Handling Homeowner Service Requests

When a homeowner has access to the client portal, they can request concierge services directly — stocking the fridge before an arrival, coordinating a repair visit, grabbing packages off the porch. This guide explains what happens when a request comes in, how to review and respond, and how to make sure the work gets billed correctly.

---

How You're Notified

When a homeowner submits a request through the portal:

1. A Service requests chip appears on your dashboard's attention strip with the count of pending requests.
2. Clicking the chip takes you to the Concierge Services list filtered to "Requested" status.
3. The homeowner can see their request in the portal as Awaiting review — they know it arrived; they're waiting on you.

The request carries no price yet. The homeowner knows they submitted it; they don't know what it will cost until you confirm it. This means you stay in full control of what gets charged.

---

Reviewing a Request

Open the service request to see:

• What the homeowner described
• Their preferred date (if they specified one)
• The property it's for
• When they submitted it

From here you decide: approve and schedule it, or decline.

---

Approving: Setting the Price and Scheduling It

If you're going to do the work:

1. Set the fee for this specific request. This is the price the homeowner will see on their invoice — override the template default here if this job warrants a different rate.
2. Assign it to a visit (if it'll happen alongside a regular inspection) or schedule it as a standalone service with a date.
3. Change the status to Scheduled and save.

The homeowner's portal updates to show the service as Scheduled. They can see what it is and when it's planned, but not the final price until you invoice them.

Once the work is done:

1. Mark it Completed (or complete it through the visit workflow if it's attached to a visit).
2. If the property is set to Invoice each visit, the completed service is added to that visit's draft invoice automatically.
3. If the property is on Monthly billing, it appears in Finance → Ready to Bill when you run your end-of-month invoicing.

See How Billing Works for details on the billing models.

---

Declining a Request

If you can't do the work, don't want to take it on, or it's outside your service scope:

1. Open the request and choose Decline.
2. Write a short message to the homeowner — explain what you're declining and why, or suggest an alternative.
3. Save. The homeowner sees the declined status and your message in their portal.

Declining is better than ignoring. Homeowners notice when requests go unanswered, and a polite decline keeps the relationship intact.

---

Frequently Asked Questions

Can homeowners see the price when they request a service? No. The portal lets them describe what they need, but no price is shown until you set it and they receive an invoice. You approve both the work and the fee before anything is charged.

What if I want to do the work but the homeowner didn't specify a date? Schedule it for a date that works for you. The portal will show it as Scheduled without a stated date preference, which is fine.

Can homeowners request any service, or only ones I've defined? They can describe any request in free text — it's not limited to your template library. You review it and decide whether to do it, and at what price.

Does a service request automatically create a concierge task? Yes — it already exists as a concierge service in "Requested" status. When you approve it and schedule it, it stays as the same record and moves through Scheduled → Completed. Nothing is duplicated.

What if the work happens during a regular visit? When you assign the service to a specific visit, it appears in the visit's concierge tasks card alongside the regular checklist. Complete it there — mark it done, add photos, add notes — and it's automatically included in the invoice for that visit.

How do I turn on the client portal so homeowners can submit requests? There's nothing to turn on per client. Any homeowner whose email matches the address on their record can access the portal with a magic-link login. See The Client Portal guide for how to direct clients to it.

Can I add concierge tasks to a visit without a homeowner request? Yes. During an active visit, use Add task in the Concierge Tasks card to add a template-based or ad-hoc task on the spot. See the Concierge Services guide for the full picture of how concierge work flows from templates through visits to billing.