Mowing Side cash from bush hog work?

[Builder]

I remember last season I ran over some barbed wire, punctured tire & tube and lost a lot of rim gaurd, too. $500 to fix. That wiped out a whole day of cutting I had just done.
Small example of the pain caused by repairs, but thought it might give some of the other newer guys some idea of what can happen.
Couldn't imagine losing a engine, trans, etc. Even a mower spindle would be a pain.
However it's the same with my construction biz. At any time a truck can drop a tranny or you can make a mistake and have to rebuild part of a foundation.
Any business that involves equipment poses this threat. It also poses a threat to your personal safety. I have a relative who owns a nice business- Real Estate Appraisal. All you need is a car, home computer and a camera. Very little overhead/equipment and pretty safe work. I have been asked to take it over and and it's really tempting.

 

[MossflowerWoods]

I have a relative who owns a nice business- Real Estate Appraisal. All you need is a car, home computer and a camera. Very little overhead/equipment and pretty safe work. I have been asked to take it over and and it's really tempting.

Diversification is always a GREAT idea! If you are tempted, might want to go for it.:thumbsup:

PS - I've heard Home Inspector is another good one, you need a ladder and a color printer also for that one.

Be well,
David

 

[MossflowerWoods]

I'm not so much "negative" about mowing as I am realistic about it. You have to know what you're getting into...

Anyone who has the desire to go into business can approach it from several directions...You can "stay busy" and make chump change. You can operate at a loss (for a while) or you can go at it like your life depends on it's success. I choose the latter.

I would like to HELP anyone else who plans on going the same direction. And I would hope to prevent them from being misled or spending a fortune before they picked up on the down side to the business.

If you aren't prepared for what life throws at you, negatives will win ALMOST EVERY time.

Professor Farmwithjunk,

I mean that BTW. Your words I just quoted are rock solid business advise for ANY business.

You have been EXTREMELY helpful on this thread. Your experiences and insight and ATTITUDE have been exemplary.

THANK YOU.

Be well,
David

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I think success depends alot on your region also. Here in NE CT there's always some guy with there old ford that will do it for $25 and acre. I hear it all the time and it never gets old. There has been alot of good info dispensed here.

I actually started by answering a CL ad looking for 5 acres to be hogged. It was close by and a beautiful pasture that had been neglected. I met the owner there and his focus was all about cost. I explained I was a quality guy and not the cheapest. I already had the insurance and asked if his "other" guy did. His answer " I don't know" so I told him $80/hr 2 hr min and $50 hauling fee. His reply my "other guy" will do it for $100. My reply was to have the other guy do it then. About 3 weeks later who calls begging me to mow it that weekend. He still tried to bargain with me but it was useless at that point. I've mowed more of his land since and it's been a nice Side income.

That said I also mowed for several real estate agents and got stiffed. Now, since I own all my equipment I only lost my time and fuel but that can add up fast. So if your realistic about your profits and stay away from shady customers you can make some nice "beer money". But I'd suggest getting insurance as a min. Just not worth the risk.

Matt

 

[EddieWalker]

Just to add to the thread. I remodel and repair houses for a living. I work with a few realtors, but tend to find that they are in too much of a hurry for me, and I'm rarely able to get to them when they need me. Sometimes they call me about mowing or bushhogging a lot or something on a property. This is side work that if I'm free, will do on a weekend with my 35 hp 4x4 tractor and 6 foot bush hog. It's easy money for what I do in a day, and I've always enjoyed it when it comes along. I wouldn't want to do it full time, and I sure wouldnt want to have to make a living at it.

Contact the local realtors, give them a business card, or friend them on facebook. They probably already have a go to guy, but sometimes he's too busy and they need a back up guy. That's me, and it's led to other jobs that have been very good to me, just by answering the phone on the other jobs. Whether I could do them or not.

Eddie

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Here in NE CT there's always some guy with there old ford that will do it for $25 and acre.

Matt

Smaller acreage, $25 an acre is a give-away. However, on large acreage tracts of open land, and mowing with big equipment, (ie 125hp tractor/15' batwing) "going rate" here in Central Kentucky is something to the effect of $16 to $18 an acre. That still equates to roughly $125+ an hour.

The real trick is to NOT get backed into a corner on price structure. With experience, you learn the difference between $75 an hour work and $150 an hour work....There are jobs I'll do fairly cheap. And there are jobs I wouldn't do for ANY price. When I get an inquiry on my rates, and the caller's first question is "How much do you charge an hour"? I go on the defensive.... I don't know what THEY have, and they don't know (or care usually) what I have (as far as equipment size) Usually these people are just kicking tires. They'll go after the "old Ford for $25 an hour" even though I can be much more productive and do it cheaper with a 125hp tractor and 15' batwing @ $125 an hour.

The longer I do commercial mowing, the farther I want to get from hourly pricing. Let me just tell you what I'll do the entire job for, turn key price, and end it at that.

Then again, I don't do small tracts any longer. Smallest property I mowed this year (with the exception of a couple building lots I own personally) has been 20 acres+. Small jobs invite small operators (sans insurance/legal business status/ect)

The bulk of my work in the past couple years is with state and county government(s). Those have a completely different set of issues, not least of which is 2. 3. even 4 months wait on PARTIAL payments, performance bonds (that tie up monies) and dealing with political favoritism.


And worth mentioning, prices are a regional thing....I'm sure in certain areas of the country, the prices we get here in rural Kentucky appear to be ridiculously low, and prices I see in "big city" eastern US areas look ridiculously high to me.

 

[sandman2234]

I do not look for bush hog work and only do it on rare occasions for the public, usually it doesn't pay well enough to interest me. Lots of pitfalls as you say.

I am curious why you are so negative about bush hogging yet you are growing your business. I felt that way about the plumbing business and have downsized it dramatically and focused on landscaping which I enjoy doing.

I don't think Farmwithjunk is negative about bush hogging, only about how people go about getting into the business. My opinions of his posting on this thread is that he is trying to help out people who are considering trying it, or doing it on a small scale, by letting them in on certain basic facts, the most of which is the hidden dangers of underbidding your competition. Coupled with the fact that he is actually doing it, makes him a pretty good person to have around should you be interested in doing some side work for profit, not just beer money. I did some small lots nearby my house at a low hourly rate and ended up in the good, till that one last time... which made me realize that working cheap is rough on my pocketbook, not the customers. I was fortunate that I really was working for beer money, even if it was IBC Rootbeers...
David from jax

 

[sweep]

If you want to cut something cut lawns. A friend and his wife started a lawn business a few years back. They are now making good money. Their objectives where get on a street and get as many yards as possible to reduce moving equipment from place to place. Be full service provider, lawn, trim, core aerate/seed, cut down trees (or sub contract it), build fences, leaf/fall cleanup (big money there) etc, people like one person to deal with. As business improves get rid of the hard properties and hard to deal with customers. He keeps his equipment clean, working and blades sharpened. New customers get same day service, first impression is everything. At the end of the day, he cleans up the equipment and makes ready for the next day and his wife does the bills and gets dinner ready. Not saying it is easy work on those hot and humid days. Winter months are a little R&R time, maintenance on equipment, research on equipment/landscape and new services to offer. Big jobs gets a few guys from a temp agency.

One of my clients does this. Has a senior citizen clientel almost exclusively and he treats them right, is on time and they are extremely loyal as a result. One thing he does you did not mention is he plows snow for them in the winter as well and also hauls stuff to the landfill for them with his dumptruck.

He made 78k last year after expenses and could make more if he wanted to but he is starting to slow down age wise and he is a one man operation that way he can control everything. .. I know what he makes because I am the agent on his disability insurance.

 

[Builder]

Smaller acreage, $25 an acre is a give-away. However, on large acreage tracts of open land, and mowing with big equipment, (ie 125hp tractor/15' batwing) "going rate" here in Central Kentucky is something to the effect of $16 to $18 an acre. That still equates to roughly $125+ an hour.

The real trick is to NOT get backed into a corner on price structure. With experience, you learn the difference between $75 an hour work and $150 an hour work....There are jobs I'll do fairly cheap. And there are jobs I wouldn't do for ANY price. When I get an inquiry on my rates, and the caller's first question is "How much do you charge an hour"? I go on the defensive.... I don't know what THEY have, and they don't know (or care usually) what I have (as far as equipment size) Usually these people are just kicking tires. They'll go after the "old Ford for $25 an hour" even though I can be much more productive and do it cheaper with a 125hp tractor and 15' batwing @ $125 an hour.

The longer I do commercial mowing, the farther I want to get from hourly pricing. Let me just tell you what I'll do the entire job for, turn key price, and end it at that.

Then again, I don't do small tracts any longer. Smallest property I mowed this year (with the exception of a couple building lots I own personally) has been 20 acres+. Small jobs invite small operators (sans insurance/legal business status/ect)

The bulk of my work in the past couple years is with state and county government(s). Those have a completely different set of issues, not least of which is 2. 3. even 4 months wait on PARTIAL payments, performance bonds (that tie up monies) and dealing with political favoritism.


And worth mentioning, prices are a regional thing....I'm sure in certain areas of the country, the prices we get here in rural Kentucky appear to be ridiculously low, and prices I see in "big city" eastern US areas look ridiculously high to me.

We hunt a tract out in Iowa that belongs to a friend of mine. Out there standard rate for a 20' batwing is ~$10/acre.

 

[RickB]

We hunt a tract out in Iowa that belongs to a friend of mine. Out there standard rate for a 20' batwing is ~$10/hr.

$10 per hour won't buy enough fuel to run a 20 foot mower.