How Junta works, all of it

This guide explains how Junta works, for homeowners and contractors. Each part says what a feature is, who it is for, what it costs and what you do. Junta is a marketplace for home projects, starting with roofing in Houston.

Start here

A homeowner describes a project once, in the same structured way every time. Contractors approved by Junta send sealed bids against that one description (with one exception for licensed trades, below). The homeowner compares the bids side by side and chooses one. Posting a project is free for homeowners, and bidding is free for contractors.

Posting a project

The project form

For a roof, you answer a few steps: where the property is, the roof (stories, age, material, layers and size if you know it), what is wrong and how urgent it is, gutters, and photos. You give your ZIP code once, with the property. A second project starts with your last address filled in, and you can change it.

The bidding window

You choose how long contractors can bid: 24 hours, 3 days or 7 days. You can close bidding early with "Review bids now" once at least one bid is in.

What contractors see, and never see

Contractors see the trade, city, state, ZIP code, your answers and your photos. Photo location data is removed when you upload. They never see your street address, name, phone or email before the contact rules below allow it. Only contractors Junta has approved can see open projects, except that a contractor in a licensed trade (pools and spas, HVAC, electrical, plumbing) who has submitted their license for review can see projects in that trade, without photos, and send a private bid while Junta reviews them.

The details lock

Once a project is posted, its details cannot change, so every contractor prices the same work. To change the scope, cancel the project and post it again.

Invite a contractor you found

Already talking to a contractor? While bidding is open you can make up to 3 private links on the project page and send them yourself. The contractor signs up or signs in through the link, and Junta reviews them before they can bid, the same as every contractor. Their bid stays sealed like the others. You see each link's progress, never which bid is theirs. If an invited contractor is still in review near the close, you can give them 2 more days, once.

Comparing bids

Sealed bids

While bidding is open you see how many bids have arrived, not the bids. When bidding closes, every bid opens at once, labeled Contractor A, B, C and so on, without names.

What each bid shows

Price, start window, how long the work takes, material and workmanship warranties, and how firm the price is. For roofing, bids also answer the same scope questions: whether the old roof is removed, whether debris and the dumpster are included, what is not included, what could change the price, and how long the price is good for. A question a contractor left blank shows "Not stated".

Labels you can rely on

"Licensed" appears only when Junta verified a license for that trade. Texas has no state roofing license, so roofing bids do not show it. "Jobs completed" counts projects the contractor actually finished through Junta.

Choosing and paying

Choosing a bid

Junta shows what choosing means before you confirm. You also choose how to pay. If a contractor introduced you to Junta and you choose their bid with direct payment, your street address and contact details are shared right away, and the choice is final.

Direct payment

You pay the contractor yourself, and Junta never charges you. Any deposit or payment you agree is between you and the contractor, so get it in writing. Until the contractor accepts, you can cancel your choice and pick another bid at no cost.

Paying through Junta (managed payment)

You pay by bank transfer through Stripe, Junta's payment provider, and Junta adds a 3% service fee, shown before you pay. Stripe holds your payment until you confirm the work is complete, subject to the managed payment terms. Before work starts you can cancel and get a full refund, including the fee. When the contractor marks the work complete, you have 7 days to confirm and release payment or to raise a dispute. If you do neither, payment releases automatically.

Expired prices

A contractor's price is good until the date on the bid. You cannot pay an expired price through Junta until the contractor confirms it still stands.

Contact and privacy

Your street address, phone and email stay private during bidding. With direct payment, the contractor you chose gets your street address, and you get each other's phone and email, once they accept and pay any lead fee that applies. With managed payment, that happens once your payment clears.

Reports and blocks

You can report a project, bid, review or contact card, and block the other person (except on reviews). Junta reviews reports within 24 hours and tells you what it decided. It never names the other person or the reason.

After the job

On direct payment, the homeowner marks the project complete. On managed payment, the contractor sets a start date, starts work and marks it complete, and the homeowner confirms and releases payment. Either side can raise a dispute on a managed project, with photos and documents. Junta reviews both sides' evidence and decides whether to refund or release the payment.

Reviews

Homeowners review contractors, and contractors review homeowners, after a completed project. Contractors can reply to reviews. If the contractor added a review profile, such as Google, you are invited to post your review there too. That is up to you.

Cancellations and refunds

The plain rules for cancelling, no-shows, refunds and lead-fee credits are on the cancellations page.

Alerts

Junta tells you about everything that changes your projects and payments: new bids, choices, acceptances, cancellations, payments, refunds, disputes and start dates. You get each one in the app and by email. In Settings you can turn off optional emails, such as review notices. You can't turn off essential updates.

For contractors

What it costs

Bid free. Pay a lead fee only when a homeowner picks you for a direct-payment project and you accept. The fee is $100, and your first three won direct-payment projects are free. Earned referral credits can cover later fees. Managed-payment projects have no lead fee.

Getting approved

Junta reviews your business details and insurance, and your license for trades that require one, before your bids reach homeowners. You also set up Stripe for payouts and a card for lead fees.

Bidding

You price the posted scope, sealed from other contractors. You can edit your bid while bidding is open, and withdraw it until the homeowner chooses. If the homeowner chooses someone else, you are told; if that choice falls through, your bid comes back and you are told again.

Bring your own customers

You can send a customer who already knows you a link to post their project on Junta. If they choose you on direct payment, there is no lead fee.

Your account

Sign in with email and password, a one-time email code, Google, Apple or X. You can delete your account in Settings. Junta then deletes your profile, photos, saved cards and anything without a payment record. Records of payments, lead fees and disputes that the law requires are kept without your name, email, phone or address. Reviews you wrote stay without your name, and a homeowner's review shows as "Former Junta homeowner". Contractors can remove a saved card in Payments.