This isn't as complete as Amazon Home Services, which lets you pull the trigger on a request. Money still has to trade hands the old-fashioned way before you can get that sink fixed. However, it could shift Yelp away from its reputation as a restaurant finder and make it useful even at those times when you're bent on staying in.

The only big catch at the moment is for businesses. While quotes are strictly opt-in, that response time measurement might hurt smaller shops that can't always afford to respond right away. Yelp's move may inadvertently favor the outfits that can get back to you quickly, even if their service isn't always as good as that of the smaller contractors.