estimating?

[bandrews57]

How would I estimate a lawn out of the gate. I do not really know all of my costs. I will only know the start up costs incurred. I would hate to low ball my self into alot of lawns that I am losing my rear on and I do not want to over price myself back into the 9-5 with no business. Are there any elementary methods for ballparking a job. Should I charge more for trees on the property? flowerbeds?

 

[tiedeman]

Figure out how much you want to make per hour. Then figure out how long you think the job would take you. Go off of your per hour for the price. That is a simple, basic, and easy way to do it.

 

[drsogr]

You should be able to get a basis by what your neighbors, friends, and family is already paying. If you ask around, you should get a good range. If you search on this website (this may take awhile), you should be able to get some basic prices from people posting that are from your area.

 

[Wells]

Square footage times .005
Example: 6000 sq ft x .005 = $30.00

You may have to adjust the base number depending upon the going rates in your area but this formula always worked well for me. Nowadays I just look the property over and come up with my figures. The only ones I still measure are commercial properties.

 

[daveintoledo]

if you do a search, you will find the general consensis on pricing by the sqft is .... dont do it.....

have to figure out your cost best you can... you will make mistakes and learn from them