Whats going on? .... Crazy prices.

Status
Not open for further replies.
JohnDoe

JohnDoe

Active Member
Looked at 3 jobs this week ...

Monday night i looked at a bedroom, straight skim, walls n celling, the job is ready. Its 1 days work for me and my lad told the guy £350 labour and materials. £50 on mats.
Heard nothing.

Wednesday looked at a hall staires n landing not too big, day and a half worth of work. i said to the guy with materials its gonna be £410, £70 ish on materials.
He said .... wow, i've already had 2 quotes one for £300 including materials and one for £300 without materials. I just said i can't beat that.

Friday night another bedroom walls n celling straight skim, a good days work with my lad. I phoned her last night with the price of £345 including materials again about 50 quid ish.
She says sorry Andy i've had a quote for all the walls with materials £210 i said your kidding?! ... then i said what about the celling, she said he only wants another £40 for the celling. I was just ... can't believe it.

Been on my mind all night ....
 
Maybe i need to work more on the customer, so the extra £100 odd i want is no big deal? Or do i start working for these sh it prices and do one coat skimming? ... Somethings wrong, but i don't know if its me? I'm as fair as they come
 
There's always someone that will do it cheaper mate.
And on their own too, so no lab to pay for.

How much do you pay your lad?
 
flynnyman said:
So you and your lad are lookin for around £150 a day each and i take it hes a plasterer?
Click to expand...

Just what I was thinking Flynny, £300 for a spread and a lad is a lot to ask at the moment especially if the two of you are only going to do a room a day. I've met very few domestic spreads that even bother having a lad.
You'll be pricing these jobs up against guys like Spunky and myself that usually do site work who'll look at skimming a bedroom in a day as a doddle on our own.
 
Simply can't afford a lad at the moment. For me £210 for four walls is a good price....£50 for materials means I would get £160 for an easy days work!!!! I'm struggling to get £100 a day currently....
 
agree with all above replies, unfourtanetly the good times have gone ,too little buisness being chased by to many people ,all trades included, i charge 120.00 per day on my own no labourer,all my work is private but more and more these days i have to drop my prices just to keep working, and it is only june it will be much worse come nov/dec. i can understand your frustrations johndoe but you are going to have to drop your prices.
 
JohnDoe said:
Looked at 3 jobs this week ...

Monday night i looked at a bedroom, straight skim, walls n celling, the job is ready. Its 1 days work for me and my lad told the guy £350 labour and materials. £50 on mats.
Heard nothing.

Wednesday looked at a hall staires n landing not too big, day and a half worth of work. i said to the guy with materials its gonna be £410, £70 ish on materials.
He said .... wow, i've already had 2 quotes one for £300 including materials and one for £300 without materials. I just said i can't beat that.

Friday night another bedroom walls n celling straight skim, a good days work with my lad. I phoned her last night with the price of £345 including materials again about 50 quid ish.
She says sorry Andy i've had a quote for all the walls with materials £210 i said your kidding?! ... then i said what about the celling, she said he only wants another £40 for the celling. I was just ... can't believe it.

Been on my mind all night ....
Click to expand...

I dont think you need to drop your prices mate to get the work maybe having a lab with you is making you less competitive.

As Andy said your up against site lads that are used to cranking the meterage and domestic guys that dont have labs.

All my work is domestic and although i could and have in the past do a bedroom a day, i choose not to as for some reason the works always there for me.

If i allowed a day and half to do the room @ £150 thats £225 + your mats that brings me in at £275 which is under your £350, and i havnt had to bust a bollock or drop me prices.

A labs all well and good if youve got a full haouse to do or a few rooms, but one room you can easily knock up get it on and wash out yourself, you dont need to drop your prices mate just bin the lab.
 
I'm don't understand these " your up against site lads" replies. A plasterer is a plasterer no matter where u are used to working. If you can't compeat there is no excuse.
 
Mate i was speaking for JohnDoe not myself, I rarely come up against competition as most of my stuff comes from developers and builders that have used me for a long time and happy with what i do.
The main point IMO is that hes priced himself out because hes allowing for a lab thats posibly not needed, but you cant deny that site lads will crank more meterage than a domestic bloke because thats what theyre used of doing, My main concern when doing a job is that its clean and tidy and the final finish is dead on, not cranking as much as i can in one shift, i have no need to the works there for me.

I disagree that plasterers are plasterers, site work is site work and domestic is domestic two completley diferent animals. Thats not to say i cant do it i choose not to.
 
An average 'straight skim' bedroom I will piss on my own in a day. Pink it all the night before. Takes an hour max. Ceiling and 1 wall, possibly the reveals. then the other 3 walls. Even if I was charging 150 a day with 50mats I'm still way under your price. Realistically in cov atm you're looking at 120-140 a day. I wouldn't be working my arse off and I'd still be done for 3.

I only use a lab when there's stuff for him to be doing while I'm skimming like loading out, prepping etc. If its one room, once he's mixed up he's just gonna sit round texting waiting to knock up again.
 
I dont get this whole prepping night before business..

Most customers I know wouldnt be home from work until say 6/7pm.. so Ive gone from one job at 3/4pm.. headed home for few hours, not been able to shower and change because Im going out again for an hour or so that evening, which could be miles away from home again, then I head out... get home and have dinner for about 9pm..

Not to mention most customers wouldnt want me turning up to START work just when they get in from work.

It doesnt sound like it even saves time to me, concidering you go to and from two seperate jobs in a day to scrub off an hour of prep the next day.

That aint worth £150 in my eyes.. we dont get paid to price jobs so add that to the job and you are driving to and from a customers house 3 times.. and working about 10+hours a day for £120-£150.. doesnt seem right to me!
 
Yeah obviously sometimes it isn't feesable to go the night before. Although 99% of customers will give me a key so time isn't a problem. Stolenstilton showed me his little cocktail of pva and wba that sets much quicker. Get it, roll it on then by the time you've got your water ready, tools out, beads cut n fixed etc its ready. If I'm just doing a wall or 2 I'll use pva. Either way I'd still piss it in a day.
 
you should not worry about work that you do not win, you should only be concerned about the jobs i do win.

i know when a customer phones me if i am the only one pricing it. if the work is going out to contract against other plasterers i do not bother to price it, as it is a waste of my time.
 
spunky said:
You desperate bastards working for 120 on domestic stuff
Click to expand...

nothing desperate spunky,quite happy with that price as beddy says you just crack on blitz it , some jobs its more than 120.00 per day sometimes its less but overall working ,and most days in house at 3.30.all best hector
 
£120 is a joke.... unless times are hard and you have to work for that, then fair enough! like matey who started this post I personally would price the average 4x4m bedroom, all walls and ceiling at about £380, 1.5/2 easy days work.. not because I can't do it in a day, but because I choose not to as I dont have too! Few years ago round my way you'd get more than that too.. as said before we are the only trade who works non stop all day, we shouldnt have to plaster a room a day just to earn what other trades get in for fitting a few ******* sockets/running a couple of pipes.. so until I have to, Im not working for that sort of wedge!
 
Pretty suprised by some posts ... some of you would skim a whole bedroom walls n ceiling 12x12 for 150 quid. I don't care if its only a days work, yes i could pi ss it on my own but for that money its really unfair. Atleast i can see what i'm up against.

You gotta think you've got to sheet up from the front door all the way to the bedroom, sheet up the bedroom, load the gear in. Prep up.

If it was a piece of pi ss room on board then 150 qiud fair doos ... not on domestic tho, thats a joke.
 
Does the price not depend on how much graft u have on. If your busy and you put in a decent price and dont get it then ya not that bothered. But if ya quite then its maybe £120 that you never had for putting in a decent shift seems reasonable. IMO
 
No Mate ... It depends on the job. The price is roughly the same weather i'm busy or not. No more no less ....
 
£350 is about right for an overskim in that size room (walls and ceiling) and as said it doesn't matter how quickly you do it, it's what the room's worth :RpS_thumbup:
 
When it comes down to it, I'm happy on £500 - £600 a week doing two sets a day.
Skimming a room is two sets, roughly 5 hours work. In a working day that leaves me plenty of time to prep up and sheet up.

On that basis working for £120 is fine.

5 years ago it was a different story, £150 a day was normal, but now it's about survival. I would never go below £100 a day but I know plenty who do in return for steady work.
In this market I've found there simply isn't room for pricing in labourers.
 
Last edited:
essexandy said:
Just what I was thinking Flynny, £300 for a spread and a lad is a lot to ask at the moment especially if the two of you are only going to do a room a day. I've met very few domestic spreads that even bother having a lad.
You'll be pricing these jobs up against guys like Spunky and myself that usually do site work who'll look at skimming a bedroom in a day as a doddle on our own.
Click to expand...

i've seen Many top notch plasterers completely underestimate domestic work. first thing that happens is the client does not want you before 9AM so they can get the kids to school then you have to make polite conversation and explain what your going to do then sheet up. Find some wear to wash up and get water etc. suddenly a one day job turns in to two days and your out of pocket.
 
just reread your original post again johndoe, and being honest a labourer on domestics is a luxury unless its a barn conversion/full house etc, also agree with all comments on this subject ,but as freerider says in his first few lines 120.00 a day is a joke unless times are hard and you have to work for it fair enough, but unfourtanetly the reality is times are hard and certainly the domestic market up here for all trades has collapsed,people are apprehensive and scared about losing there jobs no confidence cost of living etc,etc, and that is the reality of it up here, so while 120.00 per day is certainly not enough when you consider all things pricing/dustsheets down etc at least i am working. but as i said in a way we all right about this subject certainly dont disagree with any comments.
 
hector said:
just reread your original post again johndoe, and being honest a labourer on domestics is a luxury unless its a barn conversion/full house etc, also agree with all comments on this subject ,but as freerider says in his first few lines 120.00 a day is a joke unless times are hard and you have to work for it fair enough, but unfourtanetly the reality is times are hard and certainly the domestic market up here for all trades has collapsed,people are apprehensive and scared about losing there jobs no confidence cost of living etc,etc, and that is the reality of it up here, so while 120.00 per day is certainly not enough when you consider all things pricing/dustsheets down etc at least i am working. but as i said in a way we all right about this subject certainly dont disagree with any comments.
Click to expand...

Mate ... even without a labourer i'd still want the same money. I dont price day wise, i work on whats the job worth. Just because you can skim a house out on your own in 8 days your only going to charge 8 days X £120 .... no disrespect mate but ..... f u c k that!
 
JohnDoe said:
Mate ... even without a labourer i'd still want the same money. I dont price day wise, i work on whats the job worth. Just because you can skim a house out on your own in 8 days your only going to charge 8 days X £120 .... no disrespect mate but ..... f u c k that!
Click to expand...

I agree you've got to make some profit mate, but the truth is these days your lucky to just get a wage :RpS_biggrin:
And like you've said your not getting the jobs at them prices.
So if your not gonna do it for any less then I wouldn't worry about it & just move onto the next quote, because theres always someone who will do it cheaper.
 
JohnDoe said:
Mate ... even without a labourer i'd still want the same money. I dont price day wise, i work on whats the job worth. Just because you can skim a house out on your own in 8 days your only going to charge 8 days X £120 .... no disrespect mate but ..... f u c k that!
Click to expand...

i do agree with you johndoe and no offence taken, but a lot of jobs i go to i put in the same as you, what i think the job is worth, some i get some i dont, and then i bash on with it , a lot of jobs i get more than 120.00,but that is my safety net and if i go to it or occasionly lower i do , this works for me and being realistic it seems the right price to use as a guide,
 
hollybank said:
You will have to drop your price if you want to work in this town on domestics.
Click to expand...

Never had to drop my price in all the years mate, so why will i ??

Where abouts are you from anyways?

And is it you giving these silly low prices around here :RpS_wink:
 
120 a day isn't that bad let's be honest. As said that's my minimum which is for builders where I don't have to go and price, don't pay for or have to pick up mats and don't need to worry about rubbish. I can quote a job at 160 a day and probably not get it. Or I can quote it at 130-140 and probably get it. Is it worth missing out on a couple of hundred quid for the sake of 30-40 notes?
 
We're all feelking the pinch, but it's not our fault we've got to work for less.
It's the tight c un ts who won't pay the right price, and always go for the cheapest sh1t.

We're also up against poles and coursers.

Blame them! Not us who have to work under those conditions!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top