Targeting New Homeowners: The Untapped Market

New homeowners spend an average of $15,000 on home improvements in their first year. Some studies put that number closer to $20,000 when you include furnishings and appliances.

83% of those homeowners don’t have a go-to contractor for HVAC, plumbing, or electrical work. They just moved. Their old guy is 40 miles away. They’re starting from scratch.

Every contractor in town is fighting over the same Google Ads keywords, the same Angi leads, the same repeat customers. Meanwhile, 5-6 million homes change hands every year, and the people buying them need everything checked, fixed, or replaced.

Why new homeowners are different

Most leads come to you mid-crisis. The AC died. The water heater flooded the basement. They’re stressed, price-shopping, and calling three contractors simultaneously.

New homeowners aren’t in crisis mode. They’re in planning mode. They want to know what they bought, what needs attention now, and what can wait.

Home inspections miss things. Inspectors spend 2-3 hours looking at a house and they’re generalists. They catch the obvious problems but miss the 15-year-old water heater that’s going to fail in 18 months or the HVAC system that hasn’t been serviced since 2019.

New homeowners know this. 72% of them want to hire specialists to evaluate major systems within the first 90 days of ownership.

The 90-day window

Intent peaks in the first 90 days after closing. This is when homeowners are actively thinking about every system in the house, comparing options, and making decisions that will determine who they call for the next decade.

After 90 days, they’ve either hired someone or deprioritized it. The urgency fades. They settle into the house and stop thinking about the HVAC until something breaks.

The contractor who shows up first in that 90-day window has a massive advantage. You’re not competing against three other quotes. You’re the only one who reached out.

Finding new homeowners

Deed transfers are public record. When someone buys a house, the county records it. That information is available, usually within 7-14 days of closing.

Some contractors pull this data manually from county assessor websites. It’s free but tedious. Services like PropertyRadar, ATTOM, and CoreLogic aggregate this data across counties and let you filter by sale date, price range, and property type.

For $100-300/month, you can get a weekly list of every new homeowner in your service area.

Direct mail works here when it doesn’t work elsewhere. New homeowners are actively sorting through mail, setting up accounts, and looking for local services. A well-timed postcard doesn’t get thrown away unopened.

The postcard should arrive 2-3 weeks after closing. Too early and they’re still unpacking boxes. Too late and they’ve already hired someone.

Read more about postcard marketing for home service businesses.

What to offer

Generic “10% off your first service” coupons don’t work. New homeowners don’t know if they need service yet.

What works is a comprehensive system evaluation at a flat rate. $99 whole-home plumbing inspection. $149 HVAC tune-up and assessment. $89 electrical safety check.

You’re not discounting. You’re offering information. New homeowners want to know what they bought.

These inspections convert at higher rates than standard service calls because you’re not competing on price. You’re providing peace of mind. And when you find the 20-year-old water heater or the undersized AC unit, the replacement conversation happens naturally.

One HVAC contractor in Texas built his entire business model around new homeowner inspections. $149 for a full system evaluation, includes changing the filter and cleaning the condenser. 60% of those inspections result in either a repair or a maintenance agreement. 15% result in equipment replacement within 12 months.

Multi-channel approach

Direct mail alone works. Adding email and digital follow-up increases conversion by 40%.

Here’s a sequence that works:

Week 2-3 after closing: Postcard arrives introducing your company and the inspection offer.

Week 4: If they visited your website (and you’re tracking visitors), send a follow-up email or make a call.

Week 6: Second postcard with a different angle. Maybe maintenance agreements instead of inspections.

Week 8: Final touch. Door hanger if they’re in a neighborhood where you’ve done work.

The contractors who dominate new homeowner marketing don’t rely on a single touchpoint. They stay visible until the homeowner either books or moves on.

Neighborhood targeting

New homeowners in neighborhoods where you’ve already done work are even more valuable.

When you complete a job, you can identify neighbors who recently bought their homes. Your truck was just on their street. You have a built-in conversation starter.

“We just finished an AC installation for your neighbor at 123 Main Street. If your system is more than 10 years old, we’re offering free estimates to homes on the street this week.”

This combines social proof (you’re already trusted on the block) with new homeowner targeting (they’re actively thinking about their systems).

Read more about neighbor marketing for home service businesses.

Trade-specific opportunities

HVAC

New homeowners almost never know when the previous owner last serviced the system. Records don’t transfer with the house. This creates an immediate opportunity.

“Your home inspection probably noted that the HVAC system is 12 years old. It didn’t tell you whether it’s been maintained, if it’s sized correctly for the house, or how much life it has left. That’s what we figure out.”

The average HVAC system lasts 15-20 years. If someone bought a house with a 12-year-old system, replacement is coming. Establishing yourself now means you’re the first call when it fails.

Plumbing

Water heaters are the easy entry point. Average lifespan is 8-12 years. Most home inspectors note the age but don’t pressure test or evaluate tank condition.

Offer a water heater assessment as part of a broader plumbing inspection. Check supply lines under sinks, water pressure, water heater condition, and visible drain lines.

New homeowners also don’t know about their main sewer line. A camera inspection costs $150-300 and can reveal problems that save them from a $10,000 emergency later. Position this as due diligence, not fear-mongering.

Electrical

Electrical panels are the focus. Homes built before 1990 often have undersized panels or outdated breaker technology. Federal Pacific and Zinsco panels are still common and are well-known fire hazards.

New homeowners with older homes are the ideal target. A panel evaluation identifies safety issues and opens the door for a conversation about capacity, especially if they’re planning to add EV charging or upgrade appliances.

Roofing

New homeowners buy roof inspections at surprising rates. They just made the biggest purchase of their life and the roof is the biggest component they can’t see.

Offer a post-purchase roof inspection with a written report and 5-year projection. Document everything with photos. This builds trust for the eventual repair or replacement, even if that’s years away.

Maintenance agreements as the goal

The real win with new homeowners isn’t a single service call. It’s a maintenance agreement that locks in the relationship for years.

New homeowners are more likely to buy maintenance plans than existing homeowners because they don’t have a prior relationship with any contractor. They’re making decisions that will stick.

A $180/year HVAC maintenance agreement generates about $1,800 in lifetime value including repairs and eventual replacement. That’s why the $149 upfront inspection makes sense even if 40% of them don’t convert to anything else.

Position the maintenance agreement as “homeowner protection” rather than just tune-ups. Include priority scheduling, discounted repairs, and annual inspections. New homeowners value certainty.

Tracking what works

New homeowner campaigns require different tracking than standard marketing. You’re not measuring cost per lead on a single channel. You’re measuring cost per acquired customer across a multi-touch sequence.

Track the full sequence: postcard cost, mail house fees, any digital ads or email automation, and the time cost of phone follow-ups. Divide by customers acquired who sign up for maintenance agreements or book inspections.

Good campaigns run $75-150 per acquired customer. Great campaigns get that under $50.

If you’re using website visitor identification, you can also see which new homeowners visit your site after receiving mail, even if they don’t fill out a form.

Getting started

Start with your best neighborhoods. Pull deed transfer data for areas where you already have strong review coverage and where average home values support your services.

Send 50 postcards per week to new homeowners. Track response rates. Adjust messaging based on what works.

The contractors capturing new homeowners right now have almost no competition. Most home service companies haven’t built this channel at all. They’re waiting for Google to send them leads while thousands of high-intent homeowners move in nearby with no idea who to call.

Those homeowners are choosing someone. It might as well be you.