How do you guys cost your jobs?

[Mark.W]

Hey Guys,

Just wondering how you guys are costing and marking up your jobs.

What I am currently doing is a 20% markup on materials and 20% on labour, and then with regards to Overheads I have a formula as follows:

Eg:
If I require £900/month to keep my business afloat and there is on average 21 working days in a month, I divide 900 by 21 to give me a daily O/H cost of £42.85.

I then work out how long the job is expected to take and multiply it by my hourly rate/daily rate.

So I end up with...

Materials incl Vat +20%MU
+ (Labour + 20%MU)
+ O/H

These added together give me my sell value.

It seems to work for me just wondering what you guys are doing?

Cheers
Mark

 

[MDJ]

Double whatever you pay yourself and 10% on the top, for example if you pay yourself 15 quid an hour then charge 31.50, regarding mark up, it depends on the cost of materials, if you supply 2ks worth of materials you may struggle to win work with 20% of that amount on the top, but smaller amounts 20% sounds good to me.

 

[Mark.W]

Agree on the the 20% markup on larger jobs. I tend to do the markup on a per job basis. I used 20% in a general sense. Thanks for your input though.

 

[Octopus]

£900 of overheads per month - that sounds a lot.

Mine are around £550

 

[buzzlightyear]

£900 of overheads per month - that sounds a lot.

could you pass the cap round for me.

 

[buzzlightyear]

what is your day rate or h/rate ?

 

[telectrix]

£900 of overheads per month - that sounds a lot.

Mine are around £550

mine are less that. £250/month for van (inc.fuel). £20 PL insurance. £20 moby. £50 other expenses. totall. £340.

 

[Gavin John Hyde]

Whilst i think it is good having these sort of base line prices you will charge there are times where say if you are left with an empty day with no job lined up it can sometimes pay to do a job for slightly less on the labour costs too pay yourself something plus cover the days over heads and materials. it could lead to future work or referrals...
if you turn the job down as its lower than what you would normally charge then its lost turn over and a happy customer lost. Im not talking big jobs here quick little ones like cooker connections, change a light pendant to a 3 bulb job....

 

[MDJ]

Don't forget holiday pay and sick pay, you need to factor that in as well as some money to buy a new van one day, plus tyres MOTs etc, it is suprising what you need to allow for hence 110% on your rate.

 

[Octopus]

My calculations assume I can get paid work for 220 days of the year....

 

[buzzlightyear]

My calculations assume I can get paid work for 220 days of the year

no month is the same .you could be working one week and not the other .

 

[Octopus]

no month is the same .you could be working one week and not the other .

You lost me..... My business plan, for the year "assumes" I can work 220 days per year - I've not had an "unplanned" day off for about 7 years.

 

[buzzlightyear]

You lost me..... My business plan, for the year "assumes" I can work 220 days per year - I've not had an "unplanned" day off for about 7 years

not you ,you silly sausage .looking at your 7 year stint .you can now take weeks holiday .remember this all work and no play makes jack a dull boy.

 

[Mark.W]

£900 of overheads per month - that sounds a lot.

Mine are around £550

Hi Murdoch,

That was just an example. My Overheads come in at £635 pm.

It was more the formula and calculations I wanted to get across.

 

[Mark.W]

what is your day rate or h/rate ?

I charge £22.50 for domestic and £35 for commercial. Day rate is £250

 

[buzzlightyear]

I charge £22.50 for domestic

try£ 30.00 p/h .if I was you .you run a business
not a charity .

 

[Mark.W]

try 30.00 p/h .if I was you .you run a business
not a charity .

Even for domestic?

 

[Octopus]

I charge £22.50 for domestic and £35 for commercial. Day rate is £250

So when working on domestic you work over 10 hours per day?

 

[Mark.W]

What are everyone else's rates? and do you charge differently for Domestic and commercial?

 

[buzzlightyear]

Even for domestic?

yes.