19 Year Old To Make Money In Construction?

Tom Struble

ya gotta talk to Gus,he's been taking other young guys under his wing

__________________
Tom

KP JOINERY

hi im turnd 25 last week and i have my own joinery company and have done since i was 20 and had 5 people working for me my best advise frome is stick to 1 thing specialice in that like me i do doors and worktops and kitchens i know not big money erners but you can make money a the main reasons why i stick smaller jobs is during the credit cruch people dont have as much money and every body else is fighting for the bigger jobs and doing small jobs you get more customers per week and and regular customers and eventualy when your realy good at being a contractor you will be ready for when your realy ready for it you will know all your prices of buy hand have contacts at the timber yard get good discounts and other trades you bring in will want your business and respect you and you will beable to make things happen

and first impressions being young isnot that bad people get pis33d of with old chancer (no offence) that havend made it and older women have all the money nowday and they would rather have a sweet boy trying to make it than a grubby guy they dont realy trust in their home alone.

i wish you good luck it will take a year or two before you can spend money on your self but if your not making money just now it want make any difference

eric wayne

I started my construction company at 21 years old. I experienced a lot of negativity from others but I had determination. now i am 27 and one of the biggest home builders in my area.

"some are successful because their destined too, others are successful because their determined too.

Calcan

I am a 21 year old general contractor. I was in Edmonton doing carpentry, but decided to come home where there was unfortunately not much work. I have had years of experience in renovations very much like yourself.

I started my own general contracting business. I did originally plan on starting my own handyman business to get my name out, but got lucky and ended doing a bathroom renovation. Did the job, and ended up renovating all upstairs after for they were happy with my services. Business has been good since. Regardless of how young you are, it all depends on how you present yourself. Are you going to dress like a kid or a successful construction business owner. Are you going to be nervous, negative and not talkative or friendly, outgoing and confident.

There is much to learn in order to operate a successful business, but just like anything, if you apply yourself, you will succeed. Just never stop learning, never fail a customer, and never say "it's good enough"

Get started out with your handyman business and start reading up on everything to do with construction, ranging from permits, licenses, business transactions, construction management, construction budgeting, all the trades. Once you read all about this, you will start to be more confident and know the proper ways to go about business. Plus you will already have a good customer base!

mc handyman

I was in the same situation as you when I was 19. I went off to college and realized that it was not cheap. My parents, both working low wage jobs and with bad credit and toys that they should have never bought, could not help me. I applied to several jobs that I thought I could swing while going to school but with no luck.

I ended up concluding that I had all these skills from my past employment in the construction industry so I was not about to let them go to waste. I started a handyman business within one week of concluding that and dropped $4500 into it like that. Filed with the state, got insurance and all that happy stuff. Had a friend throw some lettering on my truck and I was off.

Within a month I had obtained over 30 clients and I made $2700. (not a bad ROI) Now, two and a half years later I have two locations and I am debt free including all my schooling that I some how managed to continue. I am opening my third servicing area this spring and I am looking forward to it.

Do your market research and understand your industry. Know who you are serving and come up with some awesome promotions.

I would love to connect with you and help you get rolling.
email me at grmchandy@aol.com

Best wishes and good luck!


P.S. Be ready to receive allot of crap from the guys on here, they dont seem to like "handyman", its understandable in most cases and I agree with them on many things. Just know what you got and be willing to fight for it!!!

__________________
If you are afraid of criticism, you will die doing nothing.

Flatrooferstl

Go for it !

On The Rock

Well, if you go out on your own, and if you haven't experienced it yet, you just might, and that is the frustration of knowing that there are people out there who know how to "build a wheel," but they won't show you how, and so you will be stuck many times "reinventing the wheel" on the job. In other words, there'll be times when you know there exists an easier, more efficient, and quicker way to do things, but you just don't know how yet.

It's bad enough to go through that being self-employed, but to go through that as an employee was unbearable for me, especially after begging for training and promising to be loyal...before I was hired. I've found that, because most contractors consider the ROI of their time training to be too low, many just throw you in the deep end to see if you sink or swim. If you "swim" and make the company money, well, great. If you "sink," that's OK, because there are 10 other people looking for that job, and one of them is bound to work out without having to invest in training. Besides, in the contractors' minds who operate like this, their thinking is, "Why should I pour everything I worked so hard for into this newbie when they'll probably quit and work for my competitor or else start their own business and be my competitor?" If that's not the case, it still might be that your co-worker at that company might hold back in sharing their knowledge because they view you as a threat to their job security if you become more skilled than they. Worst case, you might have both. Ahhh, the politics. I will not play politics.

(Edit: This website seems to have a high concentration of "good" contractors who are willing to share tips and tricks, but you gotta pay attention!)

I know not every contractor business owner is like this, but I gave up looking for one who cares about quality and integrity around here years ago. (Please don't construe this to be lifting myself up -- I have plenty of faults.) If you already have a relationship with a "good" contractor who is willing to truly take you under their wing, then I'd say stick with them for a few more years to get more experience (until you can't stand it), because you may not know it, but you are fortunate! Who knows, maybe they'll include you in their plans for ownership succession. However, if you can't find a contractor to train you, one who's honest and who does quality work, then you may be better off (despite the frustrations you are sure to endure) going out on your own....

Sorry, supwd, but I don't have any advice here....

....But keep us informed!

frankg81

well im 28 and im working on getting my fl roofing license now. ive been doing roofs for 7 yrs now. was studying for the license 3 yrs back but with all the work we had, i had no time.. now that work is really really slow i got plenty of time. so i would say go for the license and go from there, if u cant find a job to work at at least u can find a partner or do jobs on your own....

George-NJ

Start out legal, don't waste valuable time by not having a license & insurance.

When I started out at 19, I went the hack way. Sure I got good work and made good money. It was all word of mouth for people who didn't want to pay "pro prices". But when we hit the 1990 recession, all my work dried up, and being not legal I couldn't advertise. By then I was 22 married and owned a house, not the time to start and do it right, I had to take a job in an entirly different field. It took me nearly 10 years to be at the point where I could start again, the right way.

If your young and especially still at home or living on the cheap, start out right so you can advertise on you vehicle, on flyers, online, etc. It will make a big difference, trust me.

I know plenty of young guys who started business, plenty of them ended up very, very successful.

To be taken seriously & respected, be likable, dress and act like a professional, use your manners, be ready to eat sh#t, even if it was somebody elses mistake. Return all calls, when you say you'll show up, show up.

Kyras

Never esteem anything to be of value that would cause you to break your word or lose your self respect. Marcus Aurelius.

Memorize that. Seriously.

That's all the advice you need. But..

You must do what you feel is right, of course. Star Wars

I will not fear. Fear is the mindkiller. Dune

custrel

I have a few suggestions (in no particular order):

1- Keep working for someone else right now. try to get into an apprenticeship program. Pick the field you like the most - carpentry, plumbing, masonry - and apply to get into the apprenticeship program for that trade.

If you can't get into an apprenticeship, find a small business who needs a 'helper' and make yourself invaluable to that guy. Working one on one with an old-timer day in - day out, can be just as good or better than an apprenticeship program.

You may know a lot now, but there is a lot more to learn - especially about running jobs, managing people, customers, vendors, etc. If you hook up with the right company, four more years of experience will better prepare you for they day you go solo. You'll also have a better network of contacts.

Yeah $12-$15/hour isn't fantastic. So stop looking on Craig's list. If you want to be paid better while you hone your skills I really recommend getting into a trade union. You'll START at around $15/hour plus benefits (depending on the trade) and get a raise every 6 months until you journey out.

It might be hard to break into a company right now, but if you can't even sell yourself as a worker to a company, how effective will you be at selling your services to customers?

2- Save your money. Sit down and list every possible expense you can think of for your new business from vehicle & tools to T-shirt & cell phone. Then double that amount. That amount is how much you will need IN CASH before you start a business. While you keep working to save this amount, pay off all your credit cards and keep them paid off.

3- Specialize. Your experience is all over the place right now. I think you will find it easier for your business if you can do one or two things VERY well, rather than many things fairly well. If you can combine speed and quality, even if you have a small niche, you will have a better chance to compete with existing contractors out there.

4- Go where the work is. If you can't find much work in your area, move. You're young and now is the time to see the world anyway. Being willing to work anywhere is a huge competitive advantage over us older guys who have homes and families and don't want to drive two hours from home, let alone move to another city/state/country for six months.

A young single person can make a lot of money (and save a lot) by working over seas on a big project - like the base renovations in Guam.

custrel

... or compromise your profit margin.

smeagol

Try to get your cdl. Good luck

SantaFeSam

My friend you are 19 and just starting and I am 72 and still going, though, retired. The first thing to put in your book is "Never quit or give up". You have chosen this field for some reason so trust in it. Secondly, slow times always get rid of those who do quit or move on. This makes the market better for you - soon believe me. Do it all but get better at some one thing. You will get a license one day but now is not necessary. College is always a very good decision. With your present skills you can put yourself through with no problems (some maybe).I graduated from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo where they have Construction Management and Architecture as well. I studied Architecture and then became a Construction guy. It is a wonderful life so my friend -stay focused and go for it. The more you know, the harder you work, the further you will get. My mentor once told me "The only thing people will remember after a job is not how much it cost, but how well you did it."
SantaFeSam@comcast.net

griz

Hey Sam, you may have just qualified for the oldest fart award.

ApgarNJ

Remodeling and Renovations are NOTHING but straight forward. New construction is night/day different. I would say go on someone else's payroll while you learn more of the business side of things. I learned the hard way and went out on my own when my boss of 5 years died of cancer and I was jobless and I struggled at first but now 10 years later, I don't regret going out on my own. I was 26 when I went out on my own and I still learn things each and every year.
You need a few more years under your belt, this is a bad economy to be starting a business from scratch. If you want to work for someone else , just do some side jobs and slowly get your name out there. Save up as much money as you can so you can eventually buy your truck, tools and equipment.
Don't expect to have everything at once. It takes years of hard work and determination.

The business side of this industry is the hardest to learn for many contractors.

Pick what trade you really want to get into and stick with that, don't try to do it all.

__________________
Apgarconstruction.com | Remodeling Contractor Hunterdon County NJ | Facebook

Tinstaafl

Really?!?