pricing

[spotremix]

i know i posted a thread on this before but i really didn't get the answers i was looking for and haven't seen a thread that has given the answers i'm looking for. i know everyone is from all over the the country but can anyone give me some ballpark numbers for the pricing on the following services?

edging
shrub trimming
weed pulling
mulching
watering flowers

i'm also curious what people charge for cutting the grass, that includes running the string trimmer and blowing off the sidewalks, i average $35 a yard.

[TTLC603]

Well its hard to say how much you charge for a yard...I usually base mine on how long it will take two guys...or I take square footage, how often they want it cut I.E once a week, every 5 days, twice a week. It also depends on what the going rate in your area is. My Labor rate per man hour is 42.50...edging, weed pulling, watering flowers, and even mulching is baased on that minus product. For Shrub trimming or pruning like we call it is based on hourly rate plus fuel and if your dumping it on site or somewhere else. I get my muclh for 18-20 dollars a yard...I then charge them the going rate if they wanted to buy it themselves as well as the labor. There is so many ways to figure how to price things, just make sure your not low balling, and that your with the going rate.

[spotremix]

i get my $35 a yard average from most every yard company in the area. for pruning the going rate is $5 a shrub (4' and under) $10 (over 4') or if it's a large job $35 an hour. i haven't checked yet about weed pulling, edging, and watering flowers, no one has asked for those services yet. a few people have told me to just make my own prices, now obviously i want to make sure i'm competive. i don't want to be to low or to high so your $42.50 gives me somewhere to start.

[TTLC603]

The way I do things is every job I do such as pruning weeding and what not is based on a minimum of 5 man hours...so 2 guys 2.5 hours...which most of the time if they want pruning...weeding and edging...5 hours is not much at all. But I base alot of my mowing quotes on #1 how long it will take me to cut it #2 any obstacles that i will have to mow around and take more time #3 square footage. Once you have cut a fair amount you can look at mosts lawns and tell the people exactly how much. You always need to take into factor any steep inclines that need to be done with a push mower or walk behind...or even need to be string trimmed because they are very steep. I cant base mine on $5 a shrub because its kind of unfair to charge that for a ground juniper or even small barberry....and every shrub takes a different amount of time for it to look good. I tend to spend more time on my residential lawns on making them look perfect then I do commercial properties such as condos or apts. Because they want to get out of it the cheapest possible and they dont generally have to live with it, but home owners like to have everything look good. You need to get a feel for prices in your area and how much you can produce with the equipment you use. Always work smarter not harder!