# Price To Tape, Mud and Paint-Ready



## NJPainter

...


----------



## LennyV-NHSNOLA

The concrete answer is there is no concrete answer... as it depends on what type of finish and texture they will be looking for. I usually use commercial drywall finishers on my residential projects and they are not as cheap as some of the other finishers down here. Their price always depends on how many corners, butt-joints, etc., so that is something you need to consider as well. I have a couple of commercial finishers and I have them come and give me estimates after the drywall is hung. It can't be based purely on SF since a 200SF room could be four walls and a ceiling or it could have three closets, a few windows, etc., which would require a lot more taping and floating with a lot more corners. If you can minimize the number of butt-joints, that makes things a lot easier and less costly to finish as well.

Obviously, you can't control the number of corners unless you rock over the closet entrances.


----------



## Dave-Raleigh

Part of running a successful business is to keep track of how long it has taken you to do various tasks in the past. If you are not doing this then you will severly limit yourself on future bids/jobs.

Without starting a moaning/groaning contest it seems anywhere from $1 to $1.50 per sq foot of drywall is a legitimate rate (to finish only) for someone that has a real business, pays workman's comp, has liability insurance, and allows for profit to help his/her company grow.

I'm sure there are areas of the country that have workers that will do it a lot cheaper. Obviously things like ceiling height, curved walls, too many joints (used 4x8 sheets where 4x12 or larger sheets should have been used), etc. will affect the price.


----------



## NJPainter

I was thinking that number might work but I've ran into GC's before that like to throw our commercial rates to throw me off.


----------



## NJPainter

...


----------



## thom

Good Luck with that.

I pay $.26 - $.30 to hang, tape, finish, and texture (labor price per sq ft of rock). A buck or more to tape and finish is absurd.

I cover the workmens compensation myself in addition to the $.26 so you can add another nickel if your covering it.


----------



## NJPainter

thom said:


> Good Luck with that.
> 
> I pay $.26 - $.30 to hang, tape, finish, and texture (labor price per sq ft of rock). A buck or more to tape and finish is absurd.
> 
> I cover the workmens compensation myself in addition to the $.26 so you can add another nickel if your covering it.



is that new construction?

are you saying you would do 3,840 sq. feet of remodel- hang, tape and finish for $998 + materials?


----------



## boman47k

I think his words were " I pay" not "I Do" Big difference!


----------



## boman47k

The going rate around here seems to be about .52 per. to hang tape and finish. Thats according to one guy in my area of Alabama. He also says that is 12 ft ceilings. Neede to try and talk to someone i n your area. I have also seen in NY it is about .85/.95 per.


----------



## Davey

NJPainter said:


> So basically if there are 120 boards = 3840 sq. ft the price should be around 4k? That might be kind of high...
> 
> It's gonna take +- 3 days and three guys plus materials.
> 
> If you figure 3 X 300 X 3, that's 2700 + materials.


I sometimes compare pricing this way. If you are comfortable paying your guys 150$ a day and you keep the overhead then that is great. Materials should be about .12 per square foot ( 460$) . That should buy all the bead, mud and tape. at 2700$ /3840 = .7 per sq ft to tape and sand, i'd say that's pretty good money.


----------



## NJPainter

boman47k said:


> I think his words were " I pay" not "I Do" Big difference!


world of difference!


----------



## mdshunk

Here in central PA, hang and finish labor only is between 18 and 24 dollars a board. Finish only labor is between 11 and 14 dollars a board. Maybe more if the board was poorly hung.


----------



## NJPainter

mdshunk said:


> Here in central PA, hang and finish labor only is between 18 and 24 dollars a board. Finish only labor is between 11 and 14 dollars a board. Maybe more if the board was poorly hung.


that's what the contractor charges? would that apply for a remodeled older home with fills and such?
where in PA?


----------



## Jcllc

WOW !! I've been watching these threads on "Drywall" for awhile now and am surprised at some of the prices different contractors "charge " and "receive" for their services. I started out in this business doing commercial framing and drywall, then just in the last 2 years ventured into the residential market. Right now in Ind/KY the going rate is.60-.70 cents for hanging and finishing / material supplied.Vaults over 12ft and tech ceilings usually run an extra 50.00 to 100.00 per side. Again your area and the competition will usually dictate what you can charge. Plus like an old timer told me once. "What is your time worth"?????
Good luck with the job.


----------



## dumplin1078

It depends on what you mean by "re-rock". If you mean tearing out all the old rock, or paneling and then rocking it then the rates would be closer too, but still higher than standard residential rates. If you mean rocking over plaster or paneling then $1 a foot is about right around here, although I might not get the job depending on if it was a referall or not because there is always some idiot willing to do it for nothing.


----------



## mdshunk

NJPainter said:


> that's what the contractor charges? would that apply for a remodeled older home with fills and such?
> where in PA?


yes, don't know, the middle part.


----------



## NJPainter

thanks! I'm from Central Jersey, maybe 20 minutes from the border by way of 78.


----------



## mad drywall

how big is the place your estimating


----------



## D-ball

thom said:


> Good Luck with that.
> 
> I pay $.26 - $.30 to hang, tape, finish, and texture (labor price per sq ft of rock). A buck or more to tape and finish is absurd.
> 
> I cover the workmens compensation myself in addition to the $.26 so you can add another nickel if your covering it.


26-30 cents from install to paint ready? That's absurd! I would not get out of bed in the morning for that. Here the boarders get 20-25 with or without screws, and the tapers get about 35-40 to finnish. Texturing is extra.


----------



## emillika

Anyone have estimates for suburban Chicago (near Ohare?)

Thanks.


----------



## thom

D-bal, your guys must be slooooow.

one house i did, @ .26/ft, the hanger worked alone, 9' ceilings, single story. Made $900 in a weekend at $.12 per sq ft.

The tapers took a little longer. 2 men 1 day to tape, 1 man day for each of 2 top coats, 1 man day to texture, 1/2 to scrape and clean up. total 5-1/2 man days, $1,200. 

Generally, at $.26 per square foot they get about $200 per man per day.


----------



## Flying Monkey

I just paid a guy $1 per foot to hang, tape, 1 coat of plaster. Plus I supplied 26-4x12 sheets @ $11.50 per sheet. I guess that would mean $1.23 complete for a remodel.
That might be a bit high, but the guy came on short notice, has a good reputation, and was in and out in 2 days...24 hours total.


----------



## 747

emillika said:


> Anyone have estimates for suburban Chicago (near Ohare?)
> 
> Thanks.


ask PELADU here


----------



## thom

Flying Monkey, you're saying the labor rate in your area to hang tape and finish drywall is $624 per man day? What do complete houses go for without land?


----------



## Dwallguy

.26 to .30 your nuts, do your workers communicate in english?
I live in central In. and most hangers get .15 on flat eight's and 18 and up on anything else. Finishers go from .20 on flat eights and up.
I have done this all my life and only do highend homes no prefab only custom work like hand finished medallions, custom hand swirl ceilings and my rates I guess are outragious at .88 to 1.00 per ft but I always have work. I never supply the board for this rate. Most contractors are charging 1.00 per ft. and up, the rock will cost .24 to .28 per ft and most only want to pay .50 to .54 complete if they supply the board.
This is the same problem that has been around for years. If you pay .10 per ft. to hang and .12 per ft. to finish you get .10 and .12
worth of quality try putting that in someones million dollar home.


----------



## Dwallguy

Thom NO HABLA English ,bet you have good quality, you must texture all the walls, can your guys do a level cinco finish? LOL


----------



## Dwallguy

D-ball said:


> 26-30 cents from install to paint ready? That's absurd! I would not get out of bed in the morning for that. Here the boarders get 20-25 with or without screws, and the tapers get about 35-40 to finnish. Texturing is extra.


I fully agree with ya!


----------



## sidejobs

From what I’ve seen there is no set rate for dry walling. Price all depends on the area the market and the job. I will admit that sheet rocking is not my profession but I have been hanging and taping for 20 years. I bid all my jobs according to how long it’s going to take and the extra work that might be required (twisted studs, high ceiling, access, mudding HO hang job ext). I just finished a job where I got $3.70 SF but with this price there were a lot of extras thrown in.


----------



## krobinson

thom said:


> D-bal, your guys must be slooooow.
> one house i did, @ .26/ft, the hanger worked alone, 9' ceilings, single story. Made $900 in a weekend at $.12 per sq ft.


You have to put up 7,500 sq. ft. to put 900 ducats on your scorecard @ .12 per!! That is some pretty quick boarding.  

Not sure what your end product looks like but around here if you hang 1,800 s.f. by yourself that is a very, very, very productive day. Tell your guy I can use him here in Canada if he hangs 7,500 in a weekend (at the rates around here he will make over $2,000 in that same wekend ... I'll buy the screws).

K.R.


----------



## PlainPainter

I've noticed talking to G.C.'s that they will throw ridiculously low rates at you - probably in an effort to chisel everyone down, while still charging the homeowners top rate. If you are your own drywalling company and work direct with homeowners - your should be charging the homeowner $1.60 per sq. foot to hang, tape, mud, and sand including materials. Actually you should be charging the G.C.'s that money and homeowners even more. Once I was discussing doing a job for a contractor - and he told me he pays his other guys $12.50 per board to hang, tape, and mud with materials included - I laughed so hard!


----------



## zico

Great informaton guys. A sub who does work for me came up to me this week and said, "Hey I read that tapers are taping and sanding for 13cents a sqr. ft." We are doing a basement with about 3300 sqr feet of sheetrock and both of us were surprised that anyone would attempt the work for $350. 

I do beleive the prices you have discussed are more resonable, to pay and to be paid. The 13 cents is not only unlucky but appears to be untrue.


----------



## Lofall

*Ive Owned a Drywall Company for a while*

I dont know about all of you charging .26 dollars a sqft thats crazy... have you ever heard anyone tell you they will hang your house for 13 bucks a board? id never let them come in and touch my walls...

here in NW Florida... i do houses by the board and avg 8ft ceiling house ill charge 25 bucks a board if its basic... they supply the boards and mud.. that lets me pay my hangers between 8-10 and finishers by the hour... (that is for 4x12) get 1 person to help you... hang one 12' 5/8in fire rock on a ceiling or at an angle.. and tell me what that was worth to you... not to mention its a skill to get everything perfectly lined up for easy taping...

depending on the custom design of the house if there is alot of curved walls... and bull nose here is a break down on how i charge

10' and under ceilings
(they supply sheetrock and mud)
$25 a board
$2.50 ft bull nose
$1-1.25 ft corner bead

anything over 10' starts going up... and when it gets to about 15-16 feet depending on what kind of room we have to get scaffles and such up there... you could be looking to be paying 2 to 3 times as much for the labor ... also if there is room to get a siccor lift in there that will save both labor cost ( if you are dealing with a larger contractor ) because the 300 dollars a week rent will save MANY hours


----------



## DUSE

A contrator here charges(and gets)50- $60 a board,depending on how he feels .Real A$$hole to
Pays the mexican sub's $6 to hang and $6 to finish.No slop great jobs.
Average house 3-4000sf
His office /shop is a 12 x12 grarage that he pays $400 a month for


----------



## PlainPainter

$60/board (4x8) is a real fair price in my opinion to charge a customer to hang blueboard, tape, and veneer plaster - materials included. And that's for straightforward work - everything like corners, or wacky areas are extra charges on top of that. I think plastering should be 30% than the equivalent sheetrocking job to level 4 finish. So that would be $46/board. 

-plainpainter


----------



## Danahy

I constantly remind myself to charge more for homes that are older, and thankful when I get it right. My general rule of thumb is if a house is 20 years old than my labour is (sometimes...) 20% more etc etc.. The fact that you are working in an older home made me want to post this...


----------



## butch mason

*I get .20 cents a foot to tape,bed,skim and sand.Contractor or Homeowner supplies all materials.*


----------



## jmatthews6

In Baton Rouge area; people get about mid 40's to low 50's to hang/finish by the square foot. That includes all materials except gypsum board. The finish is a light orange peel, anything else is extra.​


----------



## THINKPAINTING

PlainPainter said:


> I've noticed talking to G.C.'s that they will throw ridiculously low rates at you - probably in an effort to chisel everyone down, while still charging the homeowners top rate. If you are your own drywalling company and work direct with homeowners - your should be charging the homeowner $1.60 per sq. foot to hang, tape, mud, and sand including materials. Actually you should be charging the G.C.'s that money and homeowners even more. Once I was discussing doing a job for a contractor - and he told me he pays his other guys $12.50 per board to hang, tape, and mud with materials included - I laughed so hard!


Thank You, for making me relize there is someone out there with half a brain. We get $1.75 and up, to hang , tape and mud, we are Americans with familys who work hard. Some of those prices are just nuts:laughing: please stay in NM.:clap:


----------



## thom

In the last few days I got 3 bids for labor to hang, tape, texture. 191 @ 12' sheets, 8' ceilings, material stocked. The price includes installing the bull nose. I supply all material including tape, mud, screws, sanding screen, masking paper and tape, bull nose, rock, and sanding sponges.

.29 per square foot no insurance
.34 per square foot with insurance
.39 per square foot with insurance

This is the going rate here. It generally works out to $200 per man per day.


----------



## boman47k

> 3 bids for labor to hang, tape, texture


What level finish is that? sprayed texture?


----------

