It is well known in Australia that you can make a lot of money working as a tradie. Better than software developers do here that's for sure. You are lucky if you can get a tradie to step foot inside your house for less than $200 USD, then the hourly costs start running away pretty quick.
$200 is about the going rate to get somebody to show up in the US as well (DC-metro, specifically). Maybe not for a generic handyman (though that's increasingly true as well), but somebody with a license and training (electrician, plumber).
You’re potentially getting the wrong type of tradie. What, are you calling Fallon’s or something?
partly because there is a shortage in Australia of people with such skills.