Hypothetical ???

Ed the Roofer

Chris,

So where were you trying to go with this?

I hope that you did not interpret my comments as digging at you for not selling value over price. That was not my intention at all.

It initially seemed to me, that you were pizzed off at someone else "Low-Balling" your price, but I don't necessarrily feel that 9.1 % is all that significant. It is, if you really needed or ewxpected to get the job though.

Ed

Joe Carola

What does 40 miles out of the way mean? Does it mean that he traveled 40 miles from where he's from? If so, why is that out of his way or anyone else's way? I travel 80 miles one way to work. Does that mean that I'm working in someone else's backyard and not supposed too?

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Bone Saw

for the love of christ do I have to spell this out


do you not account for travel expense in a job or is it just absorbed as loss???

everyone here bitches about low ballers, hacks, illegals, price shoppers, how much to charge for this, knowing your OH, knowing your costs etc etc etc, so how is it that a company with clearly more overhead and associated job expense can charge less, how is this not selling on price in a market a market that commands more.

is all the discussion her on about OH, costs, selling, value, etcetcetc just hot air or is today national contrary day

how anyone can't see the logic I'm getting at is beyond me?


out

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Susan Betz

No, you're *right*. That's why I made the comment about the guy needing to pay his mortgage. Maybe he really needed that job, needed the work so badly that he's willing to make less to get the work.

I call that working to go broke. But while this economy sorts out, I think we're gonna see a lot more of it.

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John Hyatt

John<<<agrees with the Susan, Bone I am telling you Mon,we are in for a M F of a time this year. Local Market Smokal Market the Jobs are just not there right now.

This guy probley did bend you over,its twice as bad if you know the Outfit. Dont even get me started with the # of times my very own workers have have shafted me while drawing $20/25 an hour + cell + major perk on payday when the job went well+ driving around in my truck...Need I go on!!!!

It going to be a Major Bitch this year Guys. Right now I am hovering over a job in a gated la la area, normaly this time of year with St Pattys and all when it all breaks in for us I would turn it in at $ 23.500.00 the Trellis for $6200 this includes a tearout with cut down access of a 1200 sq ft pool deck and a rebuild and not even think about it.

So Guys as a Poll would you low ball the thing to just keep some gas in the truck.??? No matter who your are biding against.
J.

Joe Carola

All I read was your first post that wasn't clear at all. My mistake, so don't get your ba!!s in an uproar over this, relax!

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Jason Whipple

I've known of some larger companies that will take at job a little over cost just to keep the guys from going to the unemployment line. From that prospective, would you lay off guys and then pay the unemployment that comes along with it or keep the guys going until something broke loose?

I've seen it before, could be that's all there is to it.

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deckman22

I guess I don't get where you're coming from with this "my area" stuff.

In Austin there are at least 50 guys who make their living strickly building decks & probably 250 more GC's, jacklegs, illegals & parttimers who will build someone a deck here. Then you got all the country boys within a 75 mile radius that will travel here to work plus the San Antonio boys too. Who's area is who's? I consider anywhere within a 45 min. to an hour max. to be within my work area, but it's certainly not all my mine. Fact of the matter is it's everyone's area.

Heck I've lost a 5k job to a guy over 50 bucks. I would not have even known it if it were not for his brother working for me. Once I give out a bid I don't give it a second thought til I get a follow up call. That's the other thing I don't get, why you're lingering on the fact you lost one bid.

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BreyerConstruct

Chris,

Have you talked to this other company? Do they know they undercut you- do you think it was intentional?

I just won a deck & was over the "other guy", and on another job I was under the "other guy". (22.4k over 21.8k, 6.8k under 7.5k).
It's been interesting to read the responses. IN slow plowing there's a lot of underbidding & the like, and for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it's to keep guys/machines busy, sometimes companies will take a risk of a loss on the plowing to get the summer mowing, and sometimes they have no idea of their true costs.

A slightly different mindset is that of someone who knows their costs very well, and is highly efficient- therefore can make their correct profit margins, yet can do it for less. thats tough to do if you've got the full insurance package- and are going up against the Amish!!! But I think it's happened before.

Just kinda rambling.....

~Matt

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onhitch

are you talking about the "amish"? they do a $15,000 material job and charge $1000 for labor. i guess if you put straw in your tank instead of diesel it works out?