the progress throughout the project. I was very impressed by Mr. Crubaugh’s work and I would strongly recommend him for your home improvement and maintenance projects.”
— Chad Lange, Aptos
Meet the Team
Thomas Crubaugh, Owner
UCSC graduate with a Master’s of Business Administration from Rice University in Houston. Thomas has worked in Santa Cruz mostly as a Controller for the tech, insurance and other industries with the last fifteen years working for CrossFit running their Liability Insurance Company. At forty, Thomas took a year off to attend the NW School of Wooden Boat Building in Port Townsend, WA where he met Chris. Prior to that, he tore down and built a new house in Corralitos due to the Loma Prieta Earthquake. In the last two years, he has been using those skills to serve the community as a handyman, mostly helping seniors with maintenance, repairs and improvements.
Chris Crubaugh, Owner
Chris is a retired preschool-12th grade teacher, curriculum specialist, PVUSD TAG Program, teacher coach, and Elementary School Principal. Along with reading, playing guitar, walking and hiking, she loves playing with the grandkids and of course her adult children. She and Thomas worked the last few years to keep her parents in their home as long as possible and realized many people do not have children to help. This business is a natural extension-to help as many people as possible stay in their homes as long as they choose.
Get in touch
Interested in working with us? Fill out the form to get started or we’re happy to answer any questions you may have.