Handyman

[Root 66 Woodshop]

No issue from me @UKSBD this is the whole point of the forum... a discussion, getting points across... not being called what was it... stupid... and a silly little mug... (I'm 6ft 4 and 18 stone... far from being little...but hey ho LOL!)... kids huh?!

The hourly rate does depend on the job, you're correct... if I was quoting for a day's work then I will quote for a days work, and not the hourly rate... our day's rate is £500.00 + VAT for gate/barrier and door automation while our day rate for locksmithing is only £400.00 + VAT some jobs carry on over another half a day, it all depends on the weather or accessibility.

With regards to the work I do... I've only done two single day's work during the weekend, and I charged £200.00 per day for 7 hours per day.

 

[UKSBD]

A lot also depends on what's being done,

You can't really compare what you are doing with the majority of the work a handyman is doing.

You can charge far more if you are an established company installing an expensive product.

Reason being I would expect if you messed it up you would replace it and fit it for the same price so you have to factor that in to the price, I would want a guarantee, factored in to price, I would want after service, etc.

A handyman doing a bit of clearance work, fitting shelves, decorating, etc. has far less risk to factor in to the price.

Chances are, if I had a handyman on day rate putting up curtain poles and he cut one too short I would just nip and get a new one (without taking it out of his day rate)

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

Workwise from an outside perspective... what I do in my own time is handyman work... the fact that I have a few skills as a Locksmith mean nothing to what I do during my own time... other than I may be a little bit neater than others with the end result....

If that makes any sense...

But I would still not reduce what I charge...

I'm not even trying to compare what I do in my full time job to a handymans job, but as I've said previously any handyman out there that is changing locks MUST understand that if they reduce the security of someone's property by installing an incorrect lock then they are liable...

Handyman and women (before anyone even attempts to convey that I am being sexist) can and do, do a mix of different jobs, from plastering, electrics, plumbing and some lock changes... without any issues...

Why, as I said earlier though... would anyone want to value their own work at minimum wage? Just does not make any sense at all to me.

 

[UKSBD]

Why, as I said earlier though... would anyone want to value their own work at minimum wage? Just does not make any sense at all to me.

Because for a lot of people needs must.

It's easy to say charge £40 an hour if you are established, have enough work anyway, have your own house, have a partner working, are comfortable, etc.

If you're in digs, have a couple of young kids, struggling to find work, £20 an hour is a lifesaver.

It's also easy to say, but if you charge £40 an hour you won't be struggling, but you have to get in the position where turning down those £20 an hour jobs is an option 1st.

 

[MBE2017]

The main reason I would recommend charging sensible high rates is time, there is only so much per week, few people will ever be working a full 40hr week self employed. So once you allow for holidays, 2/4 weeks lost per year, probably only working 60% of the normal week, the hourly rate needs to adjust otherwise you are just a busy fool. Add to that cost of tools and materials, depreciation etc.

I used to be told ten years ago when I had my courier removal firm I couldn’t charge more than £20/30 hr on eBay work, I never charged less than £60 hr and I was working six solid days a week, my best day was over £2000. You tend to get what you ask for in life, you can always lower a price, much harder to increase it.

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

Because for a lot of people needs must.

It's easy to say charge £40 an hour if you are established, have enough work anyway, have your own house, have a partner working, are comfortable, etc.

If you're in digs, have a couple of young kids, struggling to find work, £20 an hour is a lifesaver.

It's also easy to say, but if you charge £40 an hour you won't be struggling, but you have to get in the position where turning down those £20 an hour jobs is an option 1st.

EDIT: Sorry for the long... thought/post...

I disagree, time is money at the end of the day... travelling from one job to another doesn't cover itself... as I said previously, if you have 10 x 1 hour jobs in one day at the very least you're looking at a minimum 13 hour day... you're losing out straight away on £60.00 with the travelling...

Then you've got to look at costs between jobs, for instance if you're doing man and van work and you need to drop off at a council tip, there's costs involved there... you have to factor that into the job, until you get to the tip you have no idea how much it's going to cost...

In essence, my hourly rate is based upon what it would cost me to run a "man and van" type business that will not cost me anything... for instance, I've worked out that over a 10 hour day, 52 weeks per year for me to run a van, cover insurances, taxes, NI, "some" diesel costs cover for holidays if I ever took any would cost me on average £22.00 per hour... therefore if I was to sell out my services at £40.00 per hour I am covering everything within reason and ensuring that I am also earning a small but relatively affordable to live on crust.

The fact that I am working as a Locksmith for a company means that I don't need to do this yet, but my weekend work that I do covers me in case I needed too. As I said previously, I charged £200 per day for a Saturday and a Sunday, I only did 7 hours per day... but in that 7 hours per day I grafted... I didn't stop for anything, I got stuck in... had I stopped for anything the days would have been longer... to me, it's all about perspective and relativity - do you want to work for peanuts? do you want to be treated like a monkey? or do you want to be treated with the respect that you deserve as a hard working man or woman and earn what you deserve?

It's irrelevant to me as to whether you're just starting up or not, if you have the experience and knowledge (as the OP has stated he has) then he deserves to earn respectively of that knowledge and experience...

If you're a labourer, you're a labourer... If it's all you know, its all you will do... but I can tell you now, there's labourer's out there that are earning £1000 a week because they graft and get stuck in.

Then there's people who are just breaking even, just covering their bills because they're stuck in a dead end job fighting to stay on top... My job covers more than I need and some... the fact that my wife has open fingers and money runs through them like water... is another story altogether - my passion is woodworking... at some point it might begin to bear fruits of my labour and enable me to work within my passion... but until then, I'll keep on as I am

 

[Financial-Modeller]

Lots of advice for you in previous posts OP.

As an alternative idea, perhaps consider going into the van rental business. There is plenty of margin if people pay £22 per hour / £220 per day for a van!

In essence, my hourly rate is based upon what it would cost me to run a "man and van" type business that will not cost me anything... for instance, I've worked out that over a 10 hour day, 52 weeks per year for me to run a van, cover insurances, taxes, NI, "some" diesel costs cover for holidays if I ever took any would cost me on average £22.00 per hour... therefore if I was to sell out my services at £40.00 per hour I am covering everything within reason and ensuring that I am also earning a small but relatively affordable to live on crust.

 

[Mark T Jones]

Lots of advice for you in previous posts OP.

As an alternative idea, perhaps consider going into the van rental business. There is plenty of margin if people pay £22 per hour / £220 per day for a van!

This has been covered multiple times - it certainly isn't a high margin business!

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

Lots of advice for you in previous posts OP.

As an alternative idea, perhaps consider going into the van rental business. There is plenty of margin if people pay £22 per hour / £220 per day for a van!

someones not read... £22.00 per hour is my cost to run a vehicle, taxes, etc etc... based upon a yearly basis...

 

[Eldy70]

Don't see why it wouldn't work out. You could get cracking straight away with a Facebook presence.

As a guide, the handyman who helps us out charges £150 a day. He comes with all his own tools, his truck and his dog

 

[Michael Beaumont]

Try a scale of prices as using a set price per hour doesn't work out at the end unless you have a full day every day. Because of all the overhead costs of tools, transport, legal etc. break the day into halves or maximum quarters to limit too many appointments which regularly overrun.
This gives clients better value the longer you are there which compensates you for appointment filling and moving/setup time and costs.
It looks costly to start with but you could set a minimum of 2 hours for £100, up to 4 hours @ £45/hr, up to 6 hours @ £40/hr & up to 8 hours @ £35/hr

 

[adam thompson1981]

Charge whatever you can get, sound simple because it is.

You start quoting stuff and settle at a rate that gets you the percentage of clients you want.

Im a window cleaner and started off 5 years ago on about £25 per hour, i now average about £45 per hour.

Generally you start out lower to get the volume then go higher as your need to convert each quote drops