General contractors traditionally bill project-by-project, with revenue spiking during builds and flat-lining between them. The contractors who've built stable revenue beyond projects have added maintenance plans — recurring annual or quarterly services that keep clients engaged and produce predictable cash flow. Done right, maintenance plans also generate referrals and project work from existing clients.
Effective GC maintenance plans have three structural decisions: service mix, pricing, and delivery. For service mix, focus on tasks that protect the work you built and benefit from professional attention. Annual exterior inspection (siding, windows, doors, roof visual), seasonal HVAC coordination, gutter cleaning twice yearly, deck and exterior wood maintenance, sealant and caulk renewal, and minor handyman work (door alignment, hardware tightening, small repairs) form a solid base. Don't include work you'd subcontract anyway — focus on services with GC margin. For pricing, tier structure works best. Basic ($200-$400/year): annual inspection, seasonal reminders, priority scheduling for repairs. Standard ($600-$1,200/year): includes basic plus gutter cleaning and minor maintenance hours. Premium ($1,500-$3,000/year): includes standard plus quarterly exterior maintenance and a set number of handyman hours. Tier homeowners by home value and project history — clients who spent $200K with you don't balk at $1,500/year. For delivery, schedule everything in advance. Maintenance plans fail when scheduling is ad-hoc. Use software (ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, or even a structured spreadsheet) to schedule quarterly visits and seasonal reminders. The retention math: maintenance plan clients refer 2-3x more often than one-time project clients and book additional projects 3-5x more frequently. The plans aren't just recurring revenue — they're a referral and repeat-business engine.