Do You Raise Your Prices In Upscale Neighborhoods?

Mr. Wms

Just curious if any of you guys raise your prices or rates if you get work
in the upscale/upperclass neighborhoods?

Sometimes I do. They're going to pay somebody top dollar for the work
it might as well be me.

MO-AMPS

To me thats a poor way of thinking you need to be ashame of yourself were are you from sir jus curious

dirt diggler

You should be charging enough in the first place




and folks are waaaaaaaaay too wise on that scam anyways ... it's somewhat of a cliche

Ed the Roofer

Our prices are done by my task formulas, difficulty factors, and the ever popular PITA formula when recognized in advance.

So the answer is no, I do not play with my prices dependant on the neighborhood. If we live up to the quality image I perceive of ourselves, the poorest have little choice but to do the job correctly the first time and only the wealthy can afford to do it twice.

Ed

tkle

There's several factors involved in working in an upscale neighborhood.As a whole they demand more services and have more restrictions.Yes,I charge more.

Chris G

I don't charge any more, I just don't give discounts. Half of the time I knock off 10% for whatever reason, (new couple in new home, seniors, nice people with not a lot of money, etc...). But if I know the homeowner earns $500,000 a year, then I'm reluctant to offer such a break.

King of Crown

There is nothing wrong with that. I do it all the time. The main reason is because they usually expect more, and have a higher standard. So My quality goes up as well.

I know what you are going to say, quality should be the same where-ever you are, but the quality is great all the time, it is just the type of material, the joinery, and allot of other stuff.

People live in that kind of neighbor hood, because they like the nicer things in life. So in return, I bring them a product that is nicer than the masses.

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King of Crown

Exactly, if you dont charge more, it is just poor business.

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scottstef

more risks in that upscale neighborhood. the carpet drip on the $20,000 oriental rug. the expensive Italian marble that you chipped when your ladder scuffed it. the prized poodle that got iut of the house when you ran out to get some supplies from the truck. yes i charge more. my liabilities/risks are higher.

dougchips

I can understand charging more if they have more restrictions. For example if work can not be started until 10 am and we have to be done when their kids get of the bus, then I will plan on charging for the wasted time. If we are working on the front of a house and can not leave any materials in the front (carry to the back at the end of the day) then I will charge for it.

I will not charge someone more just because they are rich and will not charge them less because they are poor. If someone is poor then I can offer that they dispose of the debris--so long as they do not leave it on the curb making me look like a slob.

Are you marketing to a wide mix of consumers?

Side note- We did a window job in a trailer park last year and the windows were worth more than the trailer and the contents. The owner bought the trailer for her mother who was not ready for a nursing home yet. They got the same price as everyone else, we used the same quality merchandise and our installers treated it just like a real job. Faded light blue trailer with new windows and azek trim.

thom

Had a potential customer (who was on the phone asking about a large addition and remodel) ask this same question. My response was, "of course, if you live in Sandia Heights you're going to pay more than if you live in Rio Rancho" (Sandia Heights being upscale custom and Rio Rancho being downscale tract). He got bent out of shape, turns out he lived in Sandia Heights.

I explained to him, it mad no sense to build a $100 per square foot addition on a $50 per square foot house, and it made no sense to build a $50 per square foot addition on a $100 per square foot house.

I don't think I convinced him, he never called me back.

Ed the Roofer

Like I said before, the conditions we have to overcome is how I would price the job. Even if they have a $ 20,ooo.oo rug, or whatever else, as long as it is within my liability insurance coverage limits and we do not have to take additional precautions over and above our already established methods, the job costing would be the same.

My P.I.T.A factor would include both the very wealthy and the poor but meticulously anal lurker.

Like DougChips just said, I also recently did a "manufactured home", (they don't like them to be called trailer park homes), and the roof cost was over $ 8,000.00. I would estimate the appraised cost of that home to be a max of $ 20,000 with or without the new roof.

Ed

Stone Mountain

Pretty much the same price: rich or poor. Like others mention here though, I factor in any extra difficulties or restrictions. I'm not out to get rich on one job.

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red_cedar

I charge more. But past experience shows that many 'upscale' areas are dominated by immigrant workers and contractors doing things pretty cheap. often times much of the work is labor intensive, so in comes the polish or mexicans who will bust their butt for less.

I have found,the better 'paying' jobs, not the biggest, are in the home range of $250-$400 thousand. Regular people who want a good job and often relize you get what you pay for.

mahlere

the key question is do you just charge more or do you also give more?

they are two very differnent things.

For example thom's sandia heights customer. He's not really paying more, he's just getting more.

if you simply jack up the price by $500 cause there is a mercedes or 2 in the driveway, then do the same job as you would for anyone else who paid less, then you're halfway on your way to being a thief.

but if you provide better quality materials, do a better installation, work with the customer a little more, take a litte more care when protecting the work area etc. Actually doing things for the extra money, then I personally don't have an issue with it.

pwrpapa

Why give the farm away, I charge everyone the same.
As much as the market will allow, and alot more if I can get it.
I don't need the experience! I wanna get rich off from one job.LOL

POOLMANinCT

funny ?

i have a customer who owns 20 or so sandwich shops, big bucks.

another of my customers manages 1 of his stores.

i didnt know about the relatrionship & charged them the same, turned out 1 was a referal. granted i hit them both good


the moral of the story, you dont know who knows who

mdshunk

There are some legitimate reasons why it can cost more to work in the high end home. One will be unusual work area protection and another will be extraordinary cleanup measures. Another may be an unusual distance between where you can park your truck and where the work is at. Another may be the extra time and PITA factor that sometimes comes with dealing with a fickle rich wife. The hourly rate for everyone is the same, but the final bill will almost always necessarily be more in the high end home when compared with the average home for the same work, for the reasons above and more.

TimNJ

Since the area I most work in is mostly high end I already figure my price based on that. If I work in the low income areas i may do some adjustments in the "extras" on a job but will usually keep my basic price the same.

Gordo

Everybody is charged the same rate. PITA factor is a variable in the equation.

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