Privacy Policy
Effective date
On this page
The TL;DR
Here's the short version. The full legal text follows below.
- We collect what you tell us about your project, how to reach you, and how you use the site.
- Your name, phone number, email address and street address go to a contractor only after you pick that contractor. We do not auto-match you, and we do not route your request to companies you never saw.
- We never sell your contact information or your project details. We are not a lead broker, and we do not run a partner network that buys and resells homeowner information.
- We do use advertising and analytics cookies, which several state laws call “sharing.” We name it here rather than bury it, you can turn it off, and we honor the Global Privacy Control signal automatically.
- Submitting a project request includes agreeing to be contacted about it, because a contractor cannot quote a job without a way to reach you. Reply STOP to any text to end it. Browsing pros never requires it.
- Every US resident gets the same rights here: see your information, correct it, delete it, get a copy, and opt out of targeted advertising. Email admin@better-abode.com.
Introduction
Better Abode is a home services marketplace. Homeowners use it to find and compare vetted, insured, local contractors for projects like HVAC replacement, roofing, window installation, plumbing, and kitchen and bathroom remodels. Contractors use it to present their business and respond to homeowners who contact them.
This policy explains what personal information Humble Abode LLC, a Michigan limited liability company doing business as Better Abode (“Better Abode,” “we,” “us,” “our”), collects, why we collect it, who we disclose it to, how long we keep it, and what choices you have. It applies to better-abode.com, our subdomains, and any email, text messages, and customer support we provide. It does not cover a mobile app, because we do not currently offer one. If we launch one, we will publish the app's own disclosures before it ships.
This policy does not cover what a contractor does with your information after you choose to contact them. At that point the contractor is a separate business, handling your information under its own privacy practices. To The Contractors You Choose, below, explains what we require of them and what remains outside our control.
We are a US business serving US homeowners. Visitors From Outside the United States, below, covers everyone else.
This policy works alongside our Terms of Use, which sets the rules for using the website, including how project requests work and how disputes get resolved. Reading both is the complete picture.
We use two terms throughout. “Homeowner” means anyone using Better Abode to find a contractor, whether you own, rent, or manage the property. “Pro” or “contractor” means a home services business listed on Better Abode.
Information We Collect
Information You Give Us
Project requests. The trade you need, a description of the work, the property's street address or ZIP code, property type, timing, whether it is an emergency, and how you prefer to be reached. Plus your name, phone number, and email address.
Photos and files. If you upload photos of the work area, or documents like an old estimate or an inspection report, we receive those and whatever appears in them.
Cost estimates. The Contractulator asks for a project type, a ZIP code, and a project size so it can return an estimate. It does not ask for your name or your contact details, and you can use it without giving us either.
Account information. Homeowners do not create accounts on Better Abode. You submit a project request through a form, and there is no password, no profile, and nothing to log into. Contractors do have accounts, and what we collect for those is under Contractor applications and listings below.
Reviews and public content. Homeowners cannot post reviews or other public content on Better Abode today. If we add that, we will update this policy before it goes live and explain what becomes public.
Messages to us. Anything you write or say in support emails, chats, contact forms, or phone calls, including the contents of the message.
Contractor applications and listings. From pros applying to join: business name and legal entity name, owner and contact names, business address, phone, email, website, service areas, trades and specialties, years in business, license numbers, insurance carrier and policy details, bonding information, and a business tax identification number, meaning an EIN or a similar business identifier. We do not ask contractors for a Social Security number. Also any documents you send us during vetting, such as license certificates, certificates of insurance, and tax forms.
Payment information for pros. Contractors pay Better Abode for access to the platform. Payments are handled by a third-party payment processor. The processor collects the card or bank details directly, and full card and account numbers go to the processor rather than to us. We receive the billing name and address, confirmation that a payment succeeded, and a truncated identifier such as the last four digits and the card type.
Survey and research responses, if you choose to participate.
Automatically Collected Information
When you visit Better Abode, our systems and our analytics and advertising partners' technologies collect:
- Device and browser information: IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type, screen size, and language settings.
- Usage information: pages viewed, links and buttons clicked, search terms entered on our site, referring URL, exit pages, time on page, and scroll depth.
- Approximate location, inferred from your IP address. Usually city or metro level, which is how we know which local pros to show you. We do not collect precise GPS location from your device unless you affirmatively grant your browser's location permission.
- Cookies and similar technologies: cookies, pixels, tags, SDKs, and local storage. Cookies and Tracking Technologies, below, explains each category and how to control it.
- Contractulator entries, such as the project, ZIP code, and quantity you enter, stay in your browser only while you are on the page. We do not save them on your device, and leaving or reloading the page clears them.
- Email interaction data: whether you opened an email we sent and which links you clicked.
- Call information, if you call us: the phone number, date, time, and duration.
- Rate limiting. When the Contractulator requests an estimate, our server uses your IP address to limit how often estimates can be requested.
Information We Receive From Others
- License and insurance verification sources: state and local licensing boards, contractor registries, and insurance certificate verification services, used to confirm a pro's credentials.
- Business data sources: public records, business registries, and commercial business-information databases, used to confirm that a contractor business is real, active, and operating where it claims to.
- Advertising and analytics partners, who may tell us that you arrived from a particular ad or campaign.
- Referral sources: if a pro, a partner site, or another homeowner refers you to us and you follow that referral yourself, we receive the information provided at that point.
- Fraud prevention and security vendors, who flag suspicious traffic, bots, and abusive submissions.
We do not buy homeowner contact lists. We do not accept homeowner information from lead brokers, lead-generation networks, or data brokers, and we do not accept homeowner information that a third party compiled or resold rather than receiving from you directly.
How We Use Your Information
We use personal information to:
Run the marketplace. Match your project request to pros who serve your area and work in that trade, show you their profiles, pass your request to the pros you choose, and let you and that pro reach each other.
Return cost estimates. Calculate the Contractulator estimate you asked for, and in aggregate understand which services and areas people are researching. We do not tie a Contractulator entry to a person.
Vet contractors. Verify licensing, insurance, business registration, and service areas before a pro appears on the site, and re-verify on an ongoing basis. Remove pros who fall out of compliance. Our vetting confirms that a business is real, licensed where its trade requires it, insured, and serving the area it claims. It is not a criminal background check, and we do not describe it as one.
Communicate with you. Confirm we received your request, tell you which pros are available, follow up on a project, answer your questions, and send service notices like changes to this policy.
Send marketing, where you have agreed to it or where the law otherwise allows it, including email about home projects, seasonal maintenance, and Better Abode features. You can opt out at any time.
Advertise. Measure which ads and channels work, and show Better Abode ads to people on other sites and apps. This includes audience and retargeting tools from advertising platforms.
Improve the product. Understand which pages and flows work, fix problems, test changes, and build new features. We use aggregated and de-identified data for this wherever it will do the job.
Keep the platform safe and honest. Detect and prevent fraud, spam, bot traffic, fake reviews, account takeovers, and misuse. Enforce our Terms of Use.
Meet legal obligations. Comply with applicable law, respond to lawful requests from government authorities, keep records the law requires, and establish or defend legal claims. This includes keeping records of the consent you gave for calls and texts.
We do not use your project details or contact information to make automated decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects about you.
What We Do Not Do With Your Information
These are commitments, not aspirations. If any of them ever changes, we will update this policy and tell you before the change takes effect.
- We do not sell your contact information or your project details. Not for money, not to contractors, not to lead brokers, not to anyone. We also never include them in the data we give advertising platforms, which means no uploading homeowner email or phone lists to build ad audiences.
- We do not send your name, phone number, email address, or street address to any contractor before you choose that contractor.
- We do not auto-match you to a contractor, or hand your request to a rotating pool of companies you never saw.
- We do not sell or rent your information to a “partner network” of other lead-generation sites or advertisers.
- We do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for purposes beyond those permitted under California Civil Code § 1798.121.
- We do not sell or share the personal information of anyone we know to be under 16.
How We Choose Which Pros To Show You
When you submit a project request, we use the trade, the property location, and the project description to identify contractors on Better Abode who serve that area, work in that trade, and are currently verified. We show you those pros along with their profiles.
Payment plays no part in that. Contractors pay Better Abode for access to the platform, and no contractor can pay for placement, for priority, or to appear ahead of another contractor in what you see.
That process uses your project information, but it does not disclose it. Before you select a pro, no contractor receives your name, phone number, email address, or street address.
We may show a contractor non-identifying demand information, such as how many roofing requests came from a ZIP code last month, so pros can decide where to offer service. That information does not identify you.
Sharing of Information
To The Contractors You Choose
When you affirmatively select a specific pro from the ones we showed you, we give that contractor the information they need to respond: your name, phone number, email address, the property address, and your project details, including any photos you uploaded.
You make that choice pro by pro. Selecting one contractor never releases your information to the others, and we never treat a general project request as permission to contact contractors on your behalf.
What happens after that is between you and that pro. A contractor you select is an independent business, not part of Better Abode. They handle your information under their own privacy practices and their own legal obligations, and we do not control what they do with it. If you want to know how a specific pro handles your information, ask that pro directly.
Tell us if a pro misuses it. Email admin@better-abode.com if a contractor you contacted through Better Abode uses your information in a way you did not expect. We look into every report, and misuse can be grounds for removing a pro from the platform.
To Vendors Who Work On Our Behalf
We use other companies to operate Better Abode, and they handle personal information only on our instructions and only for the work we hired them for. California law calls these companies “service providers” and “contractors,” which is a legal term separate from the contractors listed on our marketplace. Categories include:
- website and application hosting, storage, and content delivery
- customer relationship management and support tooling
- email, SMS, and telephony delivery
- analytics and product measurement
- advertising and campaign measurement
- cost-estimate calculation
- license, insurance, and business verification services
- fraud prevention, bot detection, and security monitoring
- payment processing for contractor accounts
- professional advisers, including lawyers, accountants, and auditors
To Advertising And Analytics Partners
Cookies and similar technologies on our site let advertising and analytics companies receive information about your device and your activity on Better Abode, so we can measure campaigns and show you Better Abode ads elsewhere. Several state privacy laws treat this as “sharing” personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, or as a “sale” even when no money changes hands. We do not split hairs about it, we disclose it, and Cookies and Tracking Technologies and Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, both below, tell you how to turn it off.
This is limited to online identifiers and activity data. We do not include your project description, your street address, or your uploaded photos in advertising data.
For Legal And Safety Reasons
We may disclose personal information when we reasonably believe it is necessary to:
- comply with a law, regulation, subpoena, court order, or lawful government request
- enforce our Terms of Use
- protect the rights, property, or safety of a homeowner, a contractor, the public, or Better Abode
- investigate suspected fraud or illegal activity
Where the law allows it, we will tell you before disclosing your information in response to a government or legal request.
In A Business Transaction
If Better Abode is involved in a merger, acquisition, financing, reorganization, or sale of assets, personal information may be transferred as part of it. If that happens, the recipient remains bound by this policy for information collected before the transaction, unless and until you are notified of a change.
At Your Direction, Or With Your Consent
We will disclose personal information any other way you specifically ask us to or agree to.
Calls, Texts, and Email
What You're Agreeing To At The Form
When you submit a project request, the form asks you to check a box giving express written consent to be contacted about that request. That consent covers calls and text messages from Better Abode and from the contractors you selected, at the phone number you gave us, including calls and texts sent using automated technology or a prerecorded or artificial voice.
Agreeing is part of submitting a request. The consent box is required to submit a project request, because a contractor cannot prepare a quote without a way to reach you. It is not a condition of buying anything, and homeowners never buy anything from Better Abode. You can browse pros, read profiles, compare cost information, and use the rest of the site without agreeing to calls or texts. You can also withdraw your consent immediately after you submit, using the steps in How To Stop Calls And Texts below, and we will honor that.
Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency varies. We do not control your carrier's charges.
How To Stop Calls And Texts
You can revoke consent at any time, by any reasonable means, and we will honor it.
For texts: reply with STOP, QUIT, END, CANCEL, UNSUBSCRIBE, REVOKE, or OPT OUT. FCC rules require us to honor those, and we also honor any other clear request to stop, including a plain “no” or “remove me.” You do not have to use a magic word.
For calls: tell the caller you do not want further calls, or email admin@better-abode.com with the phone number.
For marketing email: click the unsubscribe link in any marketing email, or email admin@better-abode.com.
Two things to know. Revoking consent with Better Abode does not automatically revoke it with a contractor you already chose, so ask that pro directly to stop, and tell us if they do not. And even after you opt out of marketing, we may still send transactional messages about a project you started or about your account.
Our Do-Not-Contact List
When you ask us to stop calling, texting, or emailing, we add you to an internal do-not-contact list and keep you on it. That record is the one thing we keep specifically so we can honor your choice, and it is why How Long We Keep Information says suppression records are kept indefinitely.
We also scrub our calling lists against the National Do Not Call Registry on the schedule federal rules require. Registering on the national registry does not block a call about a project request you submitted, because your consent covers that, so use the steps above if you want those to stop too.
Records Of Consent
We keep records of the consent you gave, including the date and time, the web page and form, the IP address, and the exact disclosure language shown to you. We keep these records for as long as we may need them to show that consent was given, which is longer than we keep most other information, because the law may require us to prove it.
Information About Contractors and Business Users
If you run a contractor business on Better Abode, some of the information you give us is meant to be public, and some is not.
Public on your profile: business name, business description, service areas and locations served, trades and services offered, license number where we are permitted or required to display it, verification status, years in business, business phone and website, and photos of work. Nothing in that list is confidential business information, and nothing in it identifies an owner personally. Homeowner reviews are not part of a profile today. If we add them, we will update this policy before they appear.
Not public: owner personal contact details, insurance policy numbers, tax identification numbers, payment and banking details, and internal notes from our vetting.
We may display a pro's verification status and the date we last verified credentials. We may also remove a listing, or mark it as unverified, if licensing or insurance lapses.
Contractor business contact information may be used for our own business communications, including onboarding, account notices, invoices, performance summaries, and marketing about Better Abode services for pros. Pros can opt out of the marketing.
Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
Better Abode does not sell personal information for money, and we never sell homeowner contact information or project details.
We do use advertising cookies and similar technologies that disclose online identifiers and browsing activity to advertising partners. Under the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended, that qualifies as “sharing” personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, and some other state laws define it as a “sale” or as “targeted advertising.” So you have the right to opt out, and we make it available to everyone.
Two ways to opt out:
- Turn on Global Privacy Control in your browser or extension. We honor it automatically.
- Email admin@better-abode.com with the subject line “Do Not Sell or Share.”
You do not need an account to opt out, and we will not ask you to create one. An authorized agent can submit the request for you under Your Rights, below.
We do not sell or share the personal information of consumers we know to be under 16.
Your Rights
Most privacy policies grant these rights only to residents of states that require them. We grant them to every US resident who uses Better Abode. It is simpler to write, simpler to read, and there is no good reason your rights should depend on your ZIP code.
What You Can Ask For
- Know and access. What personal information we hold about you, where we got it, why we have it, and who we have disclosed it to.
- Get a copy. Receive your information in a portable, machine-readable format.
- Correct. Fix information that is inaccurate.
- Delete. Have us delete your personal information, subject to the exceptions in When We May Not Be Able To Delete Everything, below.
- Opt out of targeted advertising, and of any sale or sharing of personal information.
- Limit use of sensitive personal information. We already restrict this to what the law permits, and Sensitive Personal Information, below, explains what little we collect.
- Withdraw consent you previously gave, including consent to calls, texts, and marketing email.
- No retaliation. We will not deny you service, charge you a different price, or give you a lower quality of service because you exercised a privacy right.
These rights belong to contractors and business users too, not just homeowners. A pro can ask what we hold from an application or a vetting file, correct it, or ask us to delete it, using the same process below.
How To Make A Request
Email admin@better-abode.com, or write to us at the postal address in Contact Us, below.
Tell us which right you are exercising and give us enough information to find your records, usually the email address or phone number you used on Better Abode.
How We Verify You And How Long It Takes
We have to make sure a request actually comes from you, so we will ask you to confirm information we already hold, such as the email address or phone number attached to a request. For a deletion request we may ask you to confirm twice. We will not ask for more information than we need, and we use what you send only to process the request.
We confirm receipt within 10 business days and respond within 45 days. The 45 days run from when we receive your request, not from when we confirm it. If we need more time, we will tell you why and take up to 45 additional days. There is no charge unless a request is excessive or repetitive, and we would tell you before charging anything.
Authorized agents. Someone can submit a request for you if they give us written permission signed by you, or a valid power of attorney. We may still contact you directly to confirm.
If we say no, you can appeal. Reply to our decision, or email admin@better-abode.com with “Appeal” in the subject line. A different person reviews it, and we will respond within 45 days with our decision and our reasons. If we deny the appeal, we will tell you how to contact your state attorney general.
When We May Not Be Able To Delete Everything
Some information has to stay. Where an exception applies, we delete what we can and tell you what we kept and why. The usual reasons:
- Records the law requires us to keep, including tax and financial records.
- Records of consent to calls and texts, which we keep to prove that consent was given.
- Information needed to complete a project you already started, or to resolve a dispute.
- Security and fraud records, including a suppression record of your opt-out so we can honor it.
- Information a contractor already received. We can delete our copy, but the pro you chose keeps theirs under their own obligations, so you would need to ask that pro directly.
- Information that has been de-identified or aggregated and can no longer be linked to you.
Two State-Specific Items
California “Shine the Light.” California residents may request, once a year, a list of the categories of personal information we disclosed to third parties for those third parties' own direct marketing purposes during the prior calendar year, and the identities of those third parties. We do not disclose personal information for third parties' own direct marketing. Send requests to admin@better-abode.com.
Nevada. Nevada residents may submit a verified request that we not sell covered information. We do not sell it, but you can submit the request to admin@better-abode.com and we will confirm within the 60 days Nevada law allows.
Sensitive Personal Information
Several state laws single out certain categories for extra protection. Here is our position on each:
We do not collect from homeowners: Social Security numbers, driver's license or passport numbers, financial account or payment card numbers, precise geolocation, racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs, union membership, health or medical information, biometric or genetic data, or information about sex life or sexual orientation.
Where sensitive information does come up:
- Property address. We need it to find local pros and for a contractor to reach your home. It is not “precise geolocation” as the statutes define it, because it comes from you rather than from tracking your device, but we treat it carefully all the same and never include it in advertising data.
- Contractor credentials. We do not collect Social Security numbers from contractors. We ask for an EIN or another business tax identification number instead, which belongs to the business rather than to a person. Where we do collect a tax ID or similar identifier from a business, we use it only to verify the business and meet tax and legal requirements, we never display it, and we restrict internal access to it.
- Project descriptions. Occasionally a homeowner mentions a health or accessibility reason for a project, for example a grab-bar installation or a mold concern. We never ask why, and we would rather you left it out. If you do include it, we use it only to route your request and help the pro understand the job, we never use it for advertising or profiling, we never disclose it to anyone other than a pro you selected, and we treat it as consumer health data where a state law such as Washington's requires that.
- Message contents. Emails, texts, and chats you send us are treated as sensitive under California law when we are not the intended recipient. We use them only to help you.
We do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for any purpose beyond what California Civil Code § 1798.121 permits, and we do not use it for targeted advertising or profiling.
How Long We Keep Information
We keep personal information only as long as we need it for the purposes described in this policy, or as long as the law requires.
How long that is depends on the category of information and on why we hold it. What determines it is how long we need the information to connect you with a contractor and support that request, how long we may need it to resolve a dispute or defend a claim, how long we need it to detect and prevent fraud and abuse, and how long tax, accounting, and other laws require us to keep records. Where a vendor holds information for us, their retention is set to match ours.
Two categories work differently and are worth stating plainly. We keep opt-out and do-not-contact records indefinitely, because deleting them is how an opt-out gets broken. And we keep records of the consent you gave for calls and texts for as long as we may need them to show that consent was given, which is longer than we keep most other information.
When we no longer need information, we delete it or de-identify it so that it can no longer be linked to you. If you want to know how long we are holding something specific about you, ask us at admin@better-abode.com and we will tell you.
Data Security
We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, including encryption in transit, access controls that limit internal access to employees who need it, logging and monitoring, vendor security review, and regular review of our practices.
No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee that information will never be accessed without authorization.
If something does go wrong. If we discover a security incident affecting your personal information, we will investigate it, take steps to contain it, and notify you and the relevant authorities without unreasonable delay and within the deadlines the applicable state or federal law sets. The notice will tell you what happened, what information was involved, what we have done about it, and what you can do. Several states set specific deadlines, some as short as 30 days from discovery, and we will meet the shortest one that applies to you.
Two things you can do: use a strong, unique password if you create an account, and be careful about what you include in photos and documents you upload, since a photo of a project can also show the inside of your home.
Children's Privacy
Better Abode is for adults. Our Terms of Use require you to be at least 18 to use the site. The site is not directed to children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 16, which is the age threshold the state privacy laws use for the sale and sharing restrictions described below. If you believe a child has given us personal information, email admin@better-abode.com and we will delete it. We do not sell or share the personal information of anyone we know to be under 16.
Third-Party Links
Better Abode links to contractor websites, licensing boards, and other outside resources. Those sites have their own privacy practices and we are not responsible for them. Read their policies before giving them information.
If you communicate with a contractor by phone, text, or email outside Better Abode, that communication is between you and that business.
Visitors From Outside the United States
Better Abode is operated in the United States and intended for people in the United States. If you visit from another country, your information is transferred to and processed in the United States, where privacy laws may differ from those in your country. Better Abode serves properties in the United States only, and the contractors on the platform operate in the United States. We do not target or market the service to people outside the United States, and we do not offer the rights or mechanisms that the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation, United Kingdom law, or Canadian privacy law provide. If you are outside the United States and do not want your information processed here, please do not use the site.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy as our business, our technology, or the law changes. When we do, we will change the “Last updated” date at the top and post the new version here.
If a change materially affects how we use information we already collected about you, we will give you notice before it takes effect, by email or a notice on the site, and where the law requires it we will ask for your consent.
The effective date and the last updated date at the top of this page always tell you which version you are reading. We do not publish an archive of earlier versions, so if you need the text of an earlier one, email admin@better-abode.com and we will send it to you.
Contact Us
Questions, requests, or complaints about privacy:
- Email: admin@better-abode.com
- Mail: Humble Abode LLC, Attn: Privacy, 302 East Parent Avenue, Royal Oak, MI 48067
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact your state attorney general's office. California residents may also contact the California Privacy Protection Agency.
Categories of Personal Information We Collect and Disclose
This table is the “notice at collection” that California law requires, and it doubles as a plain summary for everyone else. “Disclosed for a business purpose” means we gave it to a vendor or a contractor you chose. “Shared for advertising” means the cross-context behavioral advertising described in To Advertising And Analytics Partners and in Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information.
Category (California statutory names) Examples we collect Disclosed for a business purpose Shared for advertising Sold Identifiers Name, postal address, email, phone number, IP address, cookie and device identifiers, account ID Yes, to vendors and to the pros you choose Online identifiers only. Never name, address, phone, or email No Customer records Name with phone number and address. Contractor business and financial details Yes No No Protected classification characteristics None collected from homeowners No No No Commercial information Project requests, services you inquired about, cost estimate entries, contractor transaction history Yes No No Biometric information None collected No No No Internet or network activity Pages viewed, clicks, searches on our site, referring URL, email opens Yes, to analytics and advertising vendors Yes No Geolocation data City or metro area inferred from IP address. Property address and ZIP code you give us Yes Inferred city level only. Never the property address No Audio, electronic, visual information Project photos and documents you upload. Messages you send us Yes No No Professional or employment information Contractor business details, licensing, insurance, years in business Yes No No Education information None collected No No No Inferences Project interest and service category, drawn from your activity Yes Yes, for advertising audiences No Sensitive personal information See Sensitive Personal Information. Very limited, and never used for advertising Only as that section describes No No We collect each category from the sources in Information We Collect, use it for the purposes in How We Use Your Information, keep it for as long as How Long We Keep Information describes, and disclose it to the recipients in Sharing of Information.