December 20, 2021
When Kate Eldredge was growing up, her family would only call a plumber, carpenter or other tradesperson as a last resort. Her engineer father was handy, and made sure that his four kids all knew how to – properly – hold and swing a hammer, an ax, or whatever tool was necessary to get the job done. “I think I learned how to use a slide rule before a ruler,” Kate jokes now.
Over a decade ago, Kate started to notice opportunities around the South Shore where someone with a can-do attitude could help others manage their busy lives better: vacant homes of “snowbirds” with ice dams clearly on the edges of their roofs; realtor friends scrambling to help sellers to prep their homes for sale; etc. “I started thinking about what I really liked to do and what skills I could call on, and so began Eldredge Property Services.”
Eldredge Property Services (EPS) is a fully-insured property management company with the flair of a concierge service. From overseeing utility and trades work on homes, to spring cleaning to setting up Christmas decorations, EPS helps both permanent and seasonal homeowners who are either out of town or out of time. Kate and her all-woman team act as watchful eyes on properties, and Kate has many stories of emergencies averted or resolved.
For instance:
- While doing a regular check of a client’s home, Kate discovered that a boiler valve had burst. She immediately stopped the water supply and began to salvage key possessions. She then coordinated experts to do a full clean-up and fix affected appliances.
- When inspecting a beachfront residence after a winter storm, Kate found three feet of water in the basement. She shut off the power and called a trusted electrician to assess the damage (“Believe it or not, he rode an inflatable Shamu to get to the floating washing machine,” she says). Kate then oversaw the removal of water, the restoration of heat to the home, and the replacement of the basement appliances, all in locations less susceptible to future storm surges.
Most of EPS’ work involves less dramatic aspects of keeping a home humming, from checking boiler pressure and generator oil levels to watering plants to collecting mail and packages. Their Home Watch service covers a number of tasks that she and her team perform at least once a week for the homes they manage. But it is the experienced eye, noticing that small spot on the ceiling or critter hole near the foundation, that can avoid a much bigger issue. Kate says that EPS staff “are all proud South Shore homeowners ourselves, so we really try to look after our clients’ homes as if they were our own.”
The specifics of the Home Watch and other EPS services can be found at www.eldredgepropertyservices.com, and you can contact Kate at kate@eldredgepropertyservices or at 781-910-5901.
Her job has her driving her truck more than driving nails these days. But if you do see that a black GMC Sierra with the EPS logo parked in a driveway near you, you might just see Kate in action, holding a hammer – properly.
We are Hingham residents and used Kate and her team to look after our house while we went south this past April. We had such a great experience! They were such a pleasure to work with and we were kept up to date on our house, mail, etc. They even removed some planters that had broken during a storm earlier that year that we hadn’t gotten around to taking to the transfer station! My parents in Duxbury use Kate and her team all the time – from house move management and packing to house watching. It is a great piece of mind having a terrific team you trust to take care of any and all house needs. Highly recommend!!
Sara – thank you for your kind words! We love what we do and are so lucky to work with fantastic clients like you and your parents!! – Kate