Is $300 to much for mowing 20 acres?

[PeterT]

Thats way to cheap, I recieved $90 to mow my neighbors 2 acres, and he was glad to pay it. Tell him to go fly a kite.

PeterT

 

[Hootie]

Hmmm..........why don't you just agree to it at that price, then get somebody to cut it for hay and sell it . Down here hay is going for $70+/roll for rolled 3X4's. Good grief, that guy is crazy!

 

[hockeypuck]

I had a neighboor come over and ask me to pluck rocks and stumps for the fun of it with my excavator. I did not answer his question, I only told him that I was looking at repairing/replacing one of my final drives for $6000. That shut him up quick. Drop a line about your costs or repair bills and make him realize how stupid his complaining about $300 is, and then let someone else do it for him.

Puck

 

[Farmwithjunk]

My buddy knows a guy who has a field that is between 20-22 acres. He asked me if I wanted to mow it last year. I did mow it and when the guy asked how much I told him $250. He got all bent out and asked if I was going to bail it also. So, I said o.k., $200. He reluctantly paid me the $200.

Now, this year he called me and asked if I wanted to mow it again , I told him that since the price of diesel has went up so much I would have to get atleast $300 to mow it this year. He said no way.

It took me 2 full days to mow this field and about 20 gallons of fuel. It is on the side of a pretty good hill also. That is less than $15 an acre not to mention trailering my equipment up to his place and the wear and tear. Now, If he was not " Well Off " I would have probably just done for what he could pay me ( I have done that before for people) But this guy has 3 Cadillacs, Giant house and a big ol' John Deere. I guess he is just too lazy to mow it his self.
Am I being unreasonable or is he just one of those guys that wants something for nothing ? What would you guys charge to brush hog this field?

He might not be "too lazy" to mow it. He might just be a sly businessman. He got it mowed for next to nothing.

The $15 per acre rates I've been quoted were for larger acreage. (over 100) Going rates for smaller parcels of land are generally based on hourly rates. ($45 to $60 depending on tractor size/6' to 8' mowers) (That's in rural Kentucky) Figuring "normal" acreage for a tractor in the 45 HP range and a 6' mower, 20 to 22 acres of "average" mowing would bring about $450 (+ or -) here. Keep in mind this is one of the lowest "cost of living" areas in the States.

$200 would get you about 8 to 10 acres of mowing here, MAYBE. And that's cutting weeds and tall grass. NOT clearing brush or mowing on a hillside.

Give a price that suits YOU. If he doesn't like it, let him find someone else.

 

[DCS]

Only having a 5' brush hog, I generally try to stay around the 10 to 12 acre range. If the pasture is clean, few trees, flat I will price it at around $35 an acre. If it is over grown and with a fair amount of trees, I up it to around $40 an acre. If it is over grown, losts of trees, but clear of debris it's priced around $45 an acre. If it is over grown, lots of trees, trashed out, then I tell them it will have to be cleaned up first before I will even consider mowing it.

I also called around to others in this area who mow, I was upfront and told them that I also mow and just asked them what they are getting for mowing.

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

I'm lucky. Neighbor kid's dad has a 100 HP cab tractor with a 15' batwing. He can mow majority of our 25 acres in 3 hours. I gave him more than he asked for which was $50/ hour. $150 total.

I would offer him $60/hour now to cover fuel costs. No travel expenses, (next door neighbors).

 

[hsvhobbit]

Here's my .02. You told him you'd do it for $300 and he turned you down. Ok, a deal was offered and refused, that means the deal is now OFF the table. You're free to now change the quote without any moral obligation to the original deal. If you just want to be a nice guy and hold to your offer, that's your choice.

Before I got my own tractor, my neighbor offered to cut my land for $19/acre, which I thought was a cheap rate. He's running a big 115 HP tractor and a 15 foot batwing. He can cut a LOT of acreage in an hour with that rig, but it costs him to run it too.

If it were me and I was looking at 2 FULL days of cutting with no insurance and taking all the risk, this guy would be paying me probably $700-800 minimum. If there's a good slope to worry about, of if it's close to his house, it goes up from there. What's it going to cost YOU if you get a flat tire? How about if you sling a rock through the windshield of one of his caddies?

Remember this, your tractor isn't free to run, every hour you put on it, is another hour towards a big repair bill farther down the road. Your time is valuable, you only get 24 hours for each day.

You set your own rates but if you set a rate that YOU believe is fair, don't let someone else lowball you unless you're just desperate to pay the mortgage.

 

[scesnick]

Thanks for all the responses. I'm glad to see that my rate was MORE than reasonable.

 

[johnk]

There is a thing of using your tractor then there is the thing of people using you. If the guy was sensible he wouldn't mind paying the higher cost of mowing because he didn't have to put the money upfront for the equipment. Let your conscience be your guide. I wouldn;t do it that cheap though. Time is money to me and also is use of my equipment....

 

[Billy_S]

Call the guy back. Tell him you have checked around and, as a result of your inquiries, you have decided that the price you quoted is way out of line. Tell him you will do it for $50 an acre.