Fork in the road

[obione]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions for those seasoned lawncare pro's! My current job is getting more and more unreliable as time goes by. (Independent contractor) I have 3 friends here in central florida just killing it in lawncare. I have tossed around the idea of starting a lawncare business of my own, but have some hesitations.... What about the current economy? Can I make enough in the early going, to justify the move? Will my lack of knowledge hurt my chances, even though I have worked in landscaping before, years ago! Can I make 6 figures if I give it my best shot? Maybe you guys can help me with other pro's and con's based on your experience....... I know I am somewhat general but thats all I have for now!
Thanks in advance......
Obione

[billslawn89]

start reading to learn what you don't know. it will take at least two years until you see any profit coming in. alot, i mean alot of compeitition here in florida! you will have to bust butt the first couple of years to get established and your name known. do good quality work and don't lowball prices. i started here in south west florida 3 years ago and did alot of reseach before making the move from ohio where i was in business for 17 years. good luck to ya:drinkup:

[obione]

Thanks Bill,

Sounds like good info! I appreciate it.... 2 years isn't bad at all. I don't mind busting butt either! I have to with kids... Can you still get some accounts where you can charge a premium with the comp here in Florida and the economy?

[Lawn Freak]

Read alot on this site. Start off with a 21 and some decent handhelds and keep your other job. When you get more steady work on the lawncare side of things then buy better equipment and such. And when you feel comfortable about it stop doing the contracting work if you so choose. Good luck

[bohiaa]

No one can answer those Questions but you.

[MowHouston]

Hey everyone,
I have a few questions for those seasoned lawncare pro's! My current job is getting more and more unreliable as time goes by. (Independent contractor) I have 3 friends here in central florida just killing it in lawncare. I have tossed around the idea of starting a lawncare business of my own, but have some hesitations.... What about the current economy? Can I make enough in the early going, to justify the move? Will my lack of knowledge hurt my chances, even though I have worked in landscaping before, years ago! Can I make 6 figures if I give it my best shot? Maybe you guys can help me with other pro's and con's based on your experience....... I know I am somewhat general but thats all I have for now!
Thanks in advance......
Obione

Eh... I don't know about it taking two years to see any profit. Hehe. I helped my girlfriend pay off her car along with other bills when I first started out, although I did grow pretty first because of my area.

My recommendation is to start a simple mowing operation part time for now. If you have any sort of income right now, it isn't the best idea to drop it and then be waiting around for new service acounts to come along.

If you do it part time and work your regular job you can gauge it better. If your lawn business starts crowding up against your regular work schedule, then you can run some numbers and see if you think it would be a good idea to drop the regular job and expand with more customers for your lawn business.

Good luck and if you every need any help, just ask.

[Triplex]

I agree with LawnFreak and MowHouston - don't get yourself into too much debt on equipment until you're sure this is working out. If you decide to go back to being a contractor, you can always use a professional trimmer and blower at your own house, but if you bought a new ZTR you'll have to sell it at a loss. It's good that you've worked in landscaping before; that gives you a leg up on all the new guys who think they can do this because they've mowed their parents' lawn. Don't forget that the economic downturns are temporary - the question you have to ask yourself is, will you wish you were still a contractor when the economy picks up?

[obione]

Very well said everyone! I am looking forward to continue to read and learn from all of you....

obione

[Yard.Barber]

Wrote this on another thread so figure why not here also.


New guy here also.

I worked at part-time first and took most of that money to slowly get the things I will need. Plan on buying a larger walk behind after tax money comes back. Knowing that I was getting to the end of working for somebody else and completely frustrated put a plan in place so when I did walk out there would be no looking back. My plans got delayed a bit due to medical reasons and had to bailout from that first. Beginning of this year I walked out of the 9-5 job and putting all into making it.

A few words of advice since I have just done this.

- I learned the hard way that something can come along when you aren't expecting it and put a crunch on your finances, so unless you have the money sitting around for a rainy day make sure you plan for it.

- Start off part-time and work your way up to it, this will allow you to buy equipment, get things settled in and hopefully keep debt out of the way for payments on the stuff. I've read on here though where some people started right off the bat but they had the money to do so.

- Look at pay stub right now and see what you are making before any deductions and add another half, this should give you a good idea of what you need to make in order to stay where you are right now. Yes, the real world numbers will be higher/lower but it gives you an starting point.

- Not sure what you do right now but network.. I was a facility manager so had/have contacts that I use to help me with things and input.

- When picking a name besides making sure it is not used already with the state/county also check domain name to see about availability.

- Look at all your cost, thought I did and was pointed out just today about retirement, I overlooked this one.

- In my case my wife works and her income pretty much covers our bills, so after getting back on track with things we will not be paying more than is coming in. But really look at this one, if you are struggling really bad now I say go part-time.

- I personally don't jump at every bid which I might have been asked to give, this is mainly for commercial. Since the bigger normally require workers comp. insurance and also I am not setup to handle large properties like that. I do a couple small ones that did not ask or require workers comp.

- Upsell your services, push the mulching/pine straw, aerating, dethatching etc.

And the best thing I can say is READ, READ, READ. I spent many many hours just reading threads that went back 5 years and have learned a lot and plenty still to learn.

[scottgalat]

Without knowing how to successfully develope a solid customer base, you will put yourself into a tough situation diving in head first. Do you have "customer service" skills? Do you have sales skills? These are more critical to your eventual success than your ability to do tremendous amounts of work. It can be done, though. You can begin marketing now with only a minimal equipment purchase. A 21" can do a whole route if the route is only 40 lawns. It sucks, but it is do-able. It is very possible to get a good business going in a short amount of time, but the key ingredient is the gigs. You need lots of customers to do $100,000 and more. You also would need a seasonal helper to keep up the mowing during the "on" months. You don't want him cutting into your $100,000 so you need to also do enough lawns to cover his salary and related costs of employing him. You'll need to be nailing 140-150 properties weekly, to see that level of success. Most my friends and associates in the lawn business maintain routes that size and larger. The work side is hard but if you apply yourself you can keep up and more. Can you figure out how to get 150 property owners to hire you? That is the variable that will ultimately determine whether you can succeed. Solve that problem ( the customer base ) then the issue becomes one of your personal work habits. If you abuse your customers, you will lose them. You treat your customers like you should...you will have a solid business that experiences steady growth. I'm familiar with The Orlando market. If you have any questions feel free to call 321-216-1837.

[a clear difference lawn]

I live and work in Orlando and there is definitely a large market - especially when it starts to get hot. It is good advice to phase yourself into the business. Keep your job until you feel your ready and then go for it. Good luck!! If you have any specific orlando questions feel free to pm me - I have been living here a long time.

[enine]

Thanks guys! Very well said Scott.. Appreciate the advise which was very well said.. I might take you up and give you a ring! I love Melbourne and the surf!!!

[USFGUY]

I was in the IT industry then finance for awhile. I got offered a $35k/year lawn contract (just mowing/edging/trimming/little shrub work 2x a year) job for a apartment complex.
Don't have any equipment/trailer/truck to do it so would have to purchase everything. Really researching what equipment to buy. The company that does it now has 2 people that don't speak English cutting the grass with 2 zero turn White outdoor mowers.. edging with the trimmers and then blowing everything onto the cars!

I don't live in the city where the contract is and trying to get an answer out of the city if i need to be registered there is a PITA. :( So far all I've been able to confirm is the county doesn't require a business license but the city may or may not. sigh.

Anyone else trying to get a small business loan in this time too? ... sorry for rambling.

[scottgalat]

Resist debt. You can start a business on a shoestring.
Can you find $2300 ? You can equip yourself with a very capable small rig
Riding Mower, Trailer, Edger, Weedeater, Blower, and Trailer hitch for car.
This rig will service your entry-level needs. $2,300 total BRAND NEW.
Many on this site are unfamiliar with production capabilities and reliability of "homeowner grade" lawn tractors. Here's a fact: Any new tractor will service that property....even if it's 50 acres, well enough to allow you to re-invest in new gear in a short amount of time. You may also find that the Lawn tractor ...is the perfect unit for that property. Then you may find, in the future that you are able to drop two guys there (no need for a truck sitting there all day) they do the complex, make you good money, while you are out cutting with your main rig. A very cheap way to high profits.
You are in a great position with a 35k head start. If you have the money.... buy good stuff.... don't have it.... resist debt. This job alone will pay you
$2,900+ monthly. The whole rig to service it...can be as low as $2.300.
Yes you want pro gear.... but here is a option earning it as you go. Yes you will wear out parts on the tractor, 8 months from now, I sometimes have gotten 5 years of bashing the h*ll out of the tractors without any major problems. Take extra care and the units will last. You will always have a future use for it... as I descibed the "employee scenerio" and eventually you'll want to turn it into a bronze monument....because it was your path to a very successful DEBT-FREE business

[hsieh]

you say hitch it to a car. does a 97 geo prism have the engine to pull a trailer and riding mower? i was thinking of starting by putting my self propelled mower in the trunk.

[FYS777]

you say hitch it to a car. does a 97 geo prism have the engine to pull a trailer and riding mower? i was thinking of starting by putting my self propelled mower in the trunk.

towards the end of last season I saw a small subaru, pulling one of those little fold up trailors, push mower and hand held blower in trailer, weedeater on the ski rack, worked:):)

[FYS777]

you say hitch it to a car. does a 97 geo prism have the engine to pull a trailer and riding mower? i was thinking of starting by putting my self propelled mower in the trunk.

towards the end of last season I saw a small subaru, pulling one of those little fold up trailors, push mower and hand held blower in trailer, weedeater on the ski rack, worked:):) All the above. Start working into it this season, next season you'll probably be going all out, happy mowin and growin, so get going,:waving:

[scottgalat]

A lightweight trailer will feel about the same as putting a big fat person in the back seat..... I can say that....many, like my wife, would call me a big fat person, I would argue the point...until I passed a mirror, Those fold up trailers are a few hundred pounds a small lawn tractor is 400. the heaviest push mowers are 1/2 that. Any car can pull 600 pounds. And it looks a little better than the trunk-based rig. one of my trailers is a little 4X6 from Lowes go online and see it's weight, I'll bet it's around 250 lbs. and could be pulled by a small car without stressing it too much. Remember to drive like your pulling something though, take your time and you'll avoid most the problems you'll encounter pulling trailers...Panic stops. Lay back a little in traffic and avoid panic stops.

[FYS777]

the fold ups Ive seen here range from 800 to 1500 pounds capacity wit 12 to 14 inche wheels, of course those when you buy them new youhave to buy the wood to floor it and sides, If you go to home depot or lowes, the have better ones that have the sides already built on , there black cant remember the name of, run between 450 to 700, depending on model, around 1500 to 2500 lbs capacity, check em out,:):) please don't quote me on weights and measures, close

[hsieh]

thanks. i didn't want to invest a lot of money to start off with cos i don't know how many accounts i'll get. so i wanted to put off buying a used truck till i get enough work to pay for it.

[Frue]

I worked part time for 5 years untill the business was able to match my income. Here is what you need to do

1. find out what you need for income. Whats it take to float your boat right now. Knowing your bills are vital. Do not think you know what you owe but KNOW what you owe. if your bills are 12000 a year you best at least make that or you will be out very quickly.

2. SAVE SAVE SAVE. I have been through three droughts and 2 dry years in the last 11 years. This will put a hurting on you if you do not have spare coin. If you cannot save do not put your family through this pain.

3. network network network

4. Its not enough to be good at what you do but also to be good at the acounting end of it. Remember we are here to put profit away. The more profit the better we are.

5. I would also suggest reading sean adams book, and also how to make 300 a day. also by a guy with the last name adams but no relation to sean adams. great info in these books all other books just copy each other.

6. When you first start out I will tell you 12 hours a day everyday for at least 2 years. It is a lot of work between book work and actual on site work.

this is a good place to start good luck and God bless.