This part is different SoftusSoftus said:
How Much
- Thread starter fattony
- Start date
I stand corrected.
This is where a delete button would come in handy. 
Come on Admin, give us a delete button. 
Come on Admin, give us a delete button. £200 per day is very reasonable - its all about supply and demand. Also as has been said when you take out all the legitimate expenses with running a business (all be it a small one) customers are not at all put off with these prices. If you quote for a job, and the customer accepts that price then the lenght of time it takes to complete the job is immaterial. By the way I charge more per day than the sparks I work with - who's fault is that?
Pricing is market driven.
I work on the principle that in any given 5 day week, I can earn over 4 days and the 5th is spent doing quotes, surveys, material logistics.
So lets work this back from, say £35k a year.
weekends 52 x 2 = 104 days
bank holidays x 9 = 9 days
normal holidays = 20 days
Non earning days = 48 days
Total =181 days
So 365 - 181 = 184 days to earn the money
That's £35k / 184 = £190 a day required add the van £10 per day, add £5 per day tool wear and that gives a net income requirement of £205 which divided by 7 working / on site hours is about £30 ph
What does upset me is when the rate gets questioned.
The other week I was asked to do 2 x days work after doing 1 x days survey / research etc for a City lawyer who owns an Aston Martin, 4 houses and must earn £120k+++ a year.
When I quoted £250 a day + £200 for work done to allow for a lower cost solution he queried the quote and asked me if I'd reduce it. I refused and backed off, he chased my tail pleading with me to do the work,
I stated that I was insulted by his suggestion of rate reduction and questioning the value I offered.
The builder on site informed me that in the end he paid another firm £1100 (and that they 'stole' my design solution).
If people can't respect a trade person being ethical about prices, then I'll give them the big 'E'- I and many of my clients understand my value.
I work on the principle that in any given 5 day week, I can earn over 4 days and the 5th is spent doing quotes, surveys, material logistics.
So lets work this back from, say £35k a year.
weekends 52 x 2 = 104 days
bank holidays x 9 = 9 days
normal holidays = 20 days
Non earning days = 48 days
Total =181 days
So 365 - 181 = 184 days to earn the money
That's £35k / 184 = £190 a day required add the van £10 per day, add £5 per day tool wear and that gives a net income requirement of £205 which divided by 7 working / on site hours is about £30 ph
What does upset me is when the rate gets questioned.
The other week I was asked to do 2 x days work after doing 1 x days survey / research etc for a City lawyer who owns an Aston Martin, 4 houses and must earn £120k+++ a year.
When I quoted £250 a day + £200 for work done to allow for a lower cost solution he queried the quote and asked me if I'd reduce it. I refused and backed off, he chased my tail pleading with me to do the work,
I stated that I was insulted by his suggestion of rate reduction and questioning the value I offered.
The builder on site informed me that in the end he paid another firm £1100 (and that they 'stole' my design solution).
If people can't respect a trade person being ethical about prices, then I'll give them the big 'E'- I and many of my clients understand my value.
you lot make me laff £35 a hour plastering ,£35 a hour maybe for 5 hours work on a private job ,but that rate on a site must be impossible day after day ,plasterers are on the same rate as a painter there one of the lowest paid trades , £1200 a week wake up wally
that applys to dsel
I'm a self employed sole trader and I definitley run my set up as a company and pay myself a wage and expect the 'company' to make a seperate profit.
My only limitation to what profit I can make is the physical amount of work I can do on my own, hence to grow my profit margin I would have to employ more tradesmen.
To me I expect to 'earn' for at least 5 days a week. With all my quotes and paper work done at evenings and weekends. My Hourly charge is as stated at £35 + VAT based on an 8 hour day, but if you include all my 'office' work that customers do not see this then obviously drops to next to nothing per hour
My only limitation to what profit I can make is the physical amount of work I can do on my own, hence to grow my profit margin I would have to employ more tradesmen.
To me I expect to 'earn' for at least 5 days a week. With all my quotes and paper work done at evenings and weekends. My Hourly charge is as stated at £35 + VAT based on an 8 hour day, but if you include all my 'office' work that customers do not see this then obviously drops to next to nothing per hour
S
Soggy_weetabix
I agree with Dave and all others who have analysed the income of a self employed person.
My business has to make a profit and I have to make a living for my family.
I thought that was how businesses operated? And I thought we all work to provide for ourselves and our family (if we have one).
My business (along with my fathers) has succeeded not be being 'cheap', but being reliable, honest and competent at the jobs we do.
Customers respect that, and if I cost 90 quid for a job that someone else has quoted 60 quid for they have a choice, and that someone might be just as well as qualified, reliable etc to do the job as me. I re-itterate...its their choice.
But for someone who had 400 service customers a year in 1999, and who now has over 1200 I must have done something right.
David
My business has to make a profit and I have to make a living for my family.
I thought that was how businesses operated? And I thought we all work to provide for ourselves and our family (if we have one).
My business (along with my fathers) has succeeded not be being 'cheap', but being reliable, honest and competent at the jobs we do.
Customers respect that, and if I cost 90 quid for a job that someone else has quoted 60 quid for they have a choice, and that someone might be just as well as qualified, reliable etc to do the job as me. I re-itterate...its their choice.
But for someone who had 400 service customers a year in 1999, and who now has over 1200 I must have done something right.
David
