How to use DPOC: get an estimate and send a booking request

DPOC (thedpoc.com) prices property work before anyone comes to your door. You describe the job, answer a few questions, and see a model-based price range straight away — without an account, and without giving a name, email, or phone number. If the number and the scope look right, you send one booking request, and DPOC follows up to confirm the details. Nothing is charged at any point in the estimator.

The short version

1. 1

   Say what you need

   On the homepage, type the job in plain words in the “What do you need done?” box — “cracked driveway”, “paint the living room”, “gutters overflowing” — and press “See my estimate”. You can also tap one of the service tiles, or go straight to the estimator and pick a service there.

   Start an estimate →
2. 2

   Answer the questions about the job

   Each screen asks one thing about the work. Tap the answer that fits; many options show “included” or “+$…” so you can see what each choice does to the price. The “Live estimate” bar moves with your answers, and “Back” takes you to the previous question.

3. 3

   Give the project size

   Size moves the price the most, so the closest guess wins. For area jobs like concrete, roofing, painting, or turf you can press “Measure from satellite”, enter the address, press “Find property”, then “Auto-detect the area” or draw the shape yourself and press “Use this size”.

4. 4

   Enter the ZIP code

   “What ZIP is the job in?” — pick the state and type the five-digit ZIP so local costs are used. A street address and contact details are not needed. You can also choose to skip it and use national baseline assumptions.

5. 5

   Read your estimate

   The large number is the estimated midpoint. Under it is the “Planning range” from low to high, “Why this price?” (every answer that moved the number), and “What this estimate assumes”. The next section of this guide explains each part.

6. 6

   Send a booking request — only if you want to

   Press “Continue to booking”, enter your name and phone number, tick the consent box, and press “Start my booking request”. Nothing is charged, and the request is not yet a confirmed appointment or contract. DPOC contacts you to confirm the scope, the responsible provider, the written price, and the next step.

Not sure which service you need?

Open the estimator and use the “Not sure what you need?” card at the top. It asks “What's going on?” — for example, a stain on the ceiling, a backyard you want done, or a house that just looks tired — then a couple of quick questions, and points you to the right service with a “Start my … estimate” button. If a problem needs more than one trade, it lists them in order.

When it is available, the “What are we building for you?” card lets you describe the whole project in your own words, add a photo, or speak it, then press “Set up my estimate”. It fills in the answers for you to check — every answer stays editable, and the DPOC pricing engine, not the description tool, sets every number. Photos are used only to scope the job and are not stored.

How to read your estimate

• The big number is the estimated midpoint — where a job like yours most often lands under the model.
• “Planning range” is the low and high end. It is a range, not a quote: the provider confirms the price once they have seen the site.
• “Why this price?” lists each answer that changed the number and by how much. Answers that are standard for the job show “no change”, so you can see they were counted.
• The breakdown lists the line items and adds up to your estimate to the dollar.
• “What this estimate assumes” has three parts: “Priced from” (what the number is based on), “Confirm before work” (what the provider will check), and “Needs a site review if” (conditions that change the job).
• Every result shows the engine and rate-table version it was priced with, so the same answers always give the same number.

If the estimate got something wrong

Under the price, press “Something here assumes the wrong thing about my job →”. You will see each answer you gave; pick the one that is wrong, change it, and press “Update price”. The estimate reprices for real, up or down, and tells you what moved. If none of your answers is the problem, choose “None of these — something else is different” and describe it in the short form that appears; it is sent to DPOC with your estimate.

For details that do not change the price — a gate code, where to park, a dog in the yard — use the “Anything else about the job?” box. It is saved with your project.

Several jobs at the same property

1. 1

   Price each service

   Run an estimate for each job — say, demolition, then concrete, then fencing. Each finished estimate is added to your project on this device, one per service.

   Price a service →
2. 2

   Review the combined project

   Open “Your DPOC project booking” to see every service, the project total, and the typical range. Remove anything you do not want with “Remove from plan”.

   Open your project →
3. 3

   Send one request for all of it

   Use “Start multi-service booking” to send the whole project as a single booking request. As with a single job, nothing is charged.

What happens after you send the request

1. You see “Booking request received” on screen. Your details are used to coordinate your request — they are not sold to a list of competing providers.
2. DPOC contacts you, usually by phone, to confirm the exact scope and answer questions.
3. DPOC identifies the responsible provider for your job and checks the licence, classification, registration, or reviewed basis that applies to that exact scope where the property is.
4. You receive a written price and agreement from the responsible provider. Read it before paying anything — scope, schedule, changes, and payment terms belong in writing.
5. Work is scheduled only after that agreement is in place. Provider availability varies by location, so a booking request is not yet a promise that a provider can take the job.

Prefer to talk to a person?

Call or text (310) 499-6508. The result screen also has “Call” and “Text us” buttons, and if a job is unusual enough that the model will not price it, the estimator says so and offers a short form instead of guessing. DPOC is not a 24/7 emergency service — for anything dangerous, make the site safe and call emergency services first.