pepole with no business license

[walterslawn&landscap]

what do you do when some @#%&* with no business license and has a job and is mowing on the side and can under bid you because it is just a part time job to them. when i am out here trying to make a living at this and i have a business and have to pay tax's and make it in the winter months.

[Husker1982]

What are you calling a business license? Cause here in michigan if all you do is cut grass you don't need a license. Are you talking of a registered name?

[walterslawn&landscap]

no i am just saying i am in this for a living and there are some who do this with no over head and work some where making 40,000 a year as a teacher and in the summer they mow grass as for what i meant by a license is do these people pay income tax and do they pay insurance and are they bonded (NO) but i am.

[walker-talker]

I cut grass part-time and don't have a license (none needed). I guarentee you just because I am part-time does not mean I am a low-baller. I have equipment cost, along with insurance, just like everyone else. As far as dealing with low ballers, I say deal with it.

Invite the competition and rise above.

MATT

[Blessed 1]

Get a Job and mow part time with a license. Thats what I did:D Just joking, but you do appear to have a problem with some of us who are part time. To me my time is even more valuable because I have put in my 9 hrs a day on my day job so I have to get a good price to pay for my equipment. I aint got all day so you know that I need a fair price for my services. :rolleyes:

[MacLawnCo]

Originally posted by walterslawn&landscap
no i am just saying i am in this for a living and there are some who do this with no over head and work some where making 40,000 a year as a teacher and in the summer they mow grass as for what i meant by a license is do these people pay income tax and do they pay insurance and are they bonded (NO) but i am.

DONT assume anything. One of my best highschool teachers was in the lawn maintenance business. He was fully insured and charged top rate. Not everything is as it seems.

Dont worry about those who are at it part time...they will only make it part way

[BobR]

Difference is that YOU are a professional and they are fly by night. Do not lower yourself to their level, you know what you have to charge to make a living and stay by your numbers. The few accounts that the scrubs get I would say they are welcome too, not sounding like sour grapes but the scrub customers are usually penny pincher's (people you do not want or need). What happens when these poor scrubs go back to work, do the now deserted land owners start calling you? If so its time for a contract. Gee I wonder if any of those folks have ever been audited? Hmm sales tax, income tax to name a couple.
BobR

[cos]

I think ALOT of people here have other jobs and run very legitimate businesses. I know ALOT personally and they are by no means "scrubs"!!

[FrankenScagMachines]

I am licensed, have commercial equipment, charge fair prices (yes to both of us) and I am working on the insurance (waiting for a call from my agent is more like it :rolleyes: ). Did I mention that I am part time? Oh, well, you see we aren't all bad :alien:

[leeslawncare]

Well I'am Part time have a full time job licensed an have insurance .I don't undercut anyone .my prices are the same if not more in some cases.been doing it for 10 yrs now an actually make the same money as my full time job.I work 3 to 4 hrs a day only 4 days a week an weekends are outa of the question.just my .02 cents.

[cvzimm2]

Just an observation...
I am full time. I don't need a license (only req. for spraying, etc. here). I'm fully insured though.
If you don't have enough respect for your clients (or your own property for that matter), don't insure.
This is kind of directed to BHB.

[Albemarle Lawn]

Some counties or cities require it, others don't.

[Alan Oncken]

It's required here and they are strict about it. Found one (fly by night) the other day passing out flyers. They were driving by putting flyers in mail boxes (totally ILLEGAL). I got 2 of the flyers and sent one off to city hall and took the other to the post office.

[walterslawn&landscap]

sorry to all the part timers i was just blowing off a little steam.

[garyslawn]

Something interisting is happening in my neighborhood. (OHIO)
The State Police need money. Last season they were giving tickets to guys pulling landscape trailers with out commerical plates on the trailer and/or truck. They follow them until they unload and start to work. Two weeks ago I was Snowplowing and did not have emergency lights on State Cop said $225.00 fine and 3 points. He checked for commerical insurance. He told me to turn them on. No ticket.

[Gravely_Man]

There will always be people trying to do this. The business license is a variable that some of us have to deal with and others do not but you really "must" have insurance. Without insurance you are just setting yourself up for a lot of pain.


Gravely_Man

[65hoss]

I don't pay much attention to most of them around. Most of the one year wonders help in some ways. They seem to find many of the junk customers we don't want anyway. They also find some that just decided to get the lawn cut by a service. Once people get spoiled by not cutting it, they don't want to go back to cutting. When they find out they can pay to have it done and not lose an entire saturday they like that. When it gets hot many of the lowballers don't return phone calls anymore. They priced it to low to get out in the heat. We then get the calls and just have to explain the price difference.

[harperservices]

Wow!

Being able to have a full-time job and cut grass on the side!

Is the country great or what!

I see on this site some are worried about low ballers, but if you ask me it just means I have to be more creative!!!! Yes, what makes me so different from the low baller.

Just my .2 and 1/2 cents worth.......

[garyslawn]

65 Hoss is right. go for the GOOD business. Let the low ballers have the dog $hit lawns. Another insurance story.
super rich guy wanted gutters cleaned 3 story house steep slate roof. Told him no thanks. He fired me hired a 15year old kid to mow and clean gutters. Kid fell off rood and his mom is suing the used to be super rich guy.

[BobR]

Have you guys noticed the lack of responses from the 'big dogs' most of the comments here are from 'part timers' and 'solo operators'.... I bet they are falling out of their chairs and rolling around on the floor if fits of hysteria after reading some of this stuff.
BobR

[mklawnman]

I dont believe in my area do you need to have a license to opperate a lawn care biz. I mean we are going through the process of getting a LLC with the state. But I think the only license you need is if i would go into construction of decks or patios? I do know you need a license for fertilizing. I also have liability insurance on the biz.
I do quality of work and I dont consider myself a scrub at all, considering the equipment i have and also the quality of work along with customer satisfaction.
Matt

[BB36]

Originally posted by walterslawn&landscap
what do you do when some @#%&* with no business license and has a job and is mowing on the side and can under bid you because it is just a part time job to them. when i am out here trying to make a living at this and i have a business and have to pay tax's and make it in the winter months.

Thats the nature of the beast .Just learn to deal with it.
Gary

[Fareway Lawncare]

Not Required Here...I Doubt Many of the Locals even Have Commercial Vehicle Ins. for their truck/trailers...

[gramps]

It's required here and they are strict about it. Found one (fly by night) the other day passing out flyers. They were driving by putting flyers in mail boxes (totally ILLEGAL). I got 2 of the flyers and sent one off to city hall and took the other to the post office.
you get three points :help:

[Wells]

This Thread was started back in early 2003.

I haven't heard much from Walterslawn&landscape since that time.
Guess the part-time competition drove him out of business

I was going to tell him that we don't worry about the guys doing it part-time or those running without insurance, there is plenty of business out there and somebody needs to pick up the lawns we turn away. I've gotten to the point where I hand pick my clientele from year to year and I will not work for just anyone.

[moremowing4me]

I cut grass part-time and don't have a license (none needed). I guarentee you just because I am part-time does not mean I am a low-baller. I have equipment cost, along with insurance, just like everyone else. As far as dealing with low ballers, I say deal with it.

Invite the competition and rise above.

MATT

Same here! :waving:

[trk53]

I am licensed, have commercial equipment, charge fair prices (yes to both of us) and I am working on the insurance (waiting for a call from my agent is more like it :rolleyes: ). Did I mention that I am part time? Oh, well, you see we aren't all bad :alien:

What license do you have?

[ChadA]

what do you do when some @#%&* with no business license and has a job and is mowing on the side and can under bid you because it is just a part time job to them. when i am out here trying to make a living at this and i have a business and have to pay tax's and make it in the winter months.


I feel your pain. I deal with this all the time I know alot of the guys going around screwing up the market are not licensed but there really isn't much you can do. Im not the type of guy to turn someone in for something like that. There's plenty of work to go around. Just compensate with good work and good customer relations. You should be fine.

[kdbrown]

well what about the kid down the street that wants to make money on summer break you cant be mad at him for that .you just need to talk to the owners about the price .let them know how you feel about it . it a dog eat dog world and you need to be the bigger dog .its just as simple as that

go contract

kdb
lawn master

[Pecker]

=

Dont worry about those who are at it part time...they will only make it part way

Yeah, I've been makin' it part way for over ten years now :rolleyes:

[Something D]

I understand where you are coming from. Nobody likes a JackLeg (scrub). I do this part-time with the hopes of becoming full time. In order to reach the goals I have set out I have to have to jobs. I think you can do this part time. There is plenty of business out there. Even though we are all trying to make a living. Maybe try working together with other Lawn Care businesses, you never know what a healthy network of professionals can do for your business.

[lawnprosteveo]

I cut grass part-time and don't have a license (none needed). I guarentee you just because I am part-time does not mean I am a low-baller. I have equipment cost, along with insurance, just like everyone else. As far as dealing with low ballers, I say deal with it.

Invite the competition and rise above.

MATT
Ditto! I have property and liability insurance, workers comp, and a CPA to help me pay the correct taxes. This "part-time" job runs into over 40 hours each week as well as being a Firefighter 52 hours each week.

[WhohasHelios?]

Around here we have so many school kids that do just that, they get a truck, a mower and a trimmer and go knock on doors..offering cuts for ridiculously low prices. My angle on the whole thing is this:

Sell your customers on the fact that YOU are the professional, you will be there each week on the same day, (and you won't ditch them on the first day of school) you will be available to offer other services to them, they will never have to call you to find out where you are, because you are a legit company you ensure that your blades are kept razor sharp and you know how to use the equipment safely in a manner that will not harm their property....

If they still b!tch about a price that some kid is offering after that speel you don't want them I say...

And as for the people who are legit, but not busy enough to go full time, congrats to you! It takes time, but if you are doing everything properly than it will come very soon.

Reuben

[llama]

Have you guys noticed the lack of responses from the 'big dogs' most of the comments here are from 'part timers' and 'solo operators'.... I bet they are falling out of their chairs and rolling around on the floor if fits of hysteria after reading some of this stuff.
BobR

Yes we are, bob