Lawn Care

[custom lawn care]

How do I figure out how much to charge for mowing,edging and trimming a yard,hedges and tree branches?

[Phil Nilsson]

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By the amount of labor hours it takes to do the work, travel to and from plus materials. Labor rate charged for the number of total hours used (by category of work) should contain all <b>time costs </b>such as labor, direct, indirect, overhead costs per hour. The rate per hour will vary from one service to another.

[kutnkru]

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Pricing for lawns is often structured based on what type and size mower you are going to be using.

If you are planning to gross $60/hr for mowing, and you can only cut 3 lawns per hour, many would simply base their estimates at $20/cut. If you can cut 6 lawns per hour with more effective equipment, then hypothetically speaking your gross should double.

You should also read Guidos post on how to effectively estimate your production schedules.

[Phil Nilsson]

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Going a little further ... no matter what price <b>you think you'd like </b>to get for any service provided, your competition is going to have a lot to say as to the final price you actually get ... so ... know your walkaway price (no lower than) because most customers will get more than one price ... and if they didn't ... and your given price was too high and they later discover this ... you may not have a repeat customer on your hands. So, <b>for starters </b>do your research as to what the competition charges for the work (on average) and ask yourself beforehand ... can I compete at or around those average prices?

You have far more control over costs than you do over price. Price is eventually determined by the market (field of competitors) you operate in.

[Greenman]

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kutnkru- who can cut six yards in an hour?! Or even three? Only one person that I know of on this forum[].

[Bobby D]

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Be careful with tree work. If you dont have a license, could be big fines. Company in my area just got busted without a license and paid a hefty fine.

As for pricing, when you just start out, you might take anything you can get. As you get better and more known, you can learn to turn down business. Figure your material costs, then how long it will take, then how much you should make an hour. If its something people can't do themselves, its gonna cost them more.

You wont see a plumber working for less than $50/hr.