Stealth Agents alternatives for HVAC estimate follow-up calls?
By the Escloser team · Published · Updated
The Stealth Agents alternatives for HVAC estimate follow-up calls are VirtuHire for a dedicated quote-follow-up seat, Time etc for a US assistant billed by the hour, HVAC Callback for unsold-estimate dials, Tasks Expert for a cheaper HVAC VA, or a person who owns the open list. Stealth Agents still wins a full-time HVAC admin VA.
This is the buy for a 2-to-10 truck HVAC shop on ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro or Workiz whose change-outs go quiet, and who is pricing Stealth Agents against a quote specialist, a US assistant, a callback service, or calling the list themselves.
What Stealth Agents actually sells
Stealth Agents’ HVAC companies page, dated 2026-05-14 and read 2026-11-02, is a full-time HVAC virtual assistant. Inbound calls and booking, estimate follow-up, scheduling, invoicing, review requests. Tools named: ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro, FieldEdge. Starts at $10 an hour. About $1,600 a month at 40 hours. Full-time only.
Stealth Agents pricing that day: Core $1,600 a month, Senior $2,400, Operations $3,000. 160 hours a month, US timezone, Philippines VAs. One-time onboarding fee, no dollar printed. That page lists a 3-month commitment. The HVAC services page the same day says no contracts. Ask which applies.
Estimate follow-up on that page is track open estimates, send a reminder, and answer basic questions. A task on a general admin seat, not a dedicated callback product.
On r/ProHVACR, one shop said their estimate software already sends a day-2 text and an expiry text, and that this is standard. That is the reminder. How to follow up on HVAC estimates that haven’t closed is the call: same business hour, then days 2, 4, 7 and 14.
Stealth Agents wins a shop that wants one full-time VA on phones, the board, invoices, and follow-up. It stops when inbound eats Follow Up, or the notes are blank.
Five alternatives we priced
Prices below are from each vendor’s own page, read 2026-11-02, unless a page carries an earlier date. Stealth Agents still wins the dedicated HVAC admin VA.
| Service | Cost | Pulls the open list | Who is on the phone | Reason for a no |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stealth Agents | $1,600 a month Core. HVAC page $10 an hour. Onboarding fee unpublished | If you point them at Follow Up | One dedicated VA, Philippines, US hours | Only if you build the log |
| VirtuHire | Quote follow-up specialist $1,500 to $1,900 a month | Yes. 3 / 7 / 14 day cadence | One dedicated VA, South Africa, US hours | Lost-deal log, if you check it |
| Time etc | US assistant, 20 hours $760 a month. 40 hours $1,480 | Only if you point them at the list | A US assistant, phone, email, or text | Only if you build the log |
| HVAC Callback | $2,000 a month, one location, month to month | Yes. Missed-call feed or estimate export | Their callers, during agreed hours | Notes on the handoff, if you check |
| Tasks Expert | From $4.50 an hour. Full-time from $999 a month | Yes, if that is the role you buy | Mumbai office, across shifts | Only if you check it |
| A person who dials | Software $149 a month. Managed $350 a month plus a capped 3% | Yes. Leave the FSM reminders on | The office, or a caller as the shop | Logged on the estimate |
VirtuHire wins the quote-follow-up specialist. Time etc wins a US voice billed by the hour. HVAC Callback wins missed-call and unsold-estimate dials without a hire. Tasks Expert wins the cheapest HVAC VA seat. A person who dials wins the FSM cadence and the logged no. Stealth Agents wins the 40-hour admin VA.
VirtuHire
VirtuHire’s HVAC page, read 2026-11-02, names quote follow-up as the first hire: a 3 / 7 / 14 day cadence, financing pre-qual, booking onto the install calendar, and a lost-deal log. The specialist is $1,500 to $1,900 a month full-time. Staff sit in South Africa and work US hours. Month to month, with a 30-day replacement.
You still grant FSM access, write the script, and listen to week-one calls. Tonnage, line-set, or a different outdoor unit goes back to the comfort advisor. Should I hire a virtual assistant to follow up on HVAC estimates? is the hire version of the same seat.
VirtuHire wins a shop that wants one person on replacements, on the FSM it already runs. It stops when the notes are blank, or when you wanted after-hours no-heat covered.
Time etc
Time etc pricing, read 2026-11-02: a dedicated US assistant at $390 for 10 hours, $760 for 20, $1,480 for 40, $2,160 for 60. Unused hours roll over on the 20-hour plan and up. No setup fee.
Time etc does not publish an HVAC quote-follow-up role. You write the cadence. How many times should a contractor follow up on an estimate? is five live phone attempts, then a logged ending. Listen to a sample call before they dial 18 Maple.
Time etc wins a shop that wants a US voice and 20 hours a month. It stops at the script you failed to write.
HVAC Callback
HVAC Callback, read 2026-11-02, is $2,000 a month for one residential HVAC location, month to month, 7 days’ notice. Missed-call and unsold-estimate follow-up during agreed hours, then a handoff with notes. Their own page says they do not answer live, book, dispatch, price, quote, or close.
Setup is a missed-call feed or an unsold-estimate export, not a deep integration. Can an outsourced call center follow up on unsold estimates? is the rest of that split. Keep nights on the answering service.
HVAC Callback wins a shop that will export the open list and does not want to hire, train, and manage a VA. It stops at booking and closing. Your office still owns those.
Tasks Expert
Tasks Expert’s HVAC page, read 2026-11-02, starts at $4.50 an hour. Full-time from $999 a month on their comparison table. No setup fee. Assistants work from a Mumbai office with a Lead on the floor. ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber named.
That page lists “Estimates followed up until approved” under revenue work, next to dispatch, a 24-hour receptionist, and collections. You still pick the seat. A mixed dispatch-and-follow-up hire will lose the open list the first heat wave.
Tasks Expert wins a shop that wants the cheapest HVAC VA and will fence the role. It stops when you bought a receptionist and expected Follow Up to move.
A person who dials
Leave the FSM, and Stealth Agents or VirtuHire if you have them, in place. Yesterday’s open change-outs still need a voice that can see the estimator’s notes.
The BLS, visited 2026-11-02, puts the US CSR median at $21.53 an hour in May 2025. That is enough when someone owns the open list every morning, highest dollar first.
Pull open estimates onto a call cadence so the office, or a caller working as the shop, actually dials. We make Escloser, so weigh this entry accordingly. Software is $149 a month and the shop’s own office makes the calls from the daily list. Managed is $350 a month plus 3% of a quote that closes within 30 days of the call, capped at $250 per job. It does not answer the after-hours no-heat line.
If they reply STOP, or they ask you not to call, stop that day. The FCC (updated 2026-02-27) prohibits telemarketing calls to the home before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m. local time, and says telemarketers must honor a do-not-call request immediately. This is not legal advice. Check with your own counsel.
What most shops actually run
A 2-to-10 truck shop already paid for the reminder. Turn it on. Work Follow Up, awaiting response, Pipeline, or Pending every morning, highest dollar first. That is enough when someone is at the desk. The estimator’s same-hour check-in is still the best first call.
Stealth Agents is the shop that wants one full-time VA on phones, the board, and follow-up. VirtuHire is the shop that wants the quote seat fenced. Time etc is the shop that wants a US voice and 20 hours. HVAC Callback is the shop that will export the list and keep booking in-house. Tasks Expert is the shop buying on rate and willing to fence the role.
A person who dials is the shop whose open list is growing and whose reminders are already sending.
How to tell this week
Follow-up is working when yesterday’s unsold change-outs have a reminder and a same-day callback, lost jobs have a reason, and Friday’s open list is shorter than Monday’s. If the VA’s week is full of inbound and the list only grew, you hired a receptionist.
Open last month’s estimates in the FSM. Lay the open ones next to the phone. Start with that list. It already exists.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a Stealth Agents HVAC virtual assistant cost?
Stealth Agents' HVAC page, dated 2026-05-14 and read 2026-11-02, starts at $10 an hour, about $1,600 a month at 40 hours, full-time only. The pricing page the same day lists Core at $1,600 a month, Senior at $2,400, and Operations at $3,000, 160 hours, plus a one-time onboarding fee with no dollar printed.
Will a Stealth Agents VA call homeowners about unsold HVAC estimates?
Yes, if you make that the job. Their HVAC page lists estimate follow-up as track open estimates, send a reminder, and answer basic questions. They also handle inbound calls, scheduling, invoicing, and reviews. Peak inbound will eat the outbound list unless you fence it. You still write the script and check the log.
Is VirtuHire a Stealth Agents alternative for quote follow-up?
Yes, for the dedicated seat. VirtuHire's HVAC page, read 2026-11-02, names a quote follow-up specialist at $1,500 to $1,900 a month full-time, South Africa, US hours, month to month, on a 3 / 7 / 14 day cadence with a lost-deal log. Stealth Agents still wins a general HVAC admin VA who can also take inbound.
Should I turn off Jobber or Housecall Pro reminders if I hire a VA?
No. Leave the field-service reminders on. They are already in the plan and they never forget. The VA is the person who dials. Running two SMS cadences on the same open estimate is how homeowners get duplicate nags. Pick one text sequence. Keep the call.
Does a Stealth Agents VA replace the estimator's first callback?
No. The person who was in the house still wins that first call when they can make it. A VA can confirm the file arrived, park a date, and send equipment questions back. They should not guess tonnage or drop the price. Hand days 2 through 14 to the office or the VA.