Going Rate for Lawn Care?

[PNA]

What is the average going rate for general lawn care (mow, edge, blow) on a residential property of 10,000 sq feet total (including house, driveway, etc.); about 6,500-7,000 sq/feet of grass in the SW area of Florida? I've been bidding in the $70-85/month range and I don't get the accounts. Am I bidding too high?

[PNA]

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Anyone have a point of view on this?
PNA

[intgr8all]

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I'm really new here, to this form but if you do a search on Pricing you will get your question answered farely quicker .. But here is a link to price guide line I did a search on this form. I hope this helps..

http://www.lawnservicing.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2903&SearchTerms=priceing

[Phil Nilsson]

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This is a tough question because pricing is tied to the total number of bids received for a job which will vary by the people bidding at any one time ... but ... there are some rules of thumb or some averages of experienced rates ... the best defense is to know your costs add a profit that motivates and see clearly on each job what your walkaway price will be. Base your price on realistic work times and adjust your price up or down from that as market conditions unfold.

You could "know" that a lawn is worth let's say $35 to cut but if you run into several lowballers bidding the same work, you might see some very low bids.

[65hoss]

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Take a stack of 3x5 cards. Write a number starting at $10 and going up on each card. Then, throw them in the air and that is about what you will find from most people's pricing.[]

[mariner]

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Hoss is pretty darn right! Different neighborhoods, different class of people, different type of accounts....etc all plays a role in pricing. The main thing is to know the competition in your area and be satisfied with what you are getting paid on each job.

[XtreemGreen]

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Hey PNA im in central Florida..The going rate around here, for the avarage home is about $85 a month or $20-$25 per cut..These are the yards that will take you all of 8 minutes to mow on a 52 zero turn( exmark, dixie etc).. Stick to your prices, dont back down on them... I did when I had my buiz and now im trying to start over..I have learned more from this site here, then I have from the others by far..If you cant find your answer here, then you wont find it ...


hope this helps

Chad

[Kidsweet]

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Yes I am with chadslawn, I also am from central florida area and I charge any where from $20 - $25 for a standard size lot of 120 X 80. Stick to your guns this work is not easy.

[qlc]

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I would regretfully have to disagree with Mr. Nilsson on his comment that "You could 'know' that a lawn is worth let's say $35 to cut but if you run into several lowballers bidding the same work, you might see some very low bids."

Each lawn care service is worth exactly what the owner/manager is willing to pay for it. This number may differ from what you feel your services are worth. Perhaps the quality of work you provide is superior to that of the competitive bidders.

Additionally, the determination of what a lawn is worth is driven by the current market conditions. It sounds like some of the LCO's are trying to get work be driving prices down. When supply exceeds demand, invariably the price will decrease, however marginally.

If an LCO is bidding what he knows the lawn to be worth and isn't getting any work, then my assesment would be that he doesn't know what the lawn is worth and needs to adjust his pricing to what the market is allowing at this moment. I am guessing from the post that that is what he is trying to determine for his region.

Realistically, you can't charge what you think something is worth because it is subjective, you can only charge what the guy that is paying thinks that it is worth.

You see this a lot with housing... people who have lived in a house for 20 years will always feel that it is worth more than the person buying it who only sees it for what it is.

OK, off my soapbox .

To PNA, I would say adjust your prices to reflect the market or offer another service to get the prices you want. Either way I would act quickly or you will continue to lose accounts IMO. Now if you are in a position where you really don't need the accounts, I would focus on retaining the accounts you have and ride out the downturn in the market... hopefully, those that are bidding under you provide a lower quality service and you will have an opportunity to pursue the account at the price you think the market should support.

Good luck!!!

[CCLS]

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I would agree with John,

Your services are only worth what someone is willing to pay for them. You need to find a happy medium in your pricing structure so that you can get jobs. You need to base your price on what the market you live in is willing to bear. If you want to base your prices on the high end of that market, then generally you will get less jobs reguardless of the quality you put into providing your services.

[PNA]

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Seems like "Hit-and-miss". After not being able to get a few that I quote $70/month for just last week, I just got one for $90/month. Go figure....
PNA

[Maddog]

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Some people just want something for nothing. They would rather have one of the neighbor kids mow for $5 less and not be insured, or do any trimming, edging or blowing.

[mjlawncare]

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Stick to your price, With a new customer I usually ask them how much they been paying, because I don't want to underbid too much. and I take it from there. Also I usually ask much much they think is worth?.
I was going to charge a new customer $50.00 and before I said anything they said They think the cut was worth $60.00 , Good communication with the customer can take you a long way. Also complement them with their property,landscaping,house color,and tell them what you can do for them to make their property more beautiful.
Be nice and smile a lot, Even if your price is a little too high,they may say " He seems a nice guy", and go with your bid.

[bigT]

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TELL THEM $20 PER WEEK{IT SOUNDS CHEAPER THAN $80 PER MONTH} YOU WILL GET MORE WORK THAT WAY.