Fair price to clear an acre?

[plowhog]

Are they building a million dollar McMansion or moving in a used single wide? Those questions would matter to me on pricing.

My neighbor said he never lets people come to his house and give a bid on a job. They have to do it over the phone, then confirm the bid after visiting. I asked why and he told me the contractor price always seemed to double as they drove up the driveway. (He has a very nice house and property.) Probably not practical regarding clearing an acre, but now I understand.

I always bid jobs based on my cost to work or produce including labor and materials, plus an added profit or expectation of profit.

 

[4570Man]

My neighbor said he never lets people come to his house and give a bid on a job. They have to do it over the phone, then confirm the bid after visiting. I asked why and he told me the contractor price always seemed to double as they drove up the driveway. (He has a very nice house and property.) Probably not practical regarding clearing an acre, but now I understand.

I always bid jobs based on my cost to work or produce including labor and materials, plus an added profit or expectation of profit.

I’ll sometimes bid from some pictures sent to me but that number is subject to change when I actually see the job. And I specify that part. The reason I do it is it saves a lot of time to go look at something when our numbers are way apart.

 

[joeu235]

I think some of y'all have a misunderstanding of the relationship between market price and the type of equipment used. The market price for clearing the land is the same whether it is performed with a Chinook or a heard of trained beavers. The buyer might be willing to pay a premium for speed, or environmental impact, or bragging rights to his buddies...but generally the price is the same.

 

[4570Man]

I think some of y'all have a misunderstanding of the relationship between market price and the type of equipment used. The market price for clearing the land is the same whether it is performed with a Chinook or a heard of trained beavers. The buyer might be willing to pay a premium for speed, or environmental impact, or bragging rights to his buddies...but generally the price is the same.

A agreed somewhat. You can’t beat the price of a D8 with a root rake and a 400 Komatsu, but how much is the transport fee for such equipment? How much does it take for the owner of that equipment to decide to show up? Sure the 50 ton trackhoe could probably do this in an hour but there’s a lot more involved. Paying someone 65 an hour with a compact tractor isn’t a winning proposition either.