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re: How much do landscapers pay their laborers?
Posted on 5/17/25 at 10:19 pm to White Bear
Posted on 5/17/25 at 10:19 pm to White Bear
No contractor is going to do that.
What op should do is say look, this is my budget that I’m comfortable spending and these are my main priorities. What can we do for that.
I used to be in the landscape contracting business. That’s how you work with the contractor and ultimately he cuts his costs a little and you trim your wish list down some
What op should do is say look, this is my budget that I’m comfortable spending and these are my main priorities. What can we do for that.
I used to be in the landscape contracting business. That’s how you work with the contractor and ultimately he cuts his costs a little and you trim your wish list down some
1
Posted on 5/17/25 at 11:01 pm to Geauxld Finger
quote:
What op should do is say look, this is my budget that I’m comfortable spending and these are my main priorities. What can we do for that.
I used to be in the landscape contracting business. That’s how you work with the contractor and ultimately he cuts his costs a little and you trim your wish list down some
This is exactly what I have done with the 2 other bids that I got.
The 3rd bid not as clear, so I was trying to figure out on my own.
Thank you Geauxld.
This post was edited on 5/17/25 at 11:03 pm
Posted on 5/17/25 at 11:03 pm to Sal Minio
So what were the responses?
Either you aren’t being upfront about budget or you’re choosing low rate contractors.
Tell me what your overall budget is and what you’re trying to get done. I can possibly guide you.
Either you aren’t being upfront about budget or you’re choosing low rate contractors.
Tell me what your overall budget is and what you’re trying to get done. I can possibly guide you.
This post was edited on 5/17/25 at 11:11 pm
Posted on 5/18/25 at 8:30 am to Sal Minio
quote:
The more I can understand, the fairer it is for me and also for the landscaper ultimately.
Landscapers don't want you to know the labor you are getting charged...pretty much every profession is that way.
Take your quote and assume 40-50% of that is labor.
Posted on 5/18/25 at 3:19 pm to Geauxld Finger
quote:
So what were the responses?
Either you aren’t being upfront about budget or you’re choosing low rate contractors.
Tell me what your overall budget is and what you’re trying to get done. I can possibly guide you.
I appreciate your comments. As you stated this is an ongoing process and I will know more later in the dance. I am not sure if revealing the overall budget is best in the very first part of the quoting process for obvious reasons. Thank you for offering your help, Geauxld.
Posted on 5/18/25 at 5:43 pm to Sal Minio
alrededor de las tres cincuenta
Posted on 5/19/25 at 7:55 am to Sal Minio
quote:The price is the price no matter how it's broken down.
but he did not break down the cost of labor and materials, just a lump sum.
Why does it matter unless you are looking to start a landscape laborer union.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 7:59 am to Sal Minio
quote:I think this all makes sense in your mind but I'm here to tell you it don't.
Not at all. I am only trying to understand what amount if labor and what amount is not so that I can choose what I need in the project or not. The more I can understand, the fairer it is for me and also for the landscaper ultimately. I'm not trying to get into the landscaping business. I am just trying to save money and be fair about it. The more I know, the better decisions I can make.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 8:59 am to Sal Minio
quote:
I am not sure if revealing the overall budget is best in the very first part of the quoting process for obvious reasons.
What are the obvious reasons that you would withhold information from the contractor on the quote you are trying to get for a job you want done?
Why don't you get the job quoted in phases, or do you not have that figured out yet either?
Sounds like you are getting quotes before you are ready to.
This post was edited on 5/19/25 at 9:02 am
Posted on 5/19/25 at 3:23 pm to Sal Minio
quote:Ive gotten quite a few projects done. Ive never seen labor broken down, but have always had specifics regarding numbers of plants, feet of edging, yards of soil, dirt, rock, etc. My two cents is spend a bit of time looking at others yards and pay attention to who did them. I have hired three different folks, I will never hire anyone but the one that dd the last three. They give fair pricing and show up on time with everything they need with plenty of help, they are neat, clean and damn do they do a lot of work quickly. Jobs are just as laid out.
I got a quote for a landscaping project I want done for my house.
I got specifics on what we want done, but he did not break down the cost of labor and materials, just a lump sum.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 3:43 pm to TheBoo
quote:and nothing aggravates a contractor more than this. OP you got good advice earlier
Sounds like you are getting quotes before you are ready to.
-disclose your budget
-ask contractor to build scope to the budget
do the same with others…although since you’ve already worn out 3 landscapers for quotes you aren’t going to use, you might wait a bit LOL
Posted on 5/19/25 at 4:06 pm to cgrand
quote:
-disclose your budget
-ask contractor to build scope to the budget
do the same with others…although since you’ve already worn out 3 landscapers for quotes you aren’t going to use, you might wait a bit LOL
Why would you tell them your budget? He might come in with a quote that's a good bit less than. I would assume that if I tell a contractor my budget, they will spend most of it.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 4:15 pm to LaLadyinTx
quote:
Why would you tell them your budget? He might come in with a quote that's a good bit less than. I would assume that if I tell a contractor my budget, they will spend most of it.
I agree with this. I agree with the sentiment of the OP, but he initially seemed to want it all itemized so he could pick and choose what he wanted and use multiple contractors and sweat equity. Nobody is going to work like that.
I had a tree guy come quote me, I took him to priority one, how much for this? X$. OK, my priority 2, over here, while you are taking care of #1, how much for this? That's an extra $3k. Ok, my priority 3 is over here, how much to add that? There's an extra $2k.
That's a quick and easy way to sort of budget and tier the costs with your priorities without getting out the excel spreadsheet and aggravating your vendors. The reputable and busy ones aren't going to have time for that shite. The only ones willing to play your game are going to do a shitty job and eventually piss you off.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 4:15 pm to Sal Minio
quote:
I got a quote for a landscaping project I want done for my house.
I got specifics on what we want done, but he did not break down the cost of labor and materials, just a lump sum.
You really expected him to break down the cost of his laborers>
Come on man. Posted on 5/19/25 at 4:39 pm to LaLadyinTx
quote:
Why would you tell them your budget? He might come in with a quote that's a good bit less than. I would assume that if I tell a contractor my budget, they will spend most of it.
Typically I would agree with this. This is the job I want done, give me a quote on the job. But the OP doesn't seem to have the specifics of the job ironed out yet.
Posted on 5/19/25 at 6:08 pm to TheBoo
quote:the quotes need to reflect the budget. You don’t tell them? One quotes a Cadillac. The other a Sentra. I always let them know what I want and my budget. I’ve committed to spending x amount. There are times that contractors have told me, with a smile, they can’t touch that. Other times they’ve been under and offered ideas to enhance my project and stay on budget. I want them to make money, I want to be high on their list. Once I’ve decided I need something done I’m ready to be done w it
Typically I would agree with this. This is the job I want done, give me a quote on the job. But the OP doesn't seem to have the specifics of the job ironed out yet.
Posted on 5/20/25 at 7:13 am to Sal Minio
quote:
I got a quote for a landscaping project I want done for my house. I got specifics on what we want done, but he did not break down the cost of labor and materials, just a lump sum.
You don’t think it makes sense for some contractors to pay their team by the job rather than by the hour.
If he pays them by the job and they get slow and lazy, that’s on them. What they have is an incentive to get the job done more efficiently so they can slack off later.
If he pays them by the hour, they’ll slack off and take much longer for the job because they know they’ll earn more money.
Posted on 5/20/25 at 8:23 am to deeprig9
This right here. Figure out the things that you want done and provide that to the contractor. X Y and Z cost this much individually, but XYZ cost this much as a package, and typically at a lesser price per job. Even though they may be working on site multiple days for the full package, they may have to mobilize just the first day. If you asked me for a price to do a job and wanted a break down, it wouldn’t be to the hour. I may tell you 12 hours but what if I decide to send 2 extra people to help and I’m able to finish in 8? I still incurred the cost for 12 but you see the crew leaving in 8 hours.
To go even further for OP, there’s hours built in that aren’t on site; ie travel, loading/unloading, material pick up, etc. At some point I’m wasting my time by trying to get the business, and this would probably be on that line.
To go even further for OP, there’s hours built in that aren’t on site; ie travel, loading/unloading, material pick up, etc. At some point I’m wasting my time by trying to get the business, and this would probably be on that line.
Posted on 5/20/25 at 8:43 am to Sal Minio
13-18 the more skilled that can do lighting irrigation and drainage fall at 20-25 range
Posted on 5/20/25 at 9:12 am to lsutiger251
I was a concrete contractor for many years. I sent out quotes how I sent them out. I was very clear on itemizing the different aspects of each job to properly convey to the customer that the things they wanted to get done were going to get done. I did not and would not itemize each expense - weather that be labor or materials or my markup. On the rare occasions that someone (usually homeowners, not business owners) attemped to get me to itemize and lay out all of my expenses, I politely declined. This is the price - do you want me to do it or not? We can discuss job scope to make sure that evertthing you want is included and make sure that everything is covered. But, how many guys I use for how many days, the materials that I use and where I get those from, and all of the broken down expenses with those are my business. I have pulled quite a few quotes and told people to find someone else over the years.
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