Have saws, will travel!!

[ROLLACOSTA]

Originally posted by Treeman14
Florida authorities have said since Charley that they will actively pursue any report of price gouging. In my mind, $1000 a day for one climber is definately in that category.

so what is a realistic price for storm work? and who is the person to judge what is a realalistic price for this dangerous work ,do the authoritys know all the inns and outs of what a certain job entails ??? i some how doubt it, imo if a client is happy to pay $10,000 for a days work then its upto him/her and the company prepaired to do the work and nobody else..

 

[MasterBlaster]

I've said before, to CYA and expenses, triple your regular prices. More than that is borderlining on price gouging.

K.I.S.S.

 

[Stumper]

If all parties agree on a price without anyone being subjected to undue duress then the price is fair.-The time it takes to do the work isn't really a factor. (I realize that a storm's aftermath does constitute a stressful situation and some might say "duress" but if the tree guy isn't threatening just giving a price "take it or leave it" them the owner's freedom to choose is intact.) I do think that panicky people pay some ridiculous prices. If they want priority then that is their choice. Gouging comes in where prices weren't firmed up ahead of time. -I know a lady locally who got billed$400 to remove 4 limbs lying in her yard after a snow storm. She wasn't screaming and crying to please hurry either .-She just asked a tree guy to go by and clean it up when he had a chance. She felt cheated. She was. I have the wrong mentality to go get top-dollar in storm work. At the same time I realize that if there is no hauling and we aren't fine pruning- just clear and go -then "normal" prices could still add up into big $ days

 

[kf_tree]

"Now that I am starting up my own business I will bid what I think the job is worth and if its to high and I dont get it, oh well, I have sub work I can be doing, the cool thing is when I give a high bid and they agree and I make out like a bandit."



and your going all the way to florida to hope to make 5 bills a day? theres something wrong with this picture.

i wish people would remember what they wrote in previous threads.

 

[ROLLACOSTA]

i agree the old lady was cheated .i like to fix a price before i start any work that way both i and the customer know where we stand

 

[kf_tree]

either that or my idea of making out like a bandit and outonalimb's idea of making out like a bandit are 2 different things.

 

[Treeman14]

Let's try a little analogy here. My neighborhood's been devastated by the hurricane. Roads are impassable, power is out for days or weeks. I have no food or water left in my house. There's a guy coming around with water for sale, $50 a gallon. Am I willing to pay that much. Yes, because my family needs the water. Is he guilty of price gouging. Absolutely.

Now I realize that having a tree removed from my roof may not be a life-threatening situation, but the tree must be removed to patch the roof and prevent further damage inside the house. People are willing to pay whatever it takes simply because they don't have any choice.

What if it were just one tree on one house. (No widespread destruction) How much would you charge to remove that tree? Its not any more hazardous or difficult simply because EVERY house has a tree on it. Do you get where I'm coming from? Taking advantage of people in these situations by charging 3X normal rate is wrong.

There's a lot of people on this site who claim to have high standards and ideals. Prove it. Come down here and work for free. For the good of the trees and to help your fellow man who is down.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Nope. I ain't doing it outta any visions of altruism or charity. 3 times is quite fair.

In the old ladys case, I mighta charged $50 to do the job under normal circumstances. So, now it is $150.

 

[Treeman14]

Why is it fair? Can you justify your position? I would submit that the prices go up not because of the difficulty of the job or the working conditions, but merely because you know that these people are vulnerable and competition is at a minimum.

 

[bottlefed89]

fair

I think three times is fair. You are putting yourself in a very dangerous position a lot o fthe time, likely more than your regular day. Most who travel are giving up there family, home, and thelifestyle they are used to, there has to be some incentive for it. I'm all for helping those who are down, but giving away free work is not something I'd expect someone to do for me, it's not like they are in a life or death position(most of the time), but you as the climber may very well be.

 

[kf_tree]

"Most who travel are giving up there family, home, and thelifestyle they are used to, there has to be some incentive for it"

then stay the hell home and let the locals and city agency's handle it.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Originally posted by Treeman14
Why is it fair? Can you justify your position?

Yeah. I've worked two hurricanes, two ice storms, and several tornado/vertical wind aftermaths. It's fair.

:angel:

 

[MasterBlaster]

Originally posted by kf_tree
then stay the hell home and let the locals and city agency's handle it.

I wonder what would happen if that were to be.

 

[bottlefed89]

wow

Just stating my position KF, but I guess you are right, the most logical thing to do would be to let only the locals take care of it. That makes the most sense.

 

[murphy4trees]

I too think 3x is about right if you've gotta travel and work from the road... Gotta get paid once for the work.... once for the travel and living expenses and hastle, and once for the work you're missing by not covering the hometown customers... If however it's your regular customers and you charge them 3x, they're gonna think you took advantage of them.

In my case, I have a lot of customers waiting right now... If I leave not only Am I gonna loose some of those jobs, but I'll also loose the customers permanently..

Now that doesn't mean I have to charge three times the price per stump... In general I can make 3x the money overall on the volume... working huge hours, 7 days/week and keeping travel time down... IN Va. after Isabel , I was charging less per stump than I get at home, but doing multiple stumps on each property, sometimes 30-40 and up to 100 stumps on a job....

The first job we got in Williamsburg, we didn't leave the block for 2.5 days... One house to the next....

Now cutting storm damaged trees off houses is a different story... That twisted wood can do some tricky stuff.... very dangerous work.... I think a good crew and 35 ton crane should be able to do 10K/day....

 

[kf_tree]

bottlefed89


i didn't mean to jump on your sh@t. but i just think it's a joke for a climber with no real solid contacts to head down to a storm area and think there going to rake in the bucks.

out on a limb said he'll be happy making 5 bills a day, after room and board he's down to 4 bills a day........who's paying his groundy?.........what about the days he's looseing for travel time? i guess he can't be doing much with his regular customers or he's not too much in demand if he's heading south to try and make a buck.

why should john rotten bottom in anus fl pay 3x the normal price to have jim bottoms up mckenzie from empty pockets co cut his tree.

 

[MasterBlaster]

So, living where you live gives you insight as to the availibity of qualified, experienced, safe treemen in Fla? Cool. I don't know how Fl is, but around central La they are far and few between.

But, anybody can grab a chainsaw, eh?

 

[Stumper]

I have never worked a tornado or hurricane aftermath except for months afterward for normal prices. Our snow breakage this spring meant normal pricing for me-The one tree I cut off a house on Sunday afternoon I probably should have gotten extra for but I chose to do it for the elderly lady for less than normal.
It makes sense that prices are premium prices when demand is high. It makes sense for workers from out of state putting in long hours to get a higher than "normal" rate-- expenses are higher. When the priorities have shifted to clearing hazards and insuring access, some of the time consuming aspects of tree work (hauling/disposal, fine raking etc.) are eliminated or reduced. We may charge $60 per man hour for crew and equipment in the normal course of biz but nearly half those hours are grunt work -If we shift paradigms and are doing mostly technical/skilled work then the rate per hour should go up. 2x normal rates really aren't gouging at all when you do the math. Butch's 3x probably ISN"T out of line-But I know I would have a hard time charging that.

 

[TreeJunkie]

Kf: Where do you get off? Have you ever been around a serious storm? Do you think the local co's can take care of these kind of situations? I think not. And in regard to the local agencies taking care of things...Well who do you think brings in tons of out of towners. I worked in N. Carolina after the big ice storm a couple years ago, we were working for the Fema street cleanup project, being there for 4 months and about 95% of the companies doing this work were out of towners.

By the sound of your take on the situation; i take it you won't be headed down to help out? If you will be would you be willing to work for free? You know, as a good sumaritan.. I can always use an extra grunt....

 

[OutOnaLimb]

Dont get me wrong guys, Im not wanting to do this because I can make a butt load of money, I like the adventure of it and the opertunaty to work with other tree care professionals. In my mind there is some sense of doing something noble to try and help out. Im not saying I will come down there and work for free for a months, but I would like the chance to come down and work for a week or two just to say that I did it.

Kenn