Comments on: More Hourly Rate Magic…

By: Johnny

Johnny — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 02:54:45 +0000

This is a very interesting article. Whats even better is it clarifies some external aspects i have never thought of. I believe running and maintaing a business is very efficient if all money coming in is counted for…and where it is going. I work on homes doing handyman type services and renovations. About 1 year ago my wife convinced me to stop working for someone else and work for myself. Doing the work was not a problem and a no brainer. it was the bookwork end i didnt have a clue to. so i agreed with my wife and figured what the hell do i have to lose. So I officially started my own show at the begining of the year and set my self a flat rate of $50 per hour…thus averaging the hourly rate of a plumber, electrician, and carpenter. I have done the math over and over and in different scenarios. I am more effective with my rates and cheaper than all 3 contractors put together on the same project.

By: lukemeister

lukemeister — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 21:47:48 +0000

Nice article. I hate to say it, but I haven’t ever really tracked “hours” on projects. I need to for these purposes exactly, and I think I’m at the point that I need to. Thanks for the kick in the ass. I like this cause I’m starting to depend on subcontractors to some point until I can hire full time.

By: dhecker

dhecker — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 03:07:38 +0000

You are definitely right, but most of those people who are ‘taking whatever they can get’ are either going to go out of business (quickly) or reach 100% at some point. When they reach 100%, they’ll need to make good decisions about what to prioritize, and this kind of mentality is helpful :)

By: DA 123

DA 123 — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 22:45:10 +0000

All this theory is relies apon which market place you are in. More established designers with business acumen will secure good projects but those lower down the food chain will be victims of the over saturation of the market place. There is a glut of people working the low to mid ends of the market who have to take what they can get. It ain’t a perfect world!

By: Baroo

Baroo — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 16:49:11 +0000

This is a good mentality to adopt. I bill my clients at $50/hr which, to them, is a steal. They are happy with my service and feel like the rate is low. But they don’t realize that because I outsource all of the design work to people overseas, I am really making more like $100/hr.