Landcape Estimate questions

[emil35]

Hello:

I've been doing lawn care for quite some time now and am looking at getting into landscaping. I have a few jobs that want quotes, but I don't know what to do from this point on. I use to estimating lawn care quotes, not landscapes. I figure do a drawing (do I charge for that?), have the drawing approved, find the costs of the materials and add a percentage over the wholesale cost (not sure what that percentage should be?) and state an hourly labor rate...or do I have to quote a labor rate? I know these questions are probably dumb, but I want to get into landscaping and found a great deal on a dingo so I'm pretty much gonna do the work for the dingo to start and hopfully it will take off from there. Thanks in advance.

[olderthandirt]

If your just gonna do the work for the dingo then you will have time to figure out all your mistakes.

Hell I want a profit above the cost of expenses.

[cutthegrass]

How do you charge for Sod if a pallet cost 225, what would you recommend for labor

[lpkatsavage]

if they go with me then i don't charge for the drawing but if they go with some one else you need to get paid for that time. also a real easy way to bid a landscape job until you get better at it is find out your material cost and double it, but this only works for installs with little prep work.