OBrien Handyman Services

OBrien Handyman Services is a one-man North Shore repair shop run out of Peabody by Mike O'Brien, who says he has been fixing homes and businesses for more than four decades. The work is the old-fashioned generalist's mix: carpentry, drywall, water-damage and mold repair, pressure and soft washing, and custom woodwork — the small, exacting jobs a homeowner wants done right rather than fast. On Angi the profile carries a 5.0 across 26 reviews, and the praise clusters around the same handful of things: careful carpentry, door and window fixes, and powerwashing. That is a genuinely deep run of positive history for a solo operator. Worth knowing, though, that those reviews taper off after 2022, so the glowing history describes the past more than the present. O'Brien leans into the moisture-and-mold corner of home repair. He is an InterNACHI member with coursework in advanced mold inspection, infrared thermal imaging, and inspecting for moisture intrusion, and he holds a Certified Lead-Safe (RRP) renovator credential — the kind of background that matters more for a leak behind the siding or a stain spreading across a ceiling than for a cosmetic touch-up. He is also listed as an ICC member and a member of the Peabody Chamber of Commerce. Two things to pin down before calling. First, the license: a Massachusetts HIC number (201790) appears on Angi and on his own site, but both present it as self-reported — it is not confirmed here against the state registry, so verify it yourself before signing anything. Second, this is one person's calendar; owner-operated means the same hands do every job, and availability can be the real bottleneck. For a homeowner with a defined repair — rotted trim, a sticking door, drywall to patch, a deck to wash and seal — O'Brien fits the brief: a seasoned, credential-carrying craftsman who does the work himself. Confirm the license and current availability, and get the scope in writing.