going rate?

[Kayos]

without being ansy ,, youve just shot down your own argument

In what way? My argument is I dont do cheap in the hope of more work.
Buying tools is not speculative as I only bought them once I had work confirmed and deposits paid.
Little secret, the deposit covers more than the materials ordered for the job

 

[tom2207]

but its hardy speculating to accumulate if your all ready paid

in the repair work I do , the materials are pence , its the labour thats pounds.

 

[Keith 66]

Its always been a juggling or balancing act, Its all very well holding out for £50 an hour or more but if the market wont stand it you will end up sitting doing nothing. In my old trade boatbuilding this especially applied, a leisure based trade that was always the first to enter a recession & the last to come out of it. It was highly dependent on locality & trends in that area, if you were on the Solent a licence to print money, but on the Thames estuary it largely collapsed. Today you are hard pressed to find any self employed boatbuilders & the few that are around have to travel miles to get work.
Glad im in the position i can do my own stuff at my own pace!

 

[Kayos]

I didn't intend to make this a heated argument. Some are misunderstanding my sentiments.

When it comes down to brass tacks my opinion on the matter is worthless because I am PAYE.

@Kayos, for what it's worth I have been self employed before, in a different industry where I set my own rates so I'm not just spouting spurious and ignorant claims.

My basic point is there is no point speculating with customers, most of them are full of it.....

Quote agreed and deposit paid is the hard part, the rest is easy

Some people, not saying you, go into business thinking a £200 a day wage is great, and as a wage it is. When you run a business you need to think in terms of net profit, not gross and not wages

 

[tom2207]

I didn't intend to make this a heated argument. Some are misunderstanding my sentiments.

When it comes down to brass tacks my opinion on the matter is mostly worthless because I am PAYE.

@Kayos, for what it's worth I have been self employed before, in a different industry where I set my own rates so I'm not just spouting spurious and ignorant claims.

Quite the opposite , Ive been self employed for 35 years , Ive also run companies and been an employer and an employee.
your opinion is very very valid , self employed is one of the toughest choices there is , and its not going to get any easier soon , some one has to pay for the Covid situation , and I know where the charges will be levied.

 

[grim_d]

its not going to get any easier soon , some one has to pay for the Covid situation , and I know where the charges will be levied.

Dark days ahead, no matter who or what sadly.

 

[Stuartg1]

In what way? My argument is I dont do cheap in the hope of more work.
Buying tools is not speculative as I only bought them once I had work confirmed and deposits paid.
Little secret, the deposit covers more than the materials ordered for the job

My basic point is there is no point speculating with customers, most of them are full of it.....

Quote agreed and deposit paid is the hard part, the rest is easy

Some people, not saying you, go into business thinking a £200 a day wage is great, and as a wage it is. When you run a business you need to think in terms of net profit, not gross and not wages

Exactly the way I work. No deposit(on large jobs) no work! No one has refused yet and I doubt anyone will as 90% of my work is recommendation..
Minimum labour charge is now £70 + materials, funnily enough no one complains

 

[mtt.tr]

If you know your costs
Yearly consumables
Yearly tool purchase
Rates insurance, personal Costs etc...

Decide how much you want to earn for you, the business and days you wish to work then it is easy
Down my way last 2 years weve had more and more people not charging enough cant see how they make any profit


Im with @Kayos, im personally fed up with the low rates idiots charge.

Last year didnt get 3 big jobs they came back to me as they were cocked up and another 3 big repair jobs

 

[Kayos]

If you know your costs
Yearly consumables
Yearly tool purchase
Rates insurance, personal Costs etc...

Decide how much you want to earn for you, the business and days you wish to work then it is easy
Down my way last 2 years weve had more and more people not charging enough cant see how they make any profit


Im with @Kayos, im personally fed up with the low rates idiots charge.

Last year didn't get 3 big jobs they came back to me as they were cocked up and another 3 big repair jobs

I got called back to a job, they went for the cheapest quote and it was atrocious. Told them it would be double my original quote to sort it. I ended up going back 6 months later as they couldn't get anyone to touch it and the installer disappeared

 

[mtt.tr]

I got called back to a job, they went for the cheapest quote and it was atrocious. Told them it would be double my original quote to sort it. I ended up going back 6 months later as they couldn't get anyone to touch it and the installer disappeared

I didn't get this job, i was way over two other quotes but i was quoting flatten the curve and put on a new deck

Well it leaked twice, and the skylight is a building control failure as they didnt the required structural work.

 

[8ob]

If you know your costs
Yearly consumables
Yearly tool purchase
Rates insurance, personal Costs etc...

Pretty much it, I cant send anyone out of the gate for less than £275 a day.

Bob

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

If you know your costs
Yearly consumables
Yearly tool purchase
Rates insurance, personal Costs etc...

Decide how much you want to earn for you, the business and days you wish to work then it is easy
Down my way last 2 years weve had more and more people not charging enough cant see how they make any profit


Im with @Kayos, im personally fed up with the low rates idiots charge.

Last year didnt get 3 big jobs they came back to me as they were cocked up and another 3 big repair jobs

I live in hope what's happening now will weed them out but I think the opposite will be the case

 

[mtt.tr]

I live in hope what's happening now will weed them out but I think the opposite will be the case

I think we will see more desperate chancers.

 

[MetalMonkey]

no welding .just cut and drill , bending etc. the cuts are a bit awkward.

Just to clarify, what are we looking at? The bracket, the bent bit of body work or the spacers? Or is the job fitting a premade bracket?
And is this a job that the customer has been charged for already, or one you are going to be charging them for?

Not being funny but if I was charging I would want to tidy up the edges, prep and paint and make the spacers match or fit suitable bolts and washers unless there is a specific need for them.

 

[zx9]

On call outs £100 for the first hour then £45 per hour after that, for planned work £175 per half day or £275 per day plus congestion charge and parking which in the West End or Soho can be as much as £60 per day just for the parking.
At weekends it is the above x1.5 just to try and stop people pulling 'the rooms are in use during the week, you might as well do it at the weekend'.

 

[Brad93]

I’ve been charging £35 an hour but with the price of everything nowadays I’m raising it.
When you take your Electric, consumables, gas, etc etc out you’re earning £15 an hour and I can earn that with a hell of a lot less stress.

Geezer came round the house this morning in a brand spanking new Mercedes Vito, top of the range, to repair my sisters phone.
This was about 12 o clock and he had done 6 phone screens already this morning.

£129 a pop, 20 minutes a screen.

in the wrong game

 

[Kayos]

I’ve been charging £35 an hour but with the price of everything nowadays I’m raising it.
When you take your Electric, consumables, gas, etc etc out you’re earning £15 an hour and I can earn that with a hell of a lot less stress.

Geezer came round the house this morning in a brand spanking new Mercedes Vito, top of the range, to repair my sisters phone.
This was about 12 o clock and he had done 6 phone screens already this morning.

£129 a pop, 20 minutes a screen.

in the wrong game

Grass isnt always greener

 

[Ashley Burton]

I think too many self employed under value themselves

Just charge a fair & reasonable price

I can't say I would want to go self employed personally, The pros seem to be out weighed in my eyes

Much prefer to turn up to do a job & go home to let someone else deal with the paperwork

 

[mtt.tr]

I think too many self employed under value themselves

Just charge a fair & reasonable price

I can't say I would want to go self employed personally, The pros seem to be out weighed in my eyes

Much prefer to turn up to do a job & go home to let someone else deal with the paperwork

I often think that, but i like being able to drop one thing to do something else for a while.

im very conflicted

 

[mtt.tr]

I’ve been charging £35 an hour but with the price of everything nowadays I’m raising it.
When you take your Electric, consumables, gas, etc etc out you’re earning £15 an hour and I can earn that with a hell of a lot less stress.

Geezer came round the house this morning in a brand spanking new Mercedes Vito, top of the range, to repair my sisters phone.
This was about 12 o clock and he had done 6 phone screens already this morning.

£129 a pop, 20 minutes a screen.

in the wrong game

most of these types talk more **** than laxative