How do you make money with your CUT
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LD1
Epic Contributor
Field mowing aka bushhogging comprises 90% of my side business. And of that 90%....a good third to half is doing horse pastures. Which can be gravy jobs as the horses keep it pretty thinned out.....or can be a nightmare with rocks cropping up, or just so bumpy you have to go at a snails pace. These usually get done 2-3 times a year, and I have alot of repeat business in this area.
Aside from pasture clipping, the rest really is a variety. Some of the jobs are just overgrown 4-5 acre tracts that were old fields lotted off. Once finally sold, the purchaser wants/needs to be able to get in there to decide where they want their house laid out, drive, septic inspection, etc. And they dont want to be walking in 3-4' high weeds to do so.
Some are up around houses. (where you really need insurance for sure). Where someones lawnmower broke and by the time they got it repaired their lawn is too much for them to handle now.
Some are for bank/repo's mowing an acre or two around the house. On these I have never dealt directly with the banks, rather through a third party contractor that the bank hires to "clean the place up", allthough if I had an "In" with some banks I could probably do alot of these jobs. But they normally suck as you never know what you are gonna hit in a "yard" that aint been mowed in a year. Tires, kids bicycle, mattress frame, well casing, concrete septic lids, etc.
I also do a fair bit of commercial work. Areas around commercial buildings that the company owns.....but isnt yard. But they still want to keep it looking nice and mowed a few times a year.
If you take on any of these commercial, or multiple times per year accounts, make sure you are dependable and do a good job. If you arent, it will cost you more business that you will never even know about.
I also have an "IN" with a local company that does about everything. Mowing, landscaping, hardscaping, new yard installs, irrigation, asphalt sealing, etc etc etc. I have known the owners of the company for many years, back when he was just a guy with a skid loader looking to make a go at it on his own. I am his "go-to" for bushhogging. If you get any "ins" like this, its important that you not talk pricing and what not with the customer and try to under cut the company that hired you for future services. A little professional courtesy. I have had many of these contract jobs ask me right off what I would charge to do it instead of going through "......lawn company". I politely tell them that I cannot beat their price, as they give me so much volume + guaranteed payment. Sure, we have competed on jobs before.....(and I always win because they have to make something), but if a customer didnt find me on their own to get the job quoted........I aint gonna slap the hand that feeds me.
But as to other jobs I do, I am capable of tilling, do driveway grading and spreading gravel, leveling areas for building a barn, spreading/moving dirt, digging post holes, etc. And advertise most of that as well. Not much demand for those though it seems. I do on occasion a little bit of the driveway grading and blading. But in my area, the field mowing is where its at. Much more demand.
So with all that in mind, step 1 is you need to understand your equipment, and how quickly you can work in different conditions, then figure out a pricing structure. I never charge by the hour, or by the acre. I give a quote to do a job, and stick to it. You cannot charge by the acre, because every acre is different. And by the hour......first question they will always ask is "well how long do you think it will take". And whatever you say, you for **** sure better not go over. Which leaves estimating a little high to cover unknowns.....which may cost you jobs.
I target $70/hour from my house BACK to my house......but the customer doesnt know this. Based on acreage (confirmed on findlotsize.com), and conditions they describe to me (when the last time it was mowed, how tall, saplings/briars, obsticals, etc), I can get an idea of how long its gonna take me to mow. And google tells me my drive time. Take that times $70 and their is your flat price. And unless something changes when I arrive (they add more work, conditions vastly different than described, etc) I stick to my price. Sometimes after all said and done I come out at $60, some times at $80. But it all averages out.
So to summarize:
1. Figure out what there is a high demand for in your area. For me its field mowing.
2. Figure out your pricing structure.
3. Be dependable. Which means having quality and reliable equipment.
4. Be insured.
Aside from pasture clipping, the rest really is a variety. Some of the jobs are just overgrown 4-5 acre tracts that were old fields lotted off. Once finally sold, the purchaser wants/needs to be able to get in there to decide where they want their house laid out, drive, septic inspection, etc. And they dont want to be walking in 3-4' high weeds to do so.
Some are up around houses. (where you really need insurance for sure). Where someones lawnmower broke and by the time they got it repaired their lawn is too much for them to handle now.
Some are for bank/repo's mowing an acre or two around the house. On these I have never dealt directly with the banks, rather through a third party contractor that the bank hires to "clean the place up", allthough if I had an "In" with some banks I could probably do alot of these jobs. But they normally suck as you never know what you are gonna hit in a "yard" that aint been mowed in a year. Tires, kids bicycle, mattress frame, well casing, concrete septic lids, etc.
I also do a fair bit of commercial work. Areas around commercial buildings that the company owns.....but isnt yard. But they still want to keep it looking nice and mowed a few times a year.
If you take on any of these commercial, or multiple times per year accounts, make sure you are dependable and do a good job. If you arent, it will cost you more business that you will never even know about.
I also have an "IN" with a local company that does about everything. Mowing, landscaping, hardscaping, new yard installs, irrigation, asphalt sealing, etc etc etc. I have known the owners of the company for many years, back when he was just a guy with a skid loader looking to make a go at it on his own. I am his "go-to" for bushhogging. If you get any "ins" like this, its important that you not talk pricing and what not with the customer and try to under cut the company that hired you for future services. A little professional courtesy. I have had many of these contract jobs ask me right off what I would charge to do it instead of going through "......lawn company". I politely tell them that I cannot beat their price, as they give me so much volume + guaranteed payment. Sure, we have competed on jobs before.....(and I always win because they have to make something), but if a customer didnt find me on their own to get the job quoted........I aint gonna slap the hand that feeds me.
But as to other jobs I do, I am capable of tilling, do driveway grading and spreading gravel, leveling areas for building a barn, spreading/moving dirt, digging post holes, etc. And advertise most of that as well. Not much demand for those though it seems. I do on occasion a little bit of the driveway grading and blading. But in my area, the field mowing is where its at. Much more demand.
So with all that in mind, step 1 is you need to understand your equipment, and how quickly you can work in different conditions, then figure out a pricing structure. I never charge by the hour, or by the acre. I give a quote to do a job, and stick to it. You cannot charge by the acre, because every acre is different. And by the hour......first question they will always ask is "well how long do you think it will take". And whatever you say, you for **** sure better not go over. Which leaves estimating a little high to cover unknowns.....which may cost you jobs.
I target $70/hour from my house BACK to my house......but the customer doesnt know this. Based on acreage (confirmed on findlotsize.com), and conditions they describe to me (when the last time it was mowed, how tall, saplings/briars, obsticals, etc), I can get an idea of how long its gonna take me to mow. And google tells me my drive time. Take that times $70 and their is your flat price. And unless something changes when I arrive (they add more work, conditions vastly different than described, etc) I stick to my price. Sometimes after all said and done I come out at $60, some times at $80. But it all averages out.
So to summarize:
1. Figure out what there is a high demand for in your area. For me its field mowing.
2. Figure out your pricing structure.
3. Be dependable. Which means having quality and reliable equipment.
4. Be insured.
Snowback
Platinum Member
Just for calibration, I recently decided to hire out brushogging on our place since it has been so oppressively hot and I do not have a cab.
I checked local Craigslist postings and found a number of guys in the area. Decided to give a guy a shot who was advertising $35/hr, but that was for local work in town as it turns out. He did travel for 20 mins each way to get to our place and ended up bidding $50/hr. (It was a 35HP Kioti with a 5' cutter.)
Our place is pretty rough and it was dusty along with a lot of shrapnel left from last year's logging and first pass Timber Mulching, so I rationalized the cost and bit the bullet. This young guy was eager to work and polite as well, and that will almost always set the hook if everything else checks out. I think anything north of $50/hr and I may have decided to wait and tackle it myself when it cools down some. (I do think that LD1s $70/hr is a fair price for most things, but I am a cheapskate and can do the work with my equipment later if needed thus my decision was based on those factors.)
The reason I wanted to share is that you might think about advertising with your, "Mow the lot two houses down" rate. For example - "Starting rates as low as $35 or $55/hr", or whatever. Then give free estimates where you can inform the client of what their specific project cost would be. (Based on $/hr or simply a full turnkey.) But only do turnkey bids if you are comfortable you can get it all done in your internally estimated time, or else you might eat some loss if it goes long. If the advertisement had said $50/hr, I may not have called even though I was ultimately willing to pay that given the type of work and how rough it was. I am certainly not advocating bait and switch. I do not like that. Just be clear on the first phone call, and then give everyone an honest bid. Perhaps you find a job just down the street where you would be willing to work for the entry level rate...
Has anyone else dealt with this internal moral dilemma of hiring out work when you have your own tractor and equipment, but time is tight or the conditions are not desirable, etc...? How do you all rationalize this and what prices are you willing to pay?
Good luck!
I checked local Craigslist postings and found a number of guys in the area. Decided to give a guy a shot who was advertising $35/hr, but that was for local work in town as it turns out. He did travel for 20 mins each way to get to our place and ended up bidding $50/hr. (It was a 35HP Kioti with a 5' cutter.)
Our place is pretty rough and it was dusty along with a lot of shrapnel left from last year's logging and first pass Timber Mulching, so I rationalized the cost and bit the bullet. This young guy was eager to work and polite as well, and that will almost always set the hook if everything else checks out. I think anything north of $50/hr and I may have decided to wait and tackle it myself when it cools down some. (I do think that LD1s $70/hr is a fair price for most things, but I am a cheapskate and can do the work with my equipment later if needed thus my decision was based on those factors.)
The reason I wanted to share is that you might think about advertising with your, "Mow the lot two houses down" rate. For example - "Starting rates as low as $35 or $55/hr", or whatever. Then give free estimates where you can inform the client of what their specific project cost would be. (Based on $/hr or simply a full turnkey.) But only do turnkey bids if you are comfortable you can get it all done in your internally estimated time, or else you might eat some loss if it goes long. If the advertisement had said $50/hr, I may not have called even though I was ultimately willing to pay that given the type of work and how rough it was. I am certainly not advocating bait and switch. I do not like that. Just be clear on the first phone call, and then give everyone an honest bid. Perhaps you find a job just down the street where you would be willing to work for the entry level rate...
Has anyone else dealt with this internal moral dilemma of hiring out work when you have your own tractor and equipment, but time is tight or the conditions are not desirable, etc...? How do you all rationalize this and what prices are you willing to pay?
Good luck!
LD1
Epic Contributor
My $70/hr target including travel time....would have probably cost you less than the guy you hired.(obviously if I was 20 min away also).
Gotta look at how much he can do in an hour's time vs others to compare apples to apples. IE 8' cutter and 50 hp vs 5' and 35 hp.
In the worst of the worst, I can still do 2-2.5 acres per hour. And can average about 4 on a normal and decient size job
Gotta look at how much he can do in an hour's time vs others to compare apples to apples. IE 8' cutter and 50 hp vs 5' and 35 hp.
In the worst of the worst, I can still do 2-2.5 acres per hour. And can average about 4 on a normal and decient size job
RjCorazza
Elite Member
I mow immediate neighborhood residential 2 acre lots with my zero turn. All being within 1/2 radius of home, it's a lucrative retirement job as well as less expensive for the neighbors. Snow is about all I charge for on the L4060hstc - same local scenario. You can't beat a loader tractor with a big snow blower and/or 7' blade for driveways. Last winter we got a 35" blizzard, that kept the pickup truck plows at home. Contractors with skid steers were charging $350 per driveway and my pre blizzard advertised rate was $125. I did very well, and the neighbors were very happy. My preferred snow plowing arrangement is a seasonal flat rate.
The less recurrent jobs I do with the tractor like loader work and tilling I do gratis to stay neighborly.
The less recurrent jobs I do with the tractor like loader work and tilling I do gratis to stay neighborly.
Snowback
Platinum Member
I think those are all very valid points. Just trying to add some flavor on how to get a client to call him back. (In fact I may have saved some money had I called one of those guys who had higher rates listed...) I would say this job was probably closer to the "worst" side of the spectrum. REALLY rough and tons of scattered trees. Still, he only made about an acre an hour at the end of the day. I sure wish your were closer LD1!
Just be glad you weren't on this job. The guy told me he hit one random 8" pine stump with the front of his cutter and lifted the front end of the tractor off the ground a couple feet.
I warned him to run with the bucket down and tilted up so it might bounce over the few stumps that had been missed. The cutter was well used and he was not too worried about it so that was all good.
MESSMAKER
Veteran Member
Most of my work is with a bushog. I get $50 per hour for a 5 foot cutter. I stay pretty busy. Insurance and maintenance/repairs take a chunk out of your bottom line. I spend a 1/2 day on tractor after every 8-10 days of work.Developing real estate and baby farms are very good to me.
CADplans
Elite Member
I get LOTS of requests to flail mow and do loader work from the neighbors,,,
The problem is EVERYBODY thinks I should do the work for free,, because I am a nice neighbor,,,
("Hey, you got the mower hooked up, can you do my 2 acres of 4 foot tall weeds??" :confused2: )
Each time I recommend a price like $50 an hour,, the neighbor looks at me like I have two heads,,,
So,, the tractor stays in the shed,, except for my personal use.
The problem is EVERYBODY thinks I should do the work for free,, because I am a nice neighbor,,,
("Hey, you got the mower hooked up, can you do my 2 acres of 4 foot tall weeds??" :confused2: )
Each time I recommend a price like $50 an hour,, the neighbor looks at me like I have two heads,,,
So,, the tractor stays in the shed,, except for my personal use.
bigtiller
Super Member
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2006
- Messages
- 6,549
- Location
- central Iowa
- Tractor
- John Deere 2720 John Deere 3039R John Deere Z545R
I bought a tiller for my garden tractor for my own use years ago when I lived in town. The neighbors were kind enough to let me till their garden, which helped with the learning curve on how everything worked together. Word of mouth got me more and more gardens every year and I had to buy a trailer to get to some of them. Then strangers started calling and my territory expanded.
I put a 5 week long add in the local paper in the spring some years, but it really wasn't necessary, I had all the hobby work I wanted. My prices were very low in my opinion and many people wandered why. It was because I enjoyed everything about tilling other peoples gardens.
Somehow our nation became "sue" happy and I began to worry. I didn't have any insurance because it would have tripled my rates and would have to be ran like a business. I didn't want that.
So now, after 24 years of fun with the tractor and meeting new people, I am giving serious thought to not doing it any more. I'd hate to loose everything in a law suit.
Gary Fowler
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2008
- Messages
- 11,917
- Location
- Bismarck Arkansas
- Tractor
- 2009 Kubota RTV 900, 2009 Kubota B26 TLB & 2010 model LS P7010
I don't do commercial work, but I do some work for my neighbors. Recently they asked me if I would bring my tractor up to their commercial campground about 12 miles away and fix all the washed out roads that had been neglected for 2 years (long story on that). I worked for 3 days digging up gravel/clay mixture from an onsite pit and hauling it around the campground roads, spreading and packing it in. Since it was for a commercial business, they insisted on paying me for the work. I basically said pay me $15 per for my labor and whatever my backhoe would cost to rent for a weekend from a rental place.
I also used my truck and trailer to go pickup their tractor which was located about 5 miles from my house and haul it to their campground. Being a good neighbor, I charged them $15 per hour for my time only.
I wouldn't make a very good business man for doing this for the public which is why I normally just do work for my neighbors for free. I may even mow their yard when I am mowing mine if it looks a bit neglected since both my neighbors work 7 days a week at their business.
I also used my truck and trailer to go pickup their tractor which was located about 5 miles from my house and haul it to their campground. Being a good neighbor, I charged them $15 per hour for my time only.
I wouldn't make a very good business man for doing this for the public which is why I normally just do work for my neighbors for free. I may even mow their yard when I am mowing mine if it looks a bit neglected since both my neighbors work 7 days a week at their business.
