Price per man hour question??

[ACutAbovesiny]

I received a call to give an estimate on a rather large condo complex. The complex consists of 125-150 homes/town homes. We are bidding on the lawn maintenance for the entire complex (common areas and yards). I am familiar with the property and confident that it will take six men 2 days (8hrs per day) to complete.

I would like to to bid per man hour but am having trouble.
Am I doing something wrong?

6 men
x 16 hours
96 hours

Here is my problem...do I multiply those hours by my rate per man hour?
Am I missing anything?
It just doesnt seem right.

[ncls]

Yeah. 96 hrs. times your hourly rate. You have pre-determined your hourly rate because you know all your costs, and you know what you need to charge to make a profit.

It all comes down to your initial "guestimate" of the actual size of the property, if you're wrong, you either lose the bid, or you get it and lose your azz because you underbid it. How many acres is it? dimensions? What equipment do you have? A 48 rider cuts a lot less than a 61" rider.

If you are in a position to be bidding on jobs of a six man crew, then you really don't need anyone's help.

Typically, condo complexes do not accept hourly bids. They want a total cost for the season.

[ACutAbovesiny]

Thanks ncls, I plan on submitting a seasonal rate but I am trying to figure out a price for myself by man hour rate. As for the lawn area, the largest lawn on the entire property is 450 sqft and its in a back yard mostly little patches in the front of the houses. Not every house has a lawn. I will be using 21" push mowers for the entire property.

[ACutAbovesiny]

Any other input??

[ncls]

I have to ask why are you doing it with only 21" mowers? A larger mower will allow you to mow faster..

[ACutAbovesiny]

Anything larger would be in appropriate. All the houses are connected but the yards are seperated by fences. The yards are postage stamps (6' X 10'). Just getting the larger mowers though the gate would take the same time to mow with a 21".

[ACutAbovesiny]

Bump

[Adam's Lawn and Garden]

My grandma lives in a development similar to the sounds of this one. They use big JD's to get in between the backs of the houses, then use a smaller 21 to do the fronts, but i would use at least a 36". good luck.

adam