I have a 50$ minimun. no ifs, ands, or buts, if they think it is too much, they can get someone else or, buy a shovel

 

Your Time + Wear and tear + insurance = price
There are other things you can figure in as well but I have a couple drives close to home that are $20 one straight short push up to $125 for about an hour of work at a business parking lot. $30 is about an average residential price for the areas I plow. Also my price doesn't reflect the neighborhood, slumish or richie I try to be fair and if there are two different drives same size in two neighborhoods, they both get the same price. Some may say take advantage of the location but I know some people that live in a very nice area but are not well off like some of the neighbors may be. Be good to your customers and they'll be repeat customers for a long time.which is payup

 

i would guess out there you will get 25-35., just ask some competitors what they charge

 

Typical drives are $25-$35.....most take 5 to 10 minutes....I did 3 @ $25 the other morning in 20 minutes.........

$225 an hour is a pretty good rate for me......and I have low overhead since all my ins, equipment, etc are paid for by my rental properrties....

Derek

 

$35 minimum, $50 for a flagdown if i'm working

 

30-40. I have one easy straight drive I charge $30. Another will be $40. It depends on the location.Last two storms I plowed for 4 hours and made $540.

 

Since I work full time, most of the time I would just drive around and do "flag down" driveways since I can't do contractual plowing. I would charge people $20-$30 to knock out a driveway. Of course more often than not I would see an elderly couple trying to shovel their drive and you can tell by the house they live in and the car they drive they really can't spare the money. They won't flag me down but I will stop and I would do them for no charge. You ought to see the look on their faces!! I also plow my neighbors for free since I live in a small subdivision (8 houses over 40 acres). We all depend on each other out here and they repay me in other ways. One neighbor mows one of my one acre lots all summer for no charge since he has a large tractor. Do I make any real money? No. Not even close to recoup my investment. But if I ever need anything from anybody all I generally have to do is ask.... It works for me.

 

$50 min. for driveways

 

We charge 25-50 per driveway depending on complexity. We also give discounts for multiple driveways. One of our customers got 8 other people on their road to be plowed so we do them for 20 each. Think about how much it will take you and go from there, for a simple push 30 or so is a good start.

 

1-9 inches i charge between 25 and 45

 

In my area, I can get between 25-45 dollars per driveway.



Shadled

 

here is a letter I put out this year to build up

here is a letter I put out this year to build up the residential driveway business, in just a week signed up 10 they fill in the business route when headed back to shop..

Afford-a-Bill's Property Maintenance Services LLC
Lawn and Garden Services Field And Estate Mowing Services Snow and Ice Removal

578 E Possum Rd Phone 937-
Springfield Ohio
Cell xxx xxx xxxx Fax
E-mail Rainair@ameritech.net

Dear Neighbors in xxxxxx;

Hello, let me introduce myself, I am Bill King, many knew me as part of King Orchard here on E. Possum road of which my family owned and operated for 55 years.

I have a partner, Randy Gordon Sr. that for a hobby works on cars in his spare time [when the fish are not calling]. We started a property management business in xxxx, of which we have 2 certified landscapers on staff, and equipment to mow anything from a corner lot to a "field of dreams" and snow equipment to handle most snowstorms. (We have 4 trucks)

I would like to offer a very needed service that is just around the corner, S N O W and Ice removal. Yes, it's going to happen and we have no control over it. If you want to make sure your drive is cleared and salted before you go to work, please give me a call or e-mail before December 1st and have me put you on the "Neighbors snow list" I will send my crews upon each snow and clear your drive and sidewalks between 5 am and 12o pm. Please note this special price is only for the Springfield TWP. area! $35.00 per driveway/sidewalks (per visit) and I will also salt it too, Let us be the ones out in the COLD and blistery weather while you are in your warm home, but I need to make my list before December 5th so I can set up my teams for the season. Note: On call plowing with out being on list starts at $50.00 plus salt, so let me know you want on that list today!
We offer invoicing, "Master-card", and "Visa"
.
We are professionals, not a guy with a truck in the area plowing.
We will not be doing residential driveways between 10M and 5 am
At this time our crews will be working on businesses in the area to open their lots and driveways.
Thanks again
Bill King
Randy Gordon

 

Up here in the sticks I get anywhere from $15 to $30 per driveway. Some of the older people who live on a set income get a break. On the last two storms which were biggies it took me 3 times longer to get them all done (30 hours+) I was thinking about charging double after reading some of the posts on here. I never really considered charging double for those 2 foot storms but it makes sense when you beat your truck to death. My father lost hi2 and hi4 in his truck so that is going to kill his profit.

 

Originally posted by plowman777
i would guess out there you will get 25-35., just ask some competitors what they charge

Thats about what we charge. It all depends on how close they are and how difficult. the key is to get as many as you can in the same area, but this can be difficult when yer startin out

 

I think i will make some flyers to pass out around my house. I will charge $15 for normal driveways and $25 for long Driveways. I also will take names to put on the list to do whenever it needs it that way they dont have to call every time. I was told if i run a ad in the paper and the local saleman my phone will ring off the hook I had a guy at the local parts store tell me other plow companys will hire me and my rig to work for them. as long as they pay me decent that might be the way to go.


any other tips on whats good to do?



Thanks

 

Most folks here like to contract for the season. This year my average seasonal price is $385.00, which is in line with most other contractors I know, however I base my 'seasonal' price on 12 clearings. If it is necessary to plow after 12 times the seasonal price is divided by 12 (in this case $32.08) and the customer is then billed by the push for the remainder of the season. During real rough winters I have had to plow as many as 18 - 20 times, but on the average it's 12 - 15. Most mild seasons if I plow 15 times I don't charge for the extra clearings. I also let the customer make two payments. One Nov. 1st and the second Feb. 1st. This is the fairest system I've been able to come up with and my customers like it.
In a development in our town the driveways are fairly short but tight with little room to pile the snow. If it takes more than 8-10 minutes to plow the drive the price goes up.
You should check with other contractors in your area because prices fluctuate and you should stay in line with their prices.

 

OK, here's the skinny from where I see it. I drive a plow truck for someone else, I make $18/hr, I see ads in the paper where you can sub you and your truck out for $40-50/hr, based on what I read here and other forums, the going rate is in the neighborhood of $100 an hour, mebbe a lil more.

I'll finish out this season and I'm looking for a truck to get this Summer and get it ready for next season.. I've also got a 4 wheeler with blade and 3 or 4 snow blowers of various sizes. Hopefully by this time next Winter, I'll be thinkin about a trip to Mexico for a week..

Paul

 

Why are some of you working So cheap. What is going to hapen when you blow a $2000.00 transmisson doing a $15 or $20 dollar driveway? How do you pay for your insurace at such a low rate. A new Western plow is 3600.00 now at 20 per drive way you have to do 180 brfore you make dime 1.

 

I charge what the so called market will support.....If I told people I wanted $50 or $75 to plow a driveway that takes me 5 minutes they would not hire me. Then I would have nothing as opposed to the $25 I get now......Seems pretty easy to me.....

If I blew a tranny......I would pay to fix it.........

Why are so many people so upset about what others charge? I do my thing and not worry about how others run their business....

Derek

 

Originally posted by Turfmower
Why are some of you working So cheap. What is going to hapen when you blow a $2000.00 transmisson doing a $15 or $20 dollar driveway? How do you pay for your insurace at such a low rate. A new Western plow is 3600.00 now at 20 per drive way you have to do 180 brfore you make dime 1.

I have less then $1500.00 total in my plow and truck.. In my area, I could not afford to put a plow on my 2004 F150 and expect to make any money. However with a $1500.00 dollar truck, its easy for me to make money at a much lower going rate per drive.

If you were to poll the people in my area, most of them drive older trucks that are usually cheaper to repair. (We have a lot of junk yards in our area).

 

If you are only charging 25 per drive way and you bust up you truck. Where do you get the money to pay to fix the truck? So then you blow all the money you made plowing to fix the truck.

I plow to make Money and to pay my bills not to go in to the poor house. I did it the cheap way years ago. Didn't make any money had a busted up truck. Sorry but those days are over.

If you want to give away your sevice that up to you. But when you been plowing 20 years ive seen many $20. dollar nonames (not in business long enough to get name paited on truck) come and go

 

If you are only charging 25 per drive way and you bust up you truck. Where do you get the money to pay to fix the truck? So then you blow all the money you made plowing to fix the truck.

I plow to make Money and to pay my bills not to go in to the poor house. I did it the cheap way years ago. Didn't make any money had a busted up truck. Sorry but those days are over.

If you want to give away your sevice that up to you. But when you been plowing 20 years ive seen many $20. dollar nonames (not in business long enough to get name paited on truck) come and go

I

 

Originally posted by Turfmower
If you are only charging 25 per drive way and you bust up you truck. Where do you get the money to pay to fix the truck? So then you blow all the money you made plowing to fix the truck.

I plow to make Money and to pay my bills not to go in to the poor house. I did it the cheap way years ago. Didn't make any money had a busted up truck. Sorry but those days are over.

If you want to give away your sevice that up to you. But when you been plowing 20 years ive seen many $20. dollar nonames (not in business long enough to get name paited on truck) come and go

i guess im one of those no namers

 

HEy !...there's that truck with the sidewalk crew quarters in the back again!.....I must be a no-namer too...$20 for 5 minutes tax free doesn't sound bad to me!
-Jeff-

 

I would think a lot of these $20 driveway plows are short City drives.
I have done 5 or 6 in an hour and the truck didn't break a sweat.
Break stuff? What are you plowing at 40 MPH? Full speed in either direction? A contractor I work for has broken a brand new Western on a brand new truck the first two times we went out this Dec. As far as driveway plowing goes I hit driveways after I finish with the contractor I work for. Normally we are out for 6-12 + hours on a good event.
I do my normal customers drives and the the flag downs and cell calls. It ends up around $500-$600 for each decent event. Then another contractor will call me for the late night cleanup at a huge mall and a trucking company. This ends up to be another 4-6 hours usually. I paid cash for the truck, do ALL my own wrenching ( Advanced back-yard Ford mechanic) most repairs are fairly cheap. I have a junk yard in the area that has 100+ Ford Trucks in it,so hard to find stuff is right there waiting. As far as $50 a drive sure it's 1/4 mile long It's a deal, but most I do are 30 foot long and a lane wide. I more then cover my costs and end up with cash in my pocket right away and a big settlement at the end of the season. So just cause I don't have "Lawn Service" in my profile don't think I am a $20 operator.

 

My price is comparable to what others are in the area. I have enough to keep myself busy. If I were to charge $50 a drive I would not be in business. There are to many fly by night plowers out there that are charging less than I am to low ball me and get the job and I'm fine with that since the don't cary insurance and will get screwed when they hit something. At least I'm covered and not abusing my truck on a $10 or $15 drive. I plow 3 drives for free (two neighbors and one older lady I work with that has cancer) and the rest of the 18 residentials and one business are my money makers. I don't do the 20 or 30 hours of plowing like some of you may since my full time job is still my priority. I have one commercial account that was more or less handed to me since it is where my wife works but I couldn't tell you all the first thing about pricing a regular commercial lot other than base it on how long it will take me by looking at it. I was able to get my price on the business lot since I was able to see what everyone else was bidding. On the other hand I can drive a street and price right up there with everyone. Well I'm tired and just seem to be rambling on about whatever so I'm done now. If I lost you then just ask for an explanation and I will when I'm more awake.