Starting a small business in Ont, Canada

[Huck]

Hi, are there any Canadians on board who can possibly help me with
any info regarding the laws,licenses and any other information
regarding part time mowing and trimming ( gst#,business#,income tax
etc,etc).Any help would be appreciated,Thanks,Huck(Ontario,Canada)

[Eric ELM]

We have several members from your area and all over Canada. I'm sure someone will jump on this question and help you. :)

[casey]

You mean there are laws, licences, GST??
Uh oh.
Toronto, Ontario

If your doing part time residentials or even small commercials you don't need a license in Toronto. Don't worry about GST unless your books show over 20 k. Keep receipts for everything, and when you file make sure your deposits and expenses add up. You won't pay much or even anything if your part time with alot of expenses you can show.
If your small or they think you are no ones gunna bug you.
They're everywhere.

GO RAPTORS

[pcs]

You only need a GST # if your over 30K. And to get a business # cost about $80.00. Then you can open a business account at the bank and your ready to go. One other thing you may want to consider is insurance. That always comes in handy.

[casey]

30k it is.
who do you get your insurance from pcs? personal injury & equipment.

[cantoo]

I get my business insurance from the same company that I get my vehicle insurance from. Get an accountant to make sure you are doing things right at the start no matter how small you are. It'll only cost a couple of hundred and it will pay back on your first tax return they do.
Keep all receipts and record your mileage so you can claim all vehicle expenses.

[Lawnnorder]

I regret ever getting a GST number. I intentionally keep my invoices under 30K so I don't have to charge the tax or get a rebate. If you miss a 1/4 filing then all rebates are held up and it takes awhile to figure out. Just wasn't worth it for me in the long run.

And spraying will require a licence both for yourself and the business. Insurance can be expensive when spraying is involved. I always contracted mine out therefore no headaches.

It is a great market here in Toronto. It is too bad the season is so short but you can make excellent money with proper services.

Good luck yo you.

[pcs]

casey: I have my insurance with The Economical Insurance Group. I get it through there broker here in Mississauga the Neziol Group. # 905-274-8840. For $1 million Liability cost me about 99.00 per month and that includes snowplowing. If you do any spraying the insurance is pretty high. I don't have any personal injury insurance right now but I did check it out a few months ago. It cost something like 50.00 per month and your expenses are covered and they give you a percentage of your income back so it seemed alright. I should really look into it more. It's worth having.

[cantoo]

My insurance for spraying alone is $650 and I can't bill over $5000 or I have to get more insurance. Even though I am only one of many people spraying in my area I am the only one that my insurance company has ever insured for it. When I first started looking for insurance I had a hard time finding a company that even heard of it. I wish there was some enforcement of the laws around here. I just lost a bunch of cutting work to a kid who does commercial work using his Dad's name and no insurance. One phone call is all it would take but I doubt if I will make it. The worse part is, he does real poor work too, I wouldn't mined so much if he did good work. Small town politics suck

Money talks, legit companies have to walk.

[casey]

Toronto & Miss. members where do you buy and servive your equipment.
I use WE Enterprises and Chain Saw Clinic. Both excellent.
WE has Exmark but Chain Saw is closer.
VERY BAD EXPERIENCES at KOOY BROTRHERS-screwed me around on availability of Toro WB after assuring me he could get one and finally admitting couldn't get it.
VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY BAD HORRIBLE EXPERIENCES WITH ALL SEASONS SMALL ENGINES!!!DON'T EVER EVEN DRIVE BY THE PLACE.
I won't go into all the problems I had with them but they overcharge and do really baaaad work. And those are the nicest things I have to say about them.

[pcs]

I like Cliff's in Oakville. Good dealer for both walker and toro. Cliff can be grumpy. I usally use a smaller shop called Ashot's here in Miss. They will drop what ever they are doing to fix my problems.

[casey]

What do they carry at Ashots? Where is it?
If Cliff gets too grumpy try WE Enterprises at Dundas & Dixie. Exmark, LB, Echo, Troy-Bilt(crap), huge servive area lots of qualified mechanics.

[cantoo]

I bought my new Walker at Kitchener Tractor in Guelph, it's not real far from TO and they are real fair on pricing. I just started buying parts from J.T. Thomas in Walled Lake Michigan and the prices are pretty good.
I drive 80 miles one way to Kitchener Tractor for service work if needed.
Do any of you guys use Duke Equipment, I tried to buy baldes for my Ransomes but they kept saying they couldn't get them. PS they are exactly the same as my Walker blades, too lazy to cross reference them = no money from me.

[pcs]

Casey: Ashot's is a Sthil and Toro dealer. They just got the unit next to them so they are going to get Ferris and maybe walker. Also they are going to start to carry western snowplows and salters. It's on Ridgeway Dr. Dundas and 403 area.

Cantoo: I called Duke's before to get a price on a machine. It's true they are to lazy to help you. They told me to phone back later and when I did they told me to try another dealer closer to me. I don't understand that. They don't want to help.

[casey]

Sounds like Kooy Brothers.
Too bad cause they got all the cool toys.
Too much business too care about the individual customer.
Wait a minute that sounds like a lawn care service in Toronto.
What's up with these guys from the States having so much trouble getting work
I turn down at least one a day and bump anyone that pisses me off.

Gunna rain all week say the crystal ball.

[cutntrim]

We pay $4200.00 for insurance. That's for three trucks that cut, spray, and plow. We carry 2 million liability under the same policy. Insurance company is Scottish & York.

We own three Ransomes from Duke here in Burlington. They're huge and supply equipment to municipalities all over Ontario. You will definately not be first in line for service when it comes to those guys. We go to a local guy for repairs and do maintenance on our equipment ourselves. Our Toro Z-Master was bought at Cliff's. So was our Little Wonder Blower, and our two Snoway plows. Cliff gets an A+ for salesmanship, a C+ for after sales, and a D- for servicing.

Dickson Equipment is the big Exmark guy around here and Barry Dickson himself seems like an OK guy, although I know of many competitors of his that despise him. We haven't yet bought anything from him, but Exmark equipment is top-notch and we will be in to see him sometime soon.

[AB Lawn Care]

Welcome to the bussiness and the forum huck!

First off read anything and everything on the forum.

Give me an email at freshcut@mail.com

I will be more than happy to help!

Like cantoo I also go to kitchner tractor.Hands down best service in canada!I don't think dealers can get any better than KT.Where you from in ontario huck???

Agian give me an email!

Talk to you soon.

[joed]

Just wanted to add my 2 cents regarding dealers.

Cliffs: Sneaky salespeople and a grumpy Cliff made for a bad experience. They charged me $18 for an oil filter for my 6.5 B&S engine on my toro 21". Then they managed to convince me that a tiller attachment for a Stihl FS85 was better than a mini-tiller.

W.E. Enterprises: Excellent service, fair prices but can be a tad expensive. Shaun and Bobby are great guys.

Current Power Machinery: Very good service though they are a little more expensive than other dealers.

Haltons Ground Care: John Deere Dealer. Very nice owners. Good prices. Liked them a lot.

I hope this helps you to make a decision regarding dealers.