Another guy with pricing problems

[tpl]

I have looked throughout this web page and spent well over a hundred hours in here in the last month. I have been in the landscape business for roughly three years and have been able to pay the bills with plenty left to spare. I have managed to keep about 90% of my business in areas where price isn't a concern and my reputation hasn't been damaged because of the quality of my work and "salesmanship".

I have decided to expand and start a crew cutting lawns full time. I haven't cut more than five lawns a month yet because that was not my field. When a cutting job came up, I would go out there with my partner and get $100 an hour between the two of us. As of now, still cutting with a Honda 21" com mower, but am going to buy a Hustler Z for my crew when I get them started. I have noticed from the search engine that it is best to price by the sq. ft rather than by the hour.

Would y'all please tell me how much the "higher end" pricing is for--2,500 - 5,000 - 10,000 - 20,000.

From what I have seen from the search engine, I think that the best way to charge for edging and trimming is by the hour. My figure is going to hit around $40 per man hour for this. How does this sound.
Thanx,
Patrick:blob2:

[jhengen]

low end is $15.00 per 10,000 sq. ft. High end is $30.00. All depends.

[kutnkru]

Originally posted by tpl
... I have noticed from the search engine that it is best to price by the sq. ft rather than by the hour. ... I think that the best way to charge for edging and trimming is by the hour. My figure is going to hit around $40 per man hour for this. ...Iiiiii don’t know as though I would say that it’s best per se. What I do know is that it is crucial for determining how your doing as your company expands along the way though. If you don’t know how much area your cutting and how long it takes, then how can you tell if you’re too high or too low???

I think that sf is essential for areas such as fertilization and mulch calculations but it may not be the best for mowing in every case. Take the recent thread about comparing mowing prices. If I were to price strictly according to hourly rates, my bids would be higher than they are.

If I relied strictly on hourly figures and without rounding off to the nearest whatever my price of $130 would be $157/cut – and the price of $156 would be drastically more at $264/cut.

Am I saying that one method is better than the other??? Absolutely not. Do they both have their place in my pricing structure??? Definitely so.