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I have used a book and software for years from a company called HomeTech. I use them because they are very well tuned into remodeling and much easier than Means.

The prices in the book/software are an average of the major cities in the country. There is a local modification index that has to be put in and they send quarterly updates.

With that said, I am sure we can come up with something that has a range and or makes sense. It will be hard and the price could be a large range and maybe too large to post here. In this part of VA my pricing is lower than Norther Va and VA Beach and even 1/2 hr. away over the mountain in Charlottesville. I do hope that people who are in an area close to each other can figure something out so we can work together, so to speak, when pricing jobs and at least be in the ball park of each other. Just a basic sq. ft. price would be a starting place, then we can take into account all the variables that Tom brought up.

Some people use sq. ft. pricing while others look at the roof and from experience give a price. I personally like the effect of pulling out my clear plastic roof index getting the pitch, measure the house, do some simple math and come up with a pretty good square footage of the roof. Just something that adds a little more credibility and people like that extra touch. I even had one say... "the other guy didn't take any measurements". I have no clue if that's what got me the job.

Brett

Roof Cleaning Little Rock Arkansas wrote:

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Theres not alot of talk about pricing around here so I wanted to throw this out there.

I believe most of us are in the same ballpark (I know you Fla guys are a lost cause)

What would happen if the RCIA put out suggested pricing? Make the suggestion reasonable but anything but cheap...

Wouldnt someone researching the industry come in and see this and then be more apt to price right?

I know when I started out pressure washing I came across a pricelist online. I based alot of my pricing off of it and learned later that it was extremely too low.

Its just a thought.... What do y'all think?

 

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Chris,

 

Even though there are best intentions in doing something like this it is a Federal offense to do or discuss anything

like this. It is called Price Fixing, the FEDS take it very serious and I am sure the RCIA does not want anything to do with it.

 

Chris

  Chris,  People would always ask me what I charged per square foot for painting.  I think bargain shoppers wanting a quick price and then do away with me.  Square footage would only come into consideration when figuring materials.  If the roof is huge and walkable with no landscaping I can fly through it.  If the roof is tiny, not walkable, no gutters and a lot of expensive plants, that tiny roof can be way more expensive then the huge roof.

SP Cleaning wrote:

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Roof Cleaning Little Rock Arkansas wrote:

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Theres not alot of talk about pricing around here so I wanted to throw this out there.

I believe most of us are in the same ballpark (I know you Fla guys are a lost cause)

What would happen if the RCIA put out suggested pricing? Make the suggestion reasonable but anything but cheap...

Wouldnt someone researching the industry come in and see this and then be more apt to price right?

I know when I started out pressure washing I came across a pricelist online. I based alot of my pricing off of it and learned later that it was extremely too low.

Its just a thought.... What do y'all think?

 

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Chris,

 

Even though there are best intentions in doing something like this it is a Federal offense to do or discuss anything

like this. It is called Price Fixing, the FEDS take it very serious and I am sure the RCIA does not want anything to do with it.

 

Chris

 

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Price fixing is one thing. This is not that and it does not fall into that category.
If that were the case then every cost estimating book and cost estimating software would be in violation of price fixing.

"Price fixing is a practice in which the prices for goods and services are manipulated in a way which is designed to benefit specific companies or individuals. In a simple example of price fixing, two rival gas stations could meet and decide to offer their gas at the same price, creating an artificially high price for gasoline which consumers would be forced to pay through lack of choice."

As with any trade, there are sq. ft. prices, lf. prices and the list goes on. Our prices would have to account for so many different things that there could never be "price fixing". As seen here on many posts, SH is all over the place in pricing, then one adds this and one adds that. Someone who mixes at home with a well vs someone who has city water prices. I could go one and on.

I open my book for Remodeling & Renovation Cost estimating. Let's use power washing. It states, "Power wash with TSP (or substitute) in preperation for exterior painting, including pressure washer rental, chemical injector rental and TSP." There is a per job charge of cost of 91.13. The book calculates mark up on labor and materials to a selling price of 136.69, then there is an additional.08 per foot cost and .12 per foot selling price. Add 20% for second story. If two contractors use the same book, come up with the same sq. ft., their price will be real close. Is this price fixing? No. It takes the guess work out of the daunting task of bidding a job.

 

Brett

ACE wrote:

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  Chris,  People would always ask me what I charged per square foot for painting.  I think bargain shoppers wanting a quick price and then do away with me.  Square footage would only come into consideration when figuring materials.  If the roof is huge and walkable with no landscaping I can fly through it.  If the roof is tiny, not walkable, no gutters and a lot of expensive plants, that tiny roof can be way more expensive then the huge roof.

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Tom, what if you put a starting price on your website? Then the price shoppers saw it and didnt even bother to call you.

Possibly a lot less wasted time

Chris,  To be honest with you, I can make more in an hour or 2 cleaning roofs then I can all day painting.  Not a lot of roof cleaners here yet, (mostly power washers)  so I try to meet homeowners and find out price wise what they want to spend and price it to get the job.  I do see what you're getting at, some kind of ballpark price.  Try to log on to one of the talkshoes and ask everyone ballpark what they charge.

Okay... how do you say good post Chris or good post Chris?

Some good points made here and yes, if RCIA had anything to do with a price, we just might have a problem. Thanks for making that make sense!

What I did was ask a few here about price. I looked a house, did some calculations and know what I have to have for my sf. price as a minimum. Now, that can and will change with the wind. A half hour north or east will change the price because of the demographics. An hour west due to travel. The pitch, the shrubs and we can go on and on. There might not be an easy way to help each other out except to ask, "Do you mind me asking what you got for that?" Then, taking it from their experience and applying it to what you are doing and what the demands are locally. That my friends & brothers (oh yea, forgot the sister) is my

ACE wrote:

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Chris,  To be honest with you, I can make more in an hour or 2 cleaning roofs then I can all day painting.  Not a lot of roof cleaners here yet, (mostly power washers)  so I try to meet homeowners and find out price wise what they want to spend and price it to get the job.  I do see what you're getting at, some kind of ballpark price.  Try to log on to one of the talkshoes and ask everyone ballpark what they charge.

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I think teaching people to understand the numbers thier business needs to do in order to make a profit would perhaps be the best way to go about this.

 

In different fields with different costs your day rate/ hour rate may be different than in the roof cleaning industry so perhaps we need a simple equation.

Also the client base you serve ie: residential, commercial industrial etc. will effect the daily/hourly rate you need.

So if we can promote people to base their cost on their day rate after knowing how long a job takes than they will price acordingly for every job due to the effort to make that amount per day in order to equal x amount at the end of the year in their wallet.

 

 

-- Edited by Baltimore MD Roof Cleaning 410-482-4367 on Thursday 3rd of February 2011 08:04:01 PM

Hell didnt I open up a can of worms....


Good posts Bill.