I need some major advice...

[TennCuts]

First I want to say 'hello' to everyone on the site...I found it a few days ago, and it has been very informative. This is my first post, so please forgive any 'posting goof-ups' I may be responsible for.

My situation is as follows. I work as a mechanical maintenance tech in the automotive industry. I carry a 2-way radio and respond to equipment breakdown issues in the production plant. I make $30 an hour with good insurance. I also work from 10:30p.m. til 7:00a.m. I have been at this job for 15 1/2 years, and I must say I hate my job. To the point....There is supposed to be an employee buyout offered next week, but it's very measly. after taxes, I would have maybe 45,000. in cash. I'd need 20k of it to pay my very modest house off. That leaves 25k to purchase a mower or two( I have a 12ft trailer already). I'd need a blower, and an edger...I've got a shindaiwa trimmer already. I naturally have no clients, and working nights with overtime has me too exhausted to do it part time to start. I know I could get equipment for much less than 25k, but that money is also what I have left to try to survive on and pay other regular bills with...so it won't last long...I also have a 99 tahoe...2wd that I could use to pull my trailer...although it's not ideal.

Many of you have been in the business for years, and I value your opinions. Should I stay where I'm at and make the $30 an hour with benefits and be unhappy? Is it worth taking the leap into the unknown when I have a wife and a teenage daughter? I'm pretty stressed over this, and I know that here very soon I'm gonna have to make a decision. Thanks very much for any and all input.

[StBalor]

Don't know what to say. You're gonna do what you wanna do. you have a good job now. You are not gonna make that kind of money doing this type work for a couple years. It can be done, but it will take you a few years and lotsa time and dedication. It's not as easy as everyone thinks it is.

[TennCuts]

Yes, I understand what you're saying. I have been debating this for several years already, but with the announcement of the tiny 'buyout' option coming forth, it just kinda re-lit the old flame. I have 'some' college, but no degree, so it's just a little scary...I'm sure some of you have had to make similar decisions. Thanks! Keep it coming...

[Robert S]

sounds you should try to find some happieness in your other job cause thats good money get your house paid off build a nest egg. think of it as you dont have to like it but its supporting your family real well.look at me my 8 doller a hour job ends in one week and i want to mow but cant afford a weed eater or blower or mower till i get my tax return i have a wife and 3 kids my wife works for minnumem wage at a retirement home. rent went up last week.man if i was you id keep the mechanic job.if your unhappy with it maybe see a counsler.you got a good life.and again i know how you feel because i quit to many jobs because i wanted to be a painter and be my own boss.try to cope with it .i go to aa im sober 3 years now and regret quiting jobs as a result of my alcholisim.well good luck and keep the faith.turn it over to God

[TennCuts]

Thanks Robert. That is a different perspective, but it is very accurate. I guess that is what makes the situation most difficult. I have had several bouts of depression since working in the maintenance field. There is so much mandatory overtime, and when I do have a day(night) off, I feel so tired from the night shift hours that only one day off is a total waste. There are many good things in my life because of this job...no doubt...but there is such an empty feeling too. We should all try to see the positive things we are blessed with.

[Robert S]

ther you go. things could be worse.just think your young got your family and supporting them well just think of it as the labor of love.i get tired alot to from working to pay rent etc.sometime a multivitamen will help alot.good luck bro.it will get better. turn it over to God.one day at a time

[Albery's Lawn & Tractor]

One thought, why don't you try to get hired by one of your local lawncare companies. You'll get hands on expierence and you'll get to find out if its what you want to do the rest of your life. Granted you might only make $10 or so an hour but if you decide its not for you then you didn't go out and buy $20,000 in equip. Most people like to mow there own yard and think they can make it a career and then when they realize they have to mow 25 plus a week its not so fun anymore.

[brocksdiesel]

Sounds to me you are a go getter. If you hate your job i don't think the good lord would have you stay there. If you pour your heart into it and do a great job you would be suprised what the Lord will bless. I think working the long hours you are now you'll probably get off the ground pretty well. Take anything at first and then weed out your customers. I have been doing it for 13 yrs. I don't cut lawns anymore mainly new installs but started the same way. There is always gonna be days that are trying but i will say i never wake up saying i hate what i'm doing. you need to make sure you enjoy this line of work or find somthing you do. I will agree you are making pretty good money but money ain't everything.

[CA CLT]

TennCuts,

Pay off the home and take the buyout. You can start your business for next to nothing, and I'm going to suggest how.

Your trailer is already covered, so that is a big part of it you don't have to contend with. You can sell the 99 Tahoe and buy a truck if that concerns you. You should be bale to move into a pickup or stake bed of the same vintage for less money than the Tahoe brings.

What do you need to get going? That depends in part on what size properties you are going to maintain. I worked for an outfit when I was a kid and we did 80 high end residentials per week with 4 guys, all using 21" Snappers. For this situation we are going to assume that you are going to do some larger residences and a walk behind mower is necessary. A ZTR riding mower IS NOT necessary for your start up.

Right now on craigslist.org in Nashville, there is a 48" WB ExMark with a velkie for $1400, and a 48" Bunton for $1000. I like you, we're getting you the ExMark!

Used 48" Mower $1400
New 21" Mower $900 ( I like you remember?)
New Line Trimmer $350
New Blower $400
New Hedge Trimmer $350
Sprayer, Trash Cans, Tarps, Gas Cans, Rakes, Shovels etc. $500
Insurance, Business Licenses, Cards, Website etc. $1000.

Total Investment for a ready to advertise setup. $4,900.

Now you are going to incrementally invest $1,000 sums on advertising (mostly print, postcards, door hangers, flyers etc) until you get to the point that you are making your target gross income. Each $1,000 will give you some experience in your market to determine what advertising vehicles have been most successful for you, and where future dollars are best spent. I'm thinking that before you ever get to having $5,000 invested in advertising you will have a good little business that meets your needs and that you built debt free.

Total investment $9,900 maximum. That leaves you over $15,000 as a nest egg to survive on. Remeber though, that early in this process you will have some income that will start flowing in, which will stretch your $15,000K much further.

Your challenge is going to be gaining as much knowledge as you can about lawn care and landscape maintenance in the interim. Particlularly how long it takes to do a job so you can estimate effectively and competitively. Learn the names of commonaly used plants, names of turfgrass varieties, how to program common irrigation controllers, polish up your sales skills. Knowledge is part of what will close the sale for you once your effective advertising gets people to call.

Best of Luck!

[ed2hess]

In my past job I had maintenance guys who went off and got community college degrees and worked themself up out of technician jobs. Is that a possibility at your company? You ought to consider something more technical than lawn care....maybe airconditioning, plumber, or electrical work. You got more on the ball then you realize.. However if it makes you feel any better there are a lot of guys in your situation and they do it for the money not for fun.

[palawnman]

This is just my .02, so take it for what its worth. Just a little background on myself b/c I was kind of in the same situation as you. A few years back I was working in a retail store as a store manager, great salary + bonus. It was nice to know exactly how much I would make each week, never had to worry about money. I had been doing retail for a few years and really loved what I did and I thought that's what I would do for the rest of my life. But unfortunately in retail, it really takes its toll on you (which I didnt mind) but it also takes its toll on your family. Long story short, I could have stayed at my job with the great money, but it was starting to tear my family apart. I could feel it. So I had to decide if the money was worth it. To me my family was more important, so I moved on. I have now been running my own lawn care and landscaping company for a few years, and I love it. I cant lie that there isnt times that I think what it would be like to be making more money, and it all comes back to what I would have (most likely) lost if I had stayed. My business is not at the point where I want it to be yet, but I feel I am in the right path, so in the long term, I know that I made the best decision for myself and my family.

Here are the important questions I would ask myself if I were you:

1) Why am I choosing cutting grass as an alternate job? Do you know that you will like it? Or does it just seem like an easy job to get into?

2) Are you good at managing money? Because you can start up in this business with money left over from your buyout, but can you STRETCH that money out to make the most of it, while times are tough?

3) And discuss it with your wife, because you will need her support 110%, to be succesful at it. If she is not on board, then I would not do it.

4) Are you prepared to give it all you have? Because in this industry you control your own success. If you try to give half effort you will fail. You must go into it with everything you've got to succeed.

The only way I have gotten through the tough times is b/c my wife was behind me 110%. And I got into this business because I had been a foreman for another lawn cutting business before and I knew that I loved it. And before I made this leap, I knew that if I was going into it I was going to succeed because I have to. My family depends on it, and I had the utmost confidence in my ability, not just to cut grass but also to run a business. Remember, at the end of the day, this isnt just cutting grass...its a business, to succeed dont forget to run it, not just work.

Sorry for the long post....good luck with everything, its a big decision, just make sure that you look at all the sides when making the final decision.

Ron

[daughtry]

Tenncuts,

I understand what you are going through. Just a little hope for you- I was in a similar situation. you can start a lawn care business with not much money. pay off the house- take a little money to buy some good equipment (maybe some good used equipment) and get started. It sounds like you are not afraid of work. I think you will do fine. Whatever you do remember this: ALWAYS TRUST IN THE LORD. HE WILL NOT FAIL YOU. PRAY ABOUT THIS DECISION WITH YOU FAMILY.
And to Robert- way to go man, keep on keepin on.

[tom9054]

For 30 years I too, hated the factory.
I always manged to do 1 or 2 landscrapin jobs a year. Nothing big, just trimming a neighbors evergreen counts. Just something to keep some dirt under the fingernails.
Was it worth it? Today, you betcha! (at the time? who mentioned alcohol on this thread :drinkup: can't recommend that too much ;) )
Don't know if you have a 30 yr. and out deal, but they give me $2300 a month not to go in there. Plus insurance.
That time bought me some time to get in with one of the local nurseries and get some $$$ off trees and plants. Plus he gets too busy and subs some smaller jobs out to me. Been out 3 years in May. Done more work every year, it's almost getting to be work now. But if I want to go fishing next week, I'll still have a check first of the month.

If the factory is down sizing, who's lawn you gonna mow?
Any idea what good health insurance costs?
AND your a mechanic for gawds sake. Any time the line was down we had to buy the mechanic coffee before he would even come talk to us!
Bid out! Bid on that line and find out what a real brain dead job is.

let us know what ya figure out, later
Tom

[Ga.GrassCutter]

The first and most important thing is to trust in the Lord. He will take care of you. I too was in a situation. I lost my $35.00 / hr. job, took another at 17.50 per hr. I hated it. Told the wife i was going to start my own bus. I took half of my 401 K ($10,000) bought the mowing equip and was mowing the same day. I did this for 1 summer with 15 customers, paid my equip off, The next spring i jumped to 40 customers and quit my job, As you know, the winters are slow, Fortunately a friend works me part time doing heating and air. I was dipping into the little bit of saving to make it, Last wk the lord sent me work to make it thru March. I'm trusting him to keep me moving forward. Live for today. I'm glad i went the route I did. Just my 2 cents.

[Roger]

Teencuts: One simple question: Do you want to be a businessman?

If you only want to mow lawns because you don't want to work for another person, then a decision to leave is probably the wrong one. All the monetary numbers about cost of mowers, trimmers, etc does not matter.

If you wish to be a businessman, owning your own with the risks and responsibilities, then moving out of the company is a good decision.

There is nothing wrong with being on either side of that desire. Being a business owner and running your own business is NOT something that works for everybody. That does not make them a bad person, lesser in any way. And, likewise, being an employee, doing the work expected and drawing a regular paycheck, does not make anybody a lesser person either.

Remember that the failure rate of new businesses is very, very high -- something like 90% over the first five years.

[Prestige-Lawncare]

TennCuts,

Pay off the home and take the buyout. You can start your business for next to nothing, and I'm going to suggest how.

Your trailer is already covered, so that is a big part of it you don't have to contend with. You can sell the 99 Tahoe and buy a truck if that concerns you. You should be bale to move into a pickup or stake bed of the same vintage for less money than the Tahoe brings.

What do you need to get going? That depends in part on what size properties you are going to maintain. I worked for an outfit when I was a kid and we did 80 high end residentials per week with 4 guys, all using 21" Snappers. For this situation we are going to assume that you are going to do some larger residences and a walk behind mower is necessary. A ZTR riding mower IS NOT necessary for your start up.

Right now on craigslist.org in Nashville, there is a 48" WB ExMark with a velkie for $1400, and a 48" Bunton for $1000. I like you, we're getting you the ExMark!

Used 48" Mower $1400
New 21" Mower $900 ( I like you remember?)
New Line Trimmer $350
New Blower $400
New Hedge Trimmer $350
Sprayer, Trash Cans, Tarps, Gas Cans, Rakes, Shovels etc. $500
Insurance, Business Licenses, Cards, Website etc. $1000.

Total Investment for a ready to advertise setup. $4,900.

Now you are going to incrementally invest $1,000 sums on advertising (mostly print, postcards, door hangers, flyers etc) until you get to the point that you are making your target gross income. Each $1,000 will give you some experience in your market to determine what advertising vehicles have been most successful for you, and where future dollars are best spent. I'm thinking that before you ever get to having $5,000 invested in advertising you will have a good little business that meets your needs and that you built debt free.

Total investment $9,900 maximum. That leaves you over $15,000 as a nest egg to survive on. Remember though, that early in this process you will have some income that will start flowing in, which will stretch your $15,000K much further.

Your challenge is going to be gaining as much knowledge as you can about lawn care and landscape maintenance in the interim. Particularly how long it takes to do a job so you can estimate effectively and competitively. Learn the names of commonly used plants, names of turfgrass varieties, how to program common irrigation controllers, polish up your sales skills. Knowledge is part of what will close the sale for you once your effective advertising gets people to call.

Best of Luck!

Good ... realistic answer here. In fact ... there are a lot of good answers in the thread.

I understand what you are feeling in your current job. My big thing is ... you need to do what makes YOU happy in life. Doing something that you like, spending time with the family (those times can't be replaced) ... and most of all being happy in spirit and mind yourself.

Do what your heart tells you to do ... and never look back. Go forward each day with the outlook that today is the first day of the rest of your life, and yesterday is history that you can not change. Piece of mind and heart is so much more relaxing then regret.
.

[thefed]

My FIRST, and MOST IMPORTANT questionis this: At $30/hour with mandatory overtime, HOW MUCH MONEY HAVE YOU SAVED?

If you have nothing other than the buyout money, I sugest staying at the job until you learn to live below your means.

$30/hr is great $$$...but if you live a lifestyle that requires you spend it all and save none, ou WONT make it on $25k very long, minus what you spend to get into lawn care.

[TennCuts]

Hello again....just got in from work. I hope everyones day is going well.

Man!! I have gotten so many great responses!! Thank you all for taking the time to offer some guidance. I'm gonna try to respond to some of the questions and comments.

A little more background on me/my situation. I'm 35...got married when I was a junior in high school. I didn't have the ambition at that age to continue after high school...but I did graduate. Took a dinky factory job right after school and topped out in two years at 7.50 an hour. Managed to get on with Nissan mfg. at the age of 20. Worked production job there for 5 years and had hand/wrist trouble from repetitive work. Took the company test for the maintenance apprenticeship program and scored high on the test so I got selected for the job. I had always been fairly mechanically inclined, but didn't know anything about how a maintenance shop was run. Well, once you accept the job...your in...no going back. Well, guess what....I hated it. I got put on afternoon shift for all of my apprenticeship, and never saw my 2 daughters for 4 years(well, seldom saw them...I could come in and watch them sleep). I hung in there, but barely at times. I'm now on nights, so at least I see my family more, but I feel worse and worse by the year...I don't sleep well during the day, and feel drained all night. My 18 year old daughter has moved out(the reason I got married so young)...she's been gone for 6 months now, and I have only seen her a few times at family functions, but she has not been home once...says we never bonded. I have a 14 year old still at home, and I don't want to loose her too. I feel I have become distant because I hate my career situation so bad. Does that make a short story long?

Within the last 6 years, I have put my wife thru nursing school, cash money. I have managed to pay all the vehicles off and not buy anymore(my weekness). I have maybe 10k in savings, and 215k in my 401k plan. My wife makes $25 an hour now, but that's 'prn' which means limited hours with no benefits. Some weeks she works 8 hours, some weeks it's 32. She could go part time which actually drops her to $19 per hour, but enables her to buy insurance, but it's pretty pricey, so the $19 per hour would be even less if she picks up any coverage. She has also just taken over her taekwondo school which only manages now to break even money-wise, and is very demanding of her flexible schedule.

[tom9054]

5 years and had hand/wrist trouble from repetitive work.

sooo speaking only of my own yard, ( i don't mow commercially, I've heard things about those guys that do. :laugh: ) that weed whip makes my hands ache after 20 minutes. how do you think those hands are going to feel after 8-10 hours a day of grabbing weed whips and lawn mowers?

later

[CA CLT]

You aren't going to starve Brother! With the buy out you will have $25K in the bank as a nest egg after paying the house off, and $10,000 set aside for this business. With a paid for home and 215K in 401 funds, wife still working, and building your business which will start to trickle in income how bad could it get? Scary proposition still? You bet!

I don't blame you for being nervous. I left the security of one of the largest energy companies in the US, with all the perks even a company truck, to start another business we have from scratch 4 years ago. It hasn't all gone peachy keen, but we've made it! The company does over 700K per year, and I draw a modest salary, about what I made in 1998 with the energy company. I work 10-15 hours per week. I'm the only Dad in class that gets to take my kindergarten aged daughter on field trips, or go to ballet. I get to spend time with my 2 year old son while my wife pulls 2 PM shifts per week as a Nurse so she can get out of the house and keep her skills sharp.

10-15 hours per week of work makes a man slothful though, and I realize that. I did landscaping and maintenance for 13 years previously. Owned a successful outfit of my own, and worked for 9 different companies in that time. Got my CLT in 1997. I never dreamed of going back to this, but I always enjoyed it and I know a thing or two about it, so 9 years later I'm starting up again. The model I gave you in part is my own that I'm using to build this new company. I believe you have all of the funding you will need to be successful. Again, your challenge will be acquiring knowledge. You might consider taking the buyout and then taking a job with another company doing maintenance for a season to learn a few tricks of the trade, and at the same time study as much as you can on yoru own. If you have the aptitude to do mechanical work, there isn't much in this industry that is going to throw a curve at you except perhaps artisitic flair. That is a bigger factor in landscape installation work not so much in maintenance. The advice about learning to run a business and having a passion for it is also sound. You can't go out and work and then not send your bills out, not pay your taxes, not answer phone calls etc. Like it or not, owning a business makes a businessman out of you and you'll need to do that side of it well to in order to prosper.

[thefed]

200k in a 401k should help....go for it! but i still reccommend learning to lbym (liv below your means) because at 30/hr, with only 10k in the bank, i think you need to reel in the spending a bit...no sense tappign the 401k and getting hit with penalties if you dont have to

otherwise, i say go for it. sounds like your mind is made up,a nd you wanted some reassurance.so...go for it!

[TennCuts]

Yes!! More awesome advice!! I have hopes of not touching the 401k...although I will before I go hungry. I think once I role it over to an ira, I can borrow or use it for education and not be penalized. Im not sure on that, but if so, that could help feed any related/unrelated courses I needed. If I ever leave this industrial maintenance job, I don't ever want another one. The managerial pressure has gotten really bad. Every minute of downtime costs something like 8-10k. And they expect you to know how to fix everything on each different piece of equipment...100s of them...all different. Plus, they have taken advantage of gm and fords hard times, and now they are really making everyone 'toe the line'. The industry is getting more and more unattractive. Plus there is no more moral. I know I need a change, I am just afraid....of not being the provider monetarily like I feel I should be. Thankfully, all of your encouragement is worth its weight in gold...advice from those who know.

In response to my hand/wrists...I have thought about that a good deal. I would probably stay away from any of the pistol grip set-ups. I like the hustler walker with the handle bar type set up. I used to have to shoot hood hinge bolts into the upper fender supports on line. We had to use really large right angle guns, and when they ran the bolt down to torque, the gun really twisted your wrist and forearm. The guns were not impact type that hammered the bolt in, they just torqued untill they couldn't anymore...like a heavy duty electric drill. So, yes, I have thought on it...even if I start with a used ztr to make sure my wrists are okay...I will. Good point made...thank you.

[TennCuts]

I'm so new here.........is there a way to send 'private' messages?

[TennCuts]

A little more info on my buyout offer. It has not been made public even to us yet, but is supposed to be announced monday. It is rumored to be 50k to anyone hourly, plus an additional $500 for each year of service. I've got 16 years, so that would be an extra 8k. So 58k...pretax. If ncl sam gets 28%, that leaves me with...uhm....41k and some change. I have about 3k worth of personal time I've managed to save also. So...about 45k. cash...out the door....no benefits...no nothing. Not nearly as lucrative as the gm or ford offered their people. They do not offer any kind of 30 and out or 20 and out, or anything else. When they get enough people with a lot of seniority, they offer a little incentive to 'get lost'. Japanese companies are different. If I had the offer that the fine gentleman above 2300 a mo. with benefits....there would be no doubt........I would be so excited. I could easily live on 2300 a mo...if I did nothing but watch tv. But this is my option...45k... and a plan........and an awesome support group.

[Crabtree]

First, use your nissan discount to buy a Titan to start you out.
Then you better get used to the sunshine and heat, or else find some good help.
You may be better off working for someone else for a season to see how it goes. Jumping right in may not be a wise idea for a 3rd shift factory worker. (no offense)

I used to work at DAS behind Nissan, parking cars and trucks. I worked 3rd shift. Went from that to a landscape company in Fairview while I finished getting my BS in plant and soil science at MTSU. It took some getting used to and still is hard in the heat of Summer, especially by yourself.
Just a little word of warning.

Financially you will have an advantage over most guys who get in the biz.

[HOOLIE]

I wouldn't jump on paying the house off right away...that's almost half the money you look to get from the buyout...money that may come in handy. I can't imagine your mortgage is very high. Save the $20k and if things go well you could pay it off next year. The mortgage interest is a tax deduction at least.

[daveintoledo]

usually people here with a really good job i suggest they keep it....but your story and situation are quite different... your age gives you a different maturity level too.....and so long as you keep a plan B in sight in case this doest work... dont lose your house or stuff over this...

your case i say go for it man.....:)

and listen to hoolies advise on the house.... just make some bigger payments for a while and pay it off early... keep the money as reserve...

[HOOLIE]

Another thing to consider, and this relates to paying off the mortgage, is when you are self-employed it is VERY hard to get any sort of loan or line of credit until you have 2 years of business under your belt. I think a lot of guys don't realize this...you can be making 5 times the money you were at your old job but a bank will look at you as a huge risk. So that's why I advise against paying off the house. You want to consider your financial needs for the next 2 years at least. Sucks to want to expand and you can't get a loan to finance a new truck or equipment.

[Ed Ryder]

I've been cutting grass for a long time (I'm 41). I'm a fairly athletic guy. But every spring - swinging that weedwacker around kills me for the first 2 weeks. My muscles have to adjust to this type of work again.

As the hot summer air arrives, guys like us develop a tolerance for it. But there are some who can't tolerate the heat, or they do a day of lawn work and say they've never worked so hard in their life.

Some have extreme sensitivity to poison ivy, and if the wind is blowing and they are 20 feet away from it, they get it, and it spreads on their body causing them infinite misery.

What I'm trying to say is that a lot of people are not cut out for this work. Some people think they can handle it, but then once they get into it they realize they were so wrong. I've seen it!

In making your decision, one thing you need to honestly answer is if you have the endurance and discipline to get the work done every week. In cutting lawns, we have to be like "lawn athletes."

[Ed Ryder]

There is a really good real estate talk show here on the radio each Sunday. This expert routinely tells people not to pay off the mortgage but instead to keep doing the monthly payments and deducting the mortgage interest.

If your mortgage rate is low, you could probably park your surplus cash in an investment account and get a better return with that money in comparison to paying off your mortgage. International mutual funds have been doing extremely well. Or you just park it in a 5% money market account and wait until the next stock market correction to jump in while the crowd is panicking. Just some ideas.

[steve affordable lawn]

go for your dream

[NewHorizon's Land]

Tenncuts there is but you have to post at least 25 before they will let you.

[Runner]

I cannot nor will not recommend leaving a job like that for a un at the lawn business. With security like that, at this day and age, it is hard to beat...especially if you have a wife and kids to consider. I would ride it oiut, get your retirement and full pension, THEN look at doing something like that. Too bad yo didn't work up here at GM doing what you do. You could do like all the other guys do that have positions like yours. They just go hang out at the bar on GM's time, or go take naps. Then, people wonder why GM claims to be going broke... I kn ow guys who are making better than 160 a year in positions like yours, and are hardly ever there at work. Granted, if their radio goes off, they gotta run, but that doesn't stop them. It is just their way of life.

[TSM07]

Tenncuts
I feel the same way you do about taking the buyout. I have been there for only 4 yrs. Although, I do have a BS in Agriculture with about 6 years in lawn care and landscaping experience, but I have never owned my own business.
I thought about taking the buyout and going full blown in the lawn care and landscape business, but the insurance was just to good at nissan. Now I am really thinking about starting the business as a side job. I hope that one day I can make enough money to quit there and do it full time.

I say just go with what your heart tells you to do.

[Mr Priceless]

I'm so new here.........is there a way to send 'private' messages?


I think you have to post at least 30-35 times and be a member for 10 days since activation....or you could make a new thread and ask Jodi (she's a moderator and her username is '1MajorTom') to give you the Private Messaging privelage beforehand. That's how it worked for me.

[J&R Landscaping]

I would try to spend as little money as possible up-front with this! I would look into a used mower or possibly a demo unit. That way, if it is not for you, you won't have lost much cash. Also, this will allow the money to be put into savings in case of emergency or other bills or whatever. JMO

[irishgoldcleanups]

I would try to spend as little money as possible up-front with this! I would look into a used mower or possibly a demo unit. That way, if it is not for you, you won't have lost much cash. Also, this will allow the money to be put into savings in case of emergency or other bills or whatever. JMO

good mornin all,

i suggest you forget about new and go used. i just picked up a 2004 6 x 12 enclosed haulmark , 2004 36" bradley with catcher, 1998 48" scag with new catcher, assorted hand tools. complete package for $3500

[Billie Bob's LLC]

just read over this thread. some really good stuff here. anyways, how did it turn out Tenncuts? anyone know?

[MowHouston]

He stopped posting at 7 posts. I'm guessing he didn't go for it.

[Billie Bob's LLC]

good point. i didnt even thinking about looking at it. ha

[Jay Ray]

Read the posts fast but think there was one point not made:

If you're blue collar, work out of a tool box, are offered a pretty good buyout (rare, I think), and do not take it, a year later you might be laid off and offered nothing.

You have to consider that the company might not have cash or credit later, or it could get bought out by stingy sharks who raid the pension fund and privatize the company, and then all hayell will break loose in the plant as they force supervision to become gestapos or put their own name at the top of the layoff list.

You have to make an educated guess where the company will be in a few years.