# What do I charge????



## NJ Kid (Jan 20, 2006)

Hi guys, 

I'm new to this site and I'm fairly new to this buisness so bare with me. I'm starting a general handyman's buisness in Central Jersey and I had a guy ask me to put a couple of toilets and sinks in his house but I have no idea what to charge him and I know this guy could throw me alot of buisness. Whats the going rate for somthing like that??? any help would be great:help:


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## keithguts (Jan 22, 2006)

NJ Kid said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I'm new to this site and I'm fairly new to this buisness so bare with me. I'm starting a general handyman's buisness in Central Jersey and I had a guy ask me to put a couple of toilets and sinks in his house but I have no idea what to charge him and I know this guy could throw me alot of buisness. Whats the going rate for somthing like that??? any help would be great:help:



Have you been to the plumbing site on this forum:cheesygri :


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## Bob Kovacs (May 4, 2005)

NJ Kid said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I'm new to this site and I'm fairly new to this buisness so bare with me. I'm starting a general handyman's buisness in Central Jersey and I had a guy ask me to put a couple of toilets and sinks in his house but I have no idea what to charge him and I know this guy could throw me alot of buisness. Whats the going rate for somthing like that??? any help would be great:help:


There is no "going rate"- the rate you need to charge is based on your cost of doing business, multiplied by the number of hours you will take to do the work. If you base your rates on "what everyone else is charging" you'll soon be working at Home Depot.

And forget the "this guy could throw me a lot of business" crap- I've heard that line more times than I'd like to remember, and could count on one hand the number of times it actually amounted to anything. It's a game to get you to do the work at hand at a lower rate in exchange for "future consideration" that never materializes. And even if, by some strange twist of fate, the future work does materialize, why should you be working for less than you need to charge???

Feel free to email or pm me if you need help figuring out what to charge- I'm in Woodbridge- about 1/2 hour North of you.

Bob


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## Glasshousebltr (Feb 9, 2004)

I charge 50 a new crapper, 75 out and in, labor wax and valve. But thats if it's grouped with other work and not a 1 call.

Bob


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## Moscow (May 3, 2005)

NJ Kid said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I'm new to this site and I'm fairly new to this buisness so bare with me. I'm starting a general handyman's buisness in Central Jersey and I had a guy ask me to put a couple of toilets and sinks in his house but I have no idea what to charge him and I know this guy could throw me alot of buisness. Whats the going rate for somthing like that??? any help would be great:help:


I know this may sound silly and I might get alot of sh&* for this but hear goes, I would check with your local building department because here if you do any plumbing work in a building that you donot own then you will have to be a licens plumbing contractor. I would hate for you to start your busness and get caught on a stupid rule like that and have to pay big fine.
Just one thought from a nobody.
Good Luck 
Justin


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## TimNJ (Sep 7, 2005)

Moscow said:


> I know this may sound silly and I might get alot of sh&* for this but hear goes, I would check with your local building department because here if you do any plumbing work in a building that you donot own then you will have to be a licens plumbing contractor. I would hate for you to start your busness and get caught on a stupid rule like that and have to pay big fine.
> Just one thought from a nobody.
> Good Luck
> Justin



That would be correct here in NJ too.


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## go dart (Dec 6, 2005)

old system, rusted nipples, bad shuttoffs (if any) slow drains from years of use and probably bad chrome traps. if you have to ask what to charge do you know what you're getting into? traditionally this type of repairs are service work and billed by the hr and a markup on materials. worth every penny. an experienced plumber will do the job in 1/2 the time of a novice and have most any parts on the truck saving 4 trips to the hwd store.


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## jmic (Dec 10, 2005)

go dart said:


> old system, rusted nipples, bad shuttoffs (if any) slow drains from years of use and probably bad chrome traps.


 Don't you just hate it when that happens to your woman?:laughing: :laughing: :jester:


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## Teetorbilt (Feb 12, 2004)

Your local building dept. can explain the ins and outs of the license that you hold. I'm not really up on handymen but remember someting about a 'handyman can paint a repair that he makes but cannot contract for painting'. You would have to be a painting contractor for that.

I have a friend with a brother that is a handyman. When they clamped down on them, about 4-5 yrs. ago, he flipped them off. He is now a licensed electrician, plumber, carpenter and going for more. BTW, he is retired and does handyman work to keep busy. He also enjoys 'getting one over' on the building dept. and can take off 9 mos. for classes.


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## tzzzz216 (Dec 25, 2005)

It would be nice to call a plumber,maybe he'll give you a few bucks for the referal !! Who knows maybe he might send you a few.


Try to send these jobs overseas!!


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## tzzzz216 (Dec 25, 2005)

Did you ever think what you would do if you found the flange broken or you can't get the stop to hold?? yes in some cases you can just set a w/c and sometimes you have to replace the flange??Things to think about when your working out of your trade for a profit.


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## Moscow (May 3, 2005)

Teetorbilt said:


> I have a friend with a brother that is a handyman. When they clamped down on them, about 4-5 yrs. ago, he flipped them off. He is now a licensed electrician, plumber, carpenter and going for more. BTW, he is retired and does handyman work to keep busy. He also enjoys 'getting one over' on the building dept. and can take off 9 mos. for classes.


That is the great thing about the great state of Idaho, you can't just become a licensed electrician and plumbing contractor or jourynman. The state makes you go to four years of school and four years of work before you can take the test. Its great if your a plumbing contractor because joe handyman can't take busnisess from you. However it sucks for Joe handyman who is just tring to put food on the table.


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## A+Carpenter (Apr 19, 2005)

Moscow said:


> That is the great thing about the great state of Idaho, you can't just become a licensed electrician and plumbing contractor or jourynman. The state makes you go to four years of school and four years of work before you can take the test. Its great if your a plumbing contractor because joe handyman can't take busnisess from you. However it sucks for Joe handyman who is just tring to put food on the table.



I built in Idaho for years on years for some of the biggest builders. BOISE VALLEY, EMERALD, HELL CORY BARTON of BARTON HOMES framed with me on a crew. IDAHO it seems has gone to OSHA these days.


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