How Much To Charge For New Stairs

wink

make sure you pay your liability ins.

neolitic

And a lot of us have been trying to
figure out "how long" it will take
since before you were born.

It really does make a difference whether it's
pine, to be carpeted, or stained oak finish.
It makes a difference whether you can cut
and right at the base of the stairs, or if
you'll have to cut on the driveway in the
monsoon season or with 2' of snow.
Is it new construction, or are you
going to have to deal with two cats,
a Great Dane and a three year old?
Are the stringers done properly, or will
you have to deal with crappy ones,
or maybe completely rebuild them.

How much is easy,
after you figure out how long!

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Deadhead Derek

well put Neo, but to add, the cost difference on materials isn't simply the material costs. are you fabricating the treads, bullnosing them yourself, or are they a glue up of flooring material ( ugh) or are they a species of wood that if you do screw up, will cost you a week waiting for stock? are you drilling the ballusters, creating a return nosing ...on and on... how long will it take you to do one tread x's the No. of treads...

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wallmaxx

So you want someone who has already...let's see how you put it..."has just started out in the buisness and needs help learning how to price I personally don't see the problem" to just give you information that they probably had to discover through trial end error? How do you think most of us figured these thing out? Shoot a price...get the job too low and you will learn quick. Shoot it too high and you will be sitting on the couch also learning quick. This biz is for risk takers. We manage risk and then roll the dice...

man up and roll your own.

SWAY79

HEY!!! I remember that commercial Mikey!!

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javatom

I learned on my own dime. Started years ago by buying old houses to fix & flip. Stairs were always the hardest part. I did many of them for myself before I was confident bidding a stair job for a client.

Jesse Carter

$3150.00

billderboots

I learned stairwork years ago from an old German fellow he taught me when he was 73 years old he learned stairwork at a school in Philadelphia,
He made me promise while under 5 years apprentice with him never to show or share trade secrets in this "ART" he never had a son so i guess i lucked out. Im not sure how to explain this let me think... Its like taboo to ask a stairbuilder what he's charging, or how he lays out ballusters, or if he still cuts through the subfloor to attach his newel posts to the joists etc...
You would be better asking the man for date with his wife!
This is definately one of the trades you dont get manny quick answers.
dont ask why its just the way it is.. IMHO

mullaman

[QUOTE=john5mt;489087]


I'd like to add:

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wannaBelkhuntin

First day here and all I can say about this post is .! I thought these forums were to help each other out. What difference does it make if it is pricing or technique. I agree that we can't and shouldn't give him a number but at least a few were nice enough to explain how to arrive at that number. Being new here I hope you help with technique friendlier that you do cost.

MALCO.New.York

^^^^This is why you do not understand.^^^^

If one can not arrive at their own pricing, than possibly one should not be bidding said job.

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Burby

Sorry to borrow your quote again Malco, but it is so true & probably not said enough, even though should be common sense & once being more than enough said.

And again, the amount of info in this forum alone, is probably more useful & accurate than anyone could ever hope for as well as most of us wish we had when we first began our own business to save all the money we lost while learning.
All one has to know is his/her ability to do what ever, read thru this forum, from there could very easily begin a business and loose less money thru the start up years, than anyone of us ever did.
The single best thing, the info provided here is proven, nit picked by all to perfect it, then offered for the total price of "free".
Even if one wants to just advance their knowledge in a trade, that is here as well. Again, tried, nit picked, then perfected.
What book or software that one "pays" for, can one get to match what is offered here, again for the total price of "0 $$$"?

There is a reason why one has to post x number of post before starting their own, to help one understand the guidelines of the forum.
That is not limited to just this forum, it is common respect.
This foum just offers protection to those that would otherwise have to walk up to a group of framers, roofers, ect talking in a coffee shop and a stranger walks up & says, hey guys, how much do you think I should charge to go build a house today?

Think about that, it is the same as some do here, then get pissed because others do not offer the exact $ amount...

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mullaman

OK I will be serious now. You have to price jobs at what they are worth to you in the beginning. I new a guy that was a very talented stair builder, an expert at making custom handrails with descending volutes. (If anyone knows what I am talking about this is pretty much a lost art now a days). But this guy went on his own and began doing custom jobs for builders and homeowners. He told me he had an idea of what to charge but basically went off what he needed to make to survive in the beginning. Soon he had more work than he knew what to do with so he moved his prices up.

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mikec

I get a dollar a step labor only!

mullaman

Pricing is something you develop over your years of experience. There's a lot of risk and reward built up over the years. Everyone learns from their mistakes. You learn as you go. This is why you don't get a straight answer to a price question.

That being the case, I would charge a hamburger a tread.

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mics_54

Actually I think skarrlette already knows what to bid but doesn't have the confidence to do it without seeking out the approval and validation from his illustrious peers. Skarrlette already stated he thinks it will take about 4 days. I think that's probably a bit short but Skarrlette is the one most familiar with what exactly he is planning to do. If the job is going to take 4 days than charge 4 days labor. What's the question? I charge my friends 400 dollars a day plus expenses. Others pay what ever I feel like charging them depending on my mood at the time. If I have a helper I add that on of course but I usually work by my self because helpers usually only make my job more difficult.

Deicide1

Just figure out what you need to make per day and then figure out how many days you think it will take you and add a day, then multiply them. Oh, and use a calculator if need be.

mullaman

Confidently present your bid then! Lack of confidence just makes the customer not want to trust you. Get the job then figure out how to do it!!!!!

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strikes and gutters, ups and downs

Bodger

I'm not bustin your chops either, but how did you learn how to do stairs well enough to be able to get paid by a H/O to do them on your own, and not have any real clue as to what to charge, or what the "going rate" might be for that type of work in your area?

But it sounds like something is out of sequence here, or you aren't quite ready to hit the bricks as a pro. No offense intended.

Bodger

Yeah but... these are the threads that are the most fun! You'll see!

AND they are informative too!
I guarantee the OP will walk away with a different perspective on this, and despite a possible case of the red ass over all the razzing, he'll be better off with his project.