A seasonal contract or one storm at a time.
Match the trigger to Troy’s 2 inches.
Troy’s sidewalk duty starts at 2 inches. A contract that sends the truck at 3 leaves the walk to you on every small storm, so the trigger depth is the first line to read.
A referral service for Troy homeowners. An automated assistant answers; calls are recorded.
Typical cost: a seasonal contract $200 – $600 with a cap on visits; one visit $30 – $70 — national ranges (HomeGuide, December 2024)
- Cost to call
- Nothing
- Answered by
- Automated assistant
- Hours
- Any hour
The two ways to buy
Same driveway, two kinds of agreement.
Seasonal contract
One price for the winter, with a cap on visits and a depth that triggers each one.
Read what a visit past the cap costs, and ask whether a light winter changes the price.
$200 – $600 a season (HomeGuide, December 2024).
Per push
You pay for each visit you ask for: nothing in a light winter, more in a heavy one. Nothing is booked before the storm.
On the same chart, per storm pricing grows with depth: $30 – $100 for the first 6 inches, then about $30 for each further 6 inches.
$30 – $70 a visit (HomeGuide, December 2024).
What to ask a plow operator in Troy
Ten questions, answered in writing.
- What depth brings the truck? Troy’s sidewalk duty starts at 2 inches, and any ice (the city’s rule).
- Is the sidewalk in the price, front and, if it applies to you, side? The city clears only its own walks (what the city clears).
- Do you come back for the end of the drive? The city plows subdivision streets after 4 inches and asks residents to clear the lump it leaves (the city’s snow page).
- How many visits does the price cover, and what does each one past the cap cost?
- Is salt included? The same chart prices it separately, $20 – $65 an application (HomeGuide).
- Where does the snow go? Not into the street: state law bars it, and the city asks residents not to (state law · the city’s snow page).
- Who pays for damage to the lawn, the curb or the garage door? The city has its own policy for its plows: a standard mailbox replaced free, a designer one reimbursed up to $250 with the receipt (the city’s procedures).
- Can I see proof of insurance? Michigan licenses no snow removal (the state’s license).
- If you came to my door: do you have a city peddler permit? Troy requires one for selling services door to door (the city code).
- How do I cancel, and is any of the season refunded?
Questions
When should I sign a seasonal contract?
- Before the first storm, so the terms are settled before you need them. At Detroit Metro Airport, the nearest station with a long record, most of the season’s 45 inches falls from December through February (the weather service’s normals).
What if it barely snows?
- A flat seasonal price is owed either way unless the contract says otherwise. If that bothers you, ask for a per visit price with a cap, or pay per storm.
Will I be charged for the visit?
- Calling us costs nothing. Some contractors charge to come out and look at the job. Ask before they come, and get the price in writing.