It’s that time of year again, the leaves are starting to change colours and you’re noticing some spots on your lawn where branches and other debris have accumulated over the past few months.
You might be thinking about hiring an arborist for tree trimming services or maybe you’ve done it before and feel like you could manage the job yourself this time around. Either way, how do you know which service company to pick? What should their prices look like? How often should they come out to your home for routine maintenance work?
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Define Your Goals
As with anything, it’s important to plan and have a list of goals in mind for when you pick an arborist. For example, maybe your goal is to reduce the height of a few trees in your yard that is obstructing some power lines or hanging too close to your house?
Maybe you want to plant new trees around the perimeter of your property to keep certain areas private instead of having them viewable from the street? Or perhaps you want healthier, stronger trees? Whatever it may be, like any project there must be steps taken beforehand.
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Research Tree Service Companies Online
Google can be a very powerful tool for finding reputable local businesses; simply type in ‘tree trimming’ or ‘local tree service’ in the search engine and you’ll get a list of companies in your area that provide these services. You can then investigate their company history, license information, background check records, price quotes, etc.
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Get A Quote From Each Company
Once you’ve compiled a list of 3-5 reputable companies in your area, start calling around for price quotes on services. Asking for basic trimming or pruning is average $100-$300 depending on how many hours are estimated to complete the job; ask about stump removal prices if it applies too!
These types of projects should be taken care of annually or semi-annually; once per season is recommended for all trees unless they’re dying or decaying then every six months is best.
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Ask For General Maintenance
If you’re not interested in hiring a full-service arborist and only want someone to come out and maintain your trees once or twice per year, most companies offer routine maintenance programs that include tree trimming services as part of their packages.
Ask about prices on these proposals if they interest you; it will save you time and money because the company comes out periodically to handle fallen debris and do small cleanups such as shrub pruning around the foundation of your home for $50-$100/visit depending on how many hours are estimated to complete the project.
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Look Out For Hidden Costs Or Upsells
Although reputable companies should always provide an estimate before starting any work, some companies try to upsell customers with additional services once they’re on the scene.
Make sure to do your research beforehand so you know exactly what types of services will be performed and request an upfront quote for each one(s) you want done; any state-licensed arborist should already have everything they need with them when they come out so it shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes to give you a final price.
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Trust Your Gut
Last but not least, if a company tries to pressure you into hiring them immediately or they don’t have a license on file with the state then it’s probably best that you avoid working with them. It’s also recommended that companies provide customer references and their business license number upon request so you can verify all of the information given to you before making a final decision about who should handle your arborist needs.
