How Can I Charge For What It's Worth To Me

hammerwhipped

I am a young asian GC in San Francisco with 8 yrs exp. but can't seem to break through the stereotype that asian contractors are cheap. I currently base my estimates on $40 an hour and don't wan't to lower my price to get the job cause the refferals I would get from them would also expect me to be cheap. Most think I'm expensive even though they know I do quality work, am insured and licensed. Does the fact that I am only 26 years old matter?

hammerwhipped

I am a gc in san francisco and I charge 45-70 per running foot of fence which includes removal, all redwood materials, labor, and disposal. The reason for the big price gap is based on the factors:

Style of fence (plain 1x6 to 1x6 wrapped with 1x and lattice on top or other designs)

Ease of work surrondings -lots of plants, no plants, lots of weeds

Accessability- front yard , backyard, trafficthrough house or garage and so on

I also set all of my posts with cb44 and concrete and guarantee my work from rot for 10 years

Please respond try to respond with a price, a certain scenario, and what county you're located in . THANKS

constrkings

you have to charge what you have to charge -- it's just that simple. i used to overanalyze my prices way too much (and there are a lot of threads on here asking price questions) but i finally said "hey i have to make this much to support my wife and kids and have a little left over so i have to charge xx per foot or per day or per job or however you do it. i have my own way to come up with the price and some things i will charge more for than others but in reality, it doesn't matter to me what everyone else is charging for a tile floor or a wooden fence or a composite deck or anything else. i have to charge what i have to make and yes sometimes i make out better than other times because it just works out that way. it's nice when i estimate something and then my guys have a great day and knock it out in half the time. i buy them lunch and pocket the rest and sometimes it doesn't work out as well. someone calls out sick, someone cuts something wrong, or whatever. But in general if you charge what you know you have to make to cover your expenses, pay your bills, and take your wife out to dinner every once in a while, then that's all there is to it.

as far as your race or age -- i don't know. maybe it depends on area you live in. i'm 33 and dark skinned (i'm a mutt -- and don't even know exactly what i am) but i work alot on referrals where people know my work already. it took me a while to get to that point but if you do good work, you'll get there too.

send_it_all

In most of my cases, it's unnecessary to tell my customers what my hourly rate is. They tell me what they want done and I give them an estimate for materials and labor. I use my hourly rate to figure my price, but when they get my proposal, all that is on it is a detailed scope of work and one lump sum price. It isn't broken down between labor and materials and I don't list a specific number of hours. They never ask what my hourly rate is. They either accept the proposal or they don't.

Bob Kovacs

If you're only charging $40/hour in San Francisco, you're perpetuating the stereotype of Asians being cheap- unless you're happy actually making a wage of around $20/hour, you're charging too little, and you'd be better off just working hourly for someone else. This assumes that you're running a legitimate business with licenses, insurance, etc.

MBS

When I first got started, I used to have an hourly rate. That rate helped keep me poor. I got plenty of referrals to other people who also expected me to have that hourly rate. I didn't start making money until I stopped charging an hourly rate and started pricing jobs in one lump sum. Also, I continued to get referrals but to others who were expecting a lump sum bid.

Sometimes, a ho wants the job cost broken down, into labor and materials. I don't do it. I tell them I price by the job, and that way their price doesn't change regardless how much more it costs me in materials and time than I thought it would. I sold a lot more jobs this way as well.

When you give an hourly rate, people compare the rates, and that has nothing to do with the quality of the work that gets done, or how much it will cost when finished. Sometimes they insist on a cost breakdown. I just thank them for contacting me and wish them well with their project.

Not everyone who asks me for a bid is a potential customer of mine.

bryan1981

+1