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Answer from our Guest Expert Mark Bower of Aberdeen Mobile Home Repair - page 2
Success is Knowing the Business End, Not Cutting Straight Boards!
The biggest aspect of running a handyman business is not knowing how to pound a nail or cut a board. It's knowing the business end of it. If you've got someone willing to show you how to bid and price your work, that could be a valuable resource and make all the difference in your success.
However, I'd caution against forming a partnership with anyone until you truly know how he operates. I've tried partnerships in the past, and they always fizzle -- mostly because I'm too picky as I have a very low tolerance for sloppiness. A good handyman is always in demand, good times or bad.
What to Charge for Your Services
As a rule of thumb, you should price your jobs at $25/hour at the very minimum, plus around 1.5 times the materials. Right now, we have a new guy in my area doing radio ads about how cheap he is. To me, that's just plain stupidity! I'll bet you $20 he's not around two years from now because he'll be broke. The cheap guy rarely survives. You'll see him come and go, like fresh-baked muffins on the counter! I get 95% of the jobs I write estimates on, and I'm rarely the low-priced guy. I'm the guy who does a good job of presenting myself, and I'm the guy who will get the job done right. I'm not the most expensive, but I'm sure not the cheapest.
How Many Billable Hours in a Day Are You Getting?
Another thing the new lone handyman underestimates is the time needed to write estimates and get material. During the busy season, you may only get six hours of "billable" work done in a day. The rest may be running errands or writing estimates. If this is often the case, you better bump up your hourly rate to compensate for this time or you too will be better off pouring coffee at the corner cafe. Organization is critical!
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