Hire a VA · HVAC VA
HVAC virtual assistant: cost per call, per technician and per month
$6.50–$10.00 an hour · $1,040–$1,600 a month full-time
That's the agency example below for a dedicated HVAC VA working only for you: no recruitment or setup fee, billed monthly for hours worked. Part-time (80 hours) comes to $520–$800 a month.
On this page
- Three receipts for the same phones
- What the VA handles, what stays with your techs
- Calls the VA never judges
- Price per call, booking and invoice
- Cost per technician
- What a technician's phone time costs
- Calculator: maintenance agreements per year
- Quote follow-up, priced per quote
- A year of seasons on one budget
- Three HVAC companies, worked through
- A full-time week, priced by block
- Numbers to check every Monday
- The software bill: separate lines
- The extras on both sides
- How the agency example bills
- A 30-minute test before you hire
- The first month
- HVAC office terms, in one line each
- How to hire one here
- Questions about the cost
Three receipts for the same phones
In a small HVAC company the office is often one person, or the owner's phone. When owners price help, they compare a remote assistant with a customer service representative (CSR) at the front desk or with an in-house dispatcher who runs the board. US government pay data has both job titles. Each slip prices a full-time employee at the national median, then adds what an employer pays on top of the wage.
Published by Outsourcing Insider, a VA MASTERS company. The agency slip uses VA MASTERS' published HVAC VA rates, shown because they're public; other agencies' prices vary. About us
Customer service rep, US
Full-time, per month
- Median pay ($44,770 a year)a$3,731
- Paid leave1$312
- Supplemental pay (overtime, bonuses)1$166
- Health and other insurance1$317
- Retirement plans1$116
- Payroll taxes and required insurance1$398
Monthly total$5,040
Per year$60,479
- About $29.08 an hour loaded (monthly total ÷ 173 hours). Can greet a walk-in customer and hand a part to a tech at the shop; a VA can't.
- Benefit costs are the average for private employers with 1–49 workers; your own package may differ.
In-house dispatcher, US
Full-time, per month
- Median wage ($50,340 a year)b$4,195
- Paid leave1$351
- Supplemental pay (overtime, bonuses)1$187
- Health and other insurance1$357
- Retirement plans1$130
- Payroll taxes and required insurance1$447
Monthly total$5,667
Per year$68,003
- The national median across all industries that employ dispatchers, not only HVAC.
HVAC VA, agency example Parent company
VA MASTERS, Administrative & Operations Support
- 160 hours at $6.50–$10.00$1,040–$1,600
- Recruitment or setup fee$0
Monthly total$1,040–$1,600
Per year$12,480–$19,200
- Part-time, 80 hours: $520–$800 a month.
- Card or PayPal payments add 4%; USD bank transfer has no fee.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025 median pay: customer service representatives $44,770 a year ($21.53 an hour); heating, air conditioning and refrigeration mechanics and installers $61,010 ($29.33 an hour). Checked Nov 2026.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: dispatchers, except police, fire and ambulance (annual median wage). Checked Nov 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026, Table 6. Checked Oct 2026.
- SHRM, 'SHRM Releases 2025 Benchmarking Reports' press release (Oct 15, 2025). Checked Oct 2026.
- Agency example: VA MASTERS pricing page, checked Oct 2026.
The CSR slip is the fair comparison for phones, bookings, invoices and reviews. The dispatcher slip fits when the job is mainly the board: who goes where, in what order, and who tells the customer. A VA can do both from one seat as long as call volume leaves room for the board, which is why many owners start with one person and split the role later.
What the VA handles, what stays with your techs
Write this into the VA's first-day guide. It keeps diagnosis, pricing and safety where they belong and costs nothing.
| The VA does | You and your technicians do |
|---|---|
| Takes the call, records the problem in the customer's words, books the slot | Diagnoses the equipment, on site or by phone |
| Reads your written script word for word on gas smell, CO alarm and other urgent calls, then alerts the on-call tech | Writes that script and decides what counts as an emergency |
| Quotes service fees, tune-up prices and membership prices from your price book | Sets every price; approves any discount or exception |
| Sends quotes your tech or comfort advisor wrote, follows up, answers "when can you start?" | Writes the quote, chooses the equipment, answers technical questions about it |
| Books, moves and confirms jobs on the dispatch board by your rules | Sets the rules: which tech for which work, when to bump a job |
| Files warranty and registration paperwork from the tech's notes | Decides what failed and whether a claim is made |
| Keeps copies of licences and certification cards on file if you ask | Refrigerant work and anything needing EPA Section 608 certification stay with your certified technicians |
The rule that saves most trouble is the price book rule: if a price isn't in it, the VA says "I'll have someone confirm that today" and passes it on.
Calls the VA never judges
Some calls are not scheduling questions at all. The VA doesn't decide how serious they are or give advice of its own; it reads what your written script says, logs the call and alerts the person you named. The right-hand column shows the kind of wording owners put in their scripts. Your script, your utility's emergency number and your on-call rota are yours to write and check.
| The caller says | The VA does | Example script wording (yours to write) |
|---|---|---|
| "I smell gas" | Reads the script, then alerts your on-call tech | Leave the building now, don't switch anything on or off, and call the gas utility's emergency line or 911 from outside |
| "The carbon monoxide alarm is going off" | Reads the script, then alerts your on-call tech | Get everyone outside into fresh air and call 911 or the fire department from outside |
| No heat or no cooling, with a baby, an elderly person or someone unwell at home | Marks the job with your priority flag and follows your bump rules | Your rule for same-day priority, and when the owner is called |
| Water pouring from the unit, a burning smell, sparks | Reads the script, transfers to the on-call tech | Whatever your techs want customers told while they're on the way |
Price per call, booking and invoice
The VA's cost is the rate times the minutes. The minutes below are example assumptions for a VA who already knows your software and your price book; time your own first two weeks and replace them.
| Task | What's in it | Minutes (example) | Cost each |
|---|---|---|---|
| New service call booked | Name, address, equipment type and the problem in the caller's words, a slot from the board, confirmation text sent | 6 | $0.65–$1.00 |
| Missed call or voicemail returned | Called back, need captured, booked or passed to the right person, note on the customer record | 4 | $0.43–$0.67 |
| Web form or ad lead answered | Reply by call or text, questions from your intake list, booked into an open slot | 6 | $0.65–$1.00 |
| Next-day appointment confirmed | Text or call the day before, reschedule if needed, board updated | 2 | $0.22–$0.33 |
| Job moved on the dispatch board | A tech running late or a job running long: next customer told the new window, board updated | 4 | $0.43–$0.67 |
| Open quote followed up | One call or text on a quote your tech or comfort advisor wrote, answer logged, price unchanged | 5 | $0.54–$0.83 |
| Agreement visit booked | Spring or fall visit for a maintenance-agreement customer, booked and confirmed | 5 | $0.54–$0.83 |
| Agreement renewal worked | Renewal notice sent, one follow-up, renewed or marked lapsed in the system | 8 | $0.87–$1.33 |
| Invoice sent | Invoice built from the completed job, payment link sent, job closed | 4 | $0.43–$0.67 |
| Past-due reminder | A polite reminder by text or email, promise-to-pay date logged | 3 | $0.33–$0.50 |
| Review request | Short text after a completed job with your review link | 2 | $0.22–$0.33 |
| Warranty claim paperwork | Model and serial numbers, install date and the tech's notes gathered, claim filled for your approval | 20 | $2.17–$3.33 |
What the table can't show is the cost of the call nobody took. This page doesn't put a dollar figure on it, because the honest number depends on your average ticket and on how many of those callers would have booked. Pull last month's missed-call count from your phone system and multiply it by your own booking rate and average ticket: that is your number.
Cost per technician
Divide the monthly cost by the technicians whose calls, board and invoices the VA keeps. Technician counts below are examples.
| Technicians | Full-time VA per tech a month | Part-time VA per tech a month | US CSR per tech a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | $520–$800 | $260–$400 | $2,520 |
| 4 | $260–$400 | $130–$200 | $1,260 |
| 8 | $130–$200 | $65.00–$100 | $630 |
| 12 | $86.67–$133 | $43.33–$66.67 | $420 |
What a technician's phone time costs
In most small shops the office work doesn't go undone; it is done by technicians and the owner between jobs. Here is what that time costs a month per technician at a loaded $39.63 an hour (the BLS median for HVAC mechanics and installers, $29.33 an hour, plus employer costs from the slips), against the same hours from a VA. Minutes a day are examples; 21.7 working days a month.
| Office time per tech a day | Hours a month | At the technician's hour | Same hours from a VA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 minutes | 5.4 | $215 | $35–$54 |
| 30 minutes | 10.8 | $430 | $71–$109 |
| 60 minutes | 21.7 | $860 | $141–$217 |
Calculator: maintenance agreements per year
Maintenance agreements are the most countable work an HVAC office does: a known number of customers, a known number of visits, a renewal date for each. That makes them easy to price per agreement. Put in your own numbers:
- VA hours a year–
- VA cost a year (agency example)–
- Per agreement, per year–
- Same hours at the CSR slip's loaded hour–
With the defaults, 300 agreements at two visits and one renewal each come to 150 hours a year, or $975–$1,500: $3.25–$5.00 per agreement per year. That is less than a month of a full-time VA, spread across the year, which is why agreement work is usually a block inside a wider role rather than a job of its own.
In that block the VA keeps one list of agreements with visit and renewal dates, books seasonal visits in batches before the rush, sends renewals with one follow-up and flags lapsed agreements for you. What a plan includes and any renewal discount stay in your price book.
Quote follow-up, priced per quote
Replacement and installation quotes are the biggest tickets an HVAC company writes, and the ones most often left without a second call. A follow-up sequence is cheap in VA time. Here is one example sequence, priced with the agency example's rate:
One open quote, VA time
Example sequence over two weeks
- Day 1: thank-you text with the quote link3 min
- Day 3: call to answer timing and scheduling questions7 min
- Day 7: email with the options your advisor wrote4 min
- Day 14: last call, outcome logged6 min
VA time20 minutes
Cost per quote$2.17–$3.33
- Technical questions, equipment changes, discounts and financing terms go back to your comfort advisor or owner.
At the example 20 minutes, 40 open quotes a month take about 13 hours, or $87–$133 of VA time. This page quotes no close rates: they vary too much by market and season to borrow from anyone else.
Two rules make follow-up work. The VA never changes a quote; it sends the one your advisor wrote and books the advisor when the customer wants to talk options. And financing stays with the lender: the VA can send the lender's application link you provide and tell the customer who to call, but doesn't explain terms or advise on them.
A year of seasons on one budget
HVAC work follows the weather, so the VA's week changes through the year even when the hours don't. An illustrative split for one full-time VA, at $1,040–$1,600 a month:
| Months (example) | Season | Where the hours go |
|---|---|---|
| Mar–Apr | Spring shoulder | Cooling tune-up campaign to past customers, agreement visits booked in batches, quote follow-up from winter |
| May–Aug | Cooling peak | Inbound calls first, the board second; confirmations and reschedules; invoices out the same day |
| Sep–Oct | Fall shoulder | Heating tune-up campaign, agreement renewals, replacement quotes from summer followed up |
| Nov–Feb | Heating peak | No-heat calls by your priority rules, the board, warranty paperwork from the season's repairs |
A year of one full-time VA costs $12,480–$19,200. Some owners prefer a part-time base with more hours in the peak months, for example 80 hours in six months and 160 in the other six, which is $9,360–$14,400 a year. Changing hours between seasons depends on the agreement with your recruiting partner and on the person, who needs steady work too; agree it before you hire.
Three HVAC companies, worked through
Example businesses with example volumes, priced with the agency example's rate:
Owner-operator
Owner plus 1 tech, residential
- 40 hours a month$260–$400
Per tech, owner included$130–$200
- Voicemails returned while both are on jobs, next-day confirmations, invoices and reminders, review requests. The owner stops doing paperwork at night.
Residential service company
6 techs, ~400 maintenance agreements
- 160 hours a month$1,040–$1,600
Per tech$173–$267
- Phones and the board on weekdays, agreement visits and renewals, quote follow-up, invoices and past-due reminders.
Residential and light commercial
12 techs, two seats
- Phones and board, 160 hours$1,040–$1,600
- Billing and agreements, 80 hours$520–$800
Per tech$130–$200
- Commercial customers on net terms, so accounts receivable gets its own hours; the in-house office manager keeps purchasing and payroll.
Plumbing, electrical and other home-service trades fit the same pattern. Trades that run crews mainly from a dispatch board will find more detail on what a dispatcher VA costs; contractors with bigger installation and permit paperwork, on what a construction VA costs.
A full-time week, priced by block
Where 40 hours of a full-time HVAC VA typically go in a peak-season week, and what each block costs at $6.50–$10.00 an hour. Illustrative split; your call volume decides the real one.
| Block | Hours a week | Cost a week | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inbound calls and leads | 14 | $91.00–$140 | Calls answered, voicemails returned, web and ad leads booked |
| Dispatch board | 9 | $58.50–$90.00 | Jobs assigned by your rules, delays told to customers, tomorrow confirmed |
| Billing and collections | 6 | $39.00–$60.00 | Invoices out the same day, past-due list worked |
| Quotes and agreements | 6 | $39.00–$60.00 | Open quotes followed up, agreement visits and renewals booked |
| Reviews and customer records | 3 | $19.50–$30.00 | Review requests sent, equipment details and notes added |
| Warranty paperwork and weekly report | 2 | $13.00–$20.00 | Claims ready for your approval, Monday numbers sent |
Numbers to check every Monday
An HVAC office is easy to measure because the phone system and the field service software already count most of it. Ask for these in a one-page weekly report. You set the targets; there are no honest industry benchmarks to copy.
| Number | How it's counted | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Answer rate in the VA's hours | Calls answered ÷ calls received, from your phone system's report | Whether one person covers the volume |
| Callbacks within your window | Missed calls and voicemails returned inside the time you set | Whether missed calls still turn into bookings |
| Booked calls per inbound lead | Jobs booked ÷ new-customer calls and web leads | How well the intake script works |
| Open quotes older than 14 days | Quotes with no outcome logged | Whether follow-up happens |
| Agreement visits due but not booked | Agreement customers inside the season window with no visit on the board | Whether the agreement list is owned |
| Invoices unsent at end of day | Completed jobs with no invoice out | How fast cash comes in |
The software bill: separate lines
The hourly rate covers the person, not the software. Field service platforms (ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber, FieldEdge, Service Fusion), your phone system, texting and review tools (Podium, Birdeye), accounting (QuickBooks, Xero) and your Google Business Profile bill you per plan, per user or per message, whoever does the work. Check your plan's terms for an extra office user and a phone extension before you compare totals. A VA who already knows your platform sits higher in the rate range and needs less time to start.
Give the VA a named login with only the permissions the role needs, two-factor login where offered, and no access to bank accounts, card details beyond your payment-link tool, or payroll. Our guide on giving a VA access to accounts walks through it. Remove access the day the role ends; the customer records stay in your systems.
The extras on both sides
| Cost | In-house CSR or dispatcher | HVAC VA |
|---|---|---|
| Hiring | Ads, interviews, weeks of your time | No recruitment fee; you interview a shortlist |
| Desk, computer, headset | You provide | The VA's own setup |
| Software seat | Usually one more office user | Usually one more office user |
| Phone line | A desk phone | An extension or app on your phone system, so calls show your number |
| Overtime in the peak | Time and a half under US overtime rules for non-exempt staff | Extra hours at the same hourly rate, if agreed |
| Sick days and holidays | Paid, and the phones go to voicemail | Billed for hours worked only; agree cover in advance |
| If it doesn't work out | A new hiring round | 30-day trial, then 30 days' notice; replacement at no extra cost (agency example) |
How the agency example bills
- Billed monthly after the work, for hours worked only
- Nothing to pay before you choose your hire
- 30-day trial with each new hire: end it right away, no notice
- After the trial, 30 days' written notice
- Replacement at no extra cost
- A one-time advance payment once you choose your hire, credited against your first invoices and refundable
- Recruitment, placement or setup fee: None
- Bank transfer in USD: No processing fee
- Credit card or PayPal: 4% processing fee
A 30-minute test before you hire
General customer service skills carry over to HVAC faster than most roles, but the phone is where it shows.
- Booking call (10 minutes): you play a homeowner with no cooling on a hot afternoon. Do they get the address, the equipment, the problem in your words and a slot, without promising an arrival time the board can't keep?
- Urgent call (5 minutes): hand them a one-paragraph script, then call saying you smell gas. The right answer is to read the script and alert the on-call tech, not to troubleshoot.
- The board (10 minutes): a screenshot of tomorrow's board, one tech off sick and two urgent calls. How do they move the jobs under the rules you gave them, and who do they tell?
- Writing (5 minutes): a follow-up text on a two-week-old replacement quote and a reply to a customer asking for a discount. Look for short, plain sentences and no price that isn't in your price book.
Our interview questions template has more to ask.
The first month
| Week | HVAC VA | You |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Learns the software, listens to calls, answers the overflow with you listening | Logins, the price book, the urgent-call script, the "VA handles vs techs do" table |
| 2 | Takes the phones in set hours; confirmations and invoices | Review a few calls a day; correct the script where callers stumble |
| 3 | Adds the board under your rules; quote follow-up starts | Explain how you choose which tech goes where |
| 4 | Agreement list and renewals; first Monday report | Agree the weekly numbers and targets above |
HVAC office terms, in one line each
Useful for the job description and for checking a candidate knows the work.
- Dispatch board
- The day's jobs laid out by technician and time, where bookings and changes happen.
- Arrival window
- The time range a customer is promised, such as 8–10 am, rather than an exact time.
- Maintenance agreement
- A plan, sometimes called a membership, that includes scheduled tune-ups and the perks you set.
- Tune-up
- A scheduled maintenance visit, usually cooling before summer and heating before winter.
- Price book
- Your list of service fees and job prices; the only prices a VA may quote.
- Callback (recall)
- A return visit for the same problem after a job, tracked separately from new work.
- Comfort advisor
- The person who visits homes to quote equipment replacements.
- Warranty registration
- Registering new equipment with the manufacturer; deadlines and terms vary by manufacturer.
How to hire an HVAC VA here
Requests from this site go to our recruiting partner, the agency in the example above, at $6.50–$10.00 an hour for HVAC office roles:
- Tell us the job: residential or commercial, technician count, field service software, the hours your phones need covering and the work from this page.
- Meet a shortlist: candidates with customer service, scheduling or field service backgrounds, usually in about 2 business days.
- Choose and start: nothing is paid before you choose; billing is monthly, after the work, for hours worked.
The trade-offs: an agency costs more per hour than hiring a freelancer yourself, in exchange for screening, payroll handling and free replacement; the first weeks need your time for the script, the price book and call reviews.
More: job description templates, part-time vs full-time VA cost and outsourcing vs hiring in-house.
Questions people ask about the cost
How much does an HVAC virtual assistant cost?
In the agency example on this page (our parent company's published rates), a dedicated HVAC VA costs $6.50–$10 an hour: $260–$400 a month for 40 hours, $520–$800 for 80 hours and $1,040–$1,600 for 160 hours, with no recruitment or setup fee. Callbacks, confirmations and invoices sit lower in the range; a VA who already runs your field service software's dispatch board sits higher.
How does that compare with an in-house customer service rep?
The US median pay for customer service representatives was $44,770 a year ($21.53 an hour) in May 2025, according to the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook. Payroll taxes and benefits come on top; the slip on this page adds them line by line from BLS employer cost data. A full-time VA in the agency example costs $12,480–$19,200 for 1,920 hours a year. A VA can't work the counter or the parts shelf, so the comparison holds for phones, the board and billing.
What does an HVAC VA cost per technician?
Divide the monthly cost by the technicians the VA supports. A full-time VA at $1,040–$1,600 a month costs $260–$400 per tech with four technicians and $130–$200 with eight, as long as one person keeps up with the calls and the board. If voicemails and unsent invoices start piling up, the load is too high.
What does one booking or one invoice cost in VA time?
Rate times minutes. At this page's example times, a new service call booked in 6 minutes costs $0.65–$1.00, and an invoice sent from a completed job in 4 minutes costs $0.43–$0.67. Time your own first two weeks and use your minutes instead.
Can an HVAC VA diagnose problems or tell customers if the system is safe?
No. The VA records the problem in the customer's words and books a technician; diagnosis stays with your techs. On a gas smell, a carbon monoxide alarm or another urgent call, the VA reads your written script word for word (for example: leave the building and call the gas utility or 911 from outside) and alerts your on-call tech. It gives no safety advice of its own.
Can a VA give prices over the phone?
Only prices in your price book: service call fees, tune-up prices, agreement prices. Anything else, including discounts and replacement quotes, goes back to you or your comfort advisor. The VA sends and follows up on quotes your people wrote and never changes them.
Can a VA run our maintenance agreements?
Yes, the admin side: the list of agreements with visit and renewal dates, spring and fall visits booked ahead of the season, reminders, renewal notices and follow-up, lapsed agreements flagged. With this page's example assumptions (300 agreements, two visits and one renewal each), that is about 150 hours a year, $975–$1,500, or $3.25–$5.00 per agreement per year. What a plan includes and costs is your decision.
Does the VA handle refrigerant records or EPA certification?
No. Refrigerant work and anything that needs EPA Section 608 certification stays with your certified technicians. If you ask, a VA can keep copies of licences and certification cards on file and remind you of renewal dates, but it makes no compliance judgements.
Can a VA cover after-hours emergency calls?
It can, as a shift you agree in advance, at the same hourly rate. Many owners cover business hours with the VA and keep an on-call rota or an answering service at night. Whoever answers, urgent calls follow your script and reach your on-call tech.
Does the hourly rate include ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro or Jobber?
No. Your field service platform, phone system, texting and review tools and accounting software bill you per plan, per user or per message, whoever does the work. Check whether your plan charges for an extra office user and a phone extension before you compare totals.
Are there extra fees, and when do I pay?
In the agency example there is no recruitment, placement or setup fee and no fee for USD bank transfers; card or PayPal payments carry a 4% processing fee. A one-time advance payment is due once you choose your hire, credited against your first invoices and refundable. Nothing is paid before you choose, and billing is monthly after the work, for hours worked only.
Can I cancel, and should a small HVAC company start part-time?
In the agency example each new hire has a 30-day trial you can end right away; after that, 30 days' written notice applies, and a replacement is provided at no extra cost. Owner-operators often start at 40–80 hours a month ($260–$800) on callbacks, confirmations, invoices and review requests, and add hours before the peak season. First candidates usually arrive in about 2 business days.