[HomeGuardPaints]

I was called out for an estimate yesterday for paper removal and painting. we get to the point where we start talking money and the guy tells me the other painters quote.


3 average rooms- removal of paper---- $300
paint said rooms(cieling and trim white walls tan)-- $400 providing paint

My jaw hit the floor.

Told the guy my price of $1550 and you would have though i had pointed a gun.

Was i too high?

 

[ProWallGuy]

No, I don't think your price was high. I'm positive though the other guy's price was way low.

 

[timhag]

i went on a lead two days ago for painting a kitchen 10x6 and bath room10x6. Kitchen need to be skimmed after the HO decided to take wall paper off himself. The bathroom was moldy. There was alot of work to be done, gave him a price of $1800.00. He told me that the other painter gave him a price of $350.00 and that price included material. I tod him to call me when the other guy screws up or disappears with his down payment.

 

[slickshift]

100 each room?
Guy bidding was an idiot...or knows something we don't
I vote for idiot though
I can't tell you how many painters underbid wall covering removal and end up working for $3.17 an hour
That's why many will only do it hourly (T&M)

Paint 3 rooms for $400?
If I overheard this guy saying this in a bar, I'd haul off and smack him

Homeowner wants this cheap guy?
Good luck, good bye, good riddance

If you're price covered your materials, labor, and other expenses, and still figured in a little profit, then you are not too high, no

I can say that if nobody ever thinks you are too high, you are not charging enough
There will always be people that think $137.50 to paint a room is fair

 

[HomeGuardPaints]

I'm a decent estimator, but every now and then you hear a price and think "did i screw that up?"

 

[HomeGuardPaints]

i went on a lead two days ago for painting a kitchen 10x6 and bath room10x6. Kitchen need to be skimmed after the HO decided to take wall paper off himself. The bathroom was moldy. There was alot of work to be done, gave him a price of $1800.00. He told me that the other painter gave him a price of $350.00 and that price included material. I tod him to call me when the other guy screws up or disappears with his down payment.

he must need that work bad.
he'll have to ask for more $ after the first day

 

[Chameleon]

Don't be discouraged !!! People do that all the time to see how hungry you are....and honestly, if they can get it that cheap....well let them. You are the only one that knows how much it will cost you to do their job, and you know how much you need to make. I love this when this happens....I always tell them....you get what you pay for !!!! Nicely of coarse, and hey thanks for wasting my time.

 

[crow]

That crazy! hell Im out here in the middle nowhere where folks try to get ya to take half a cow for part a the pay, and I aint never heard of prices like that, (even from the folks with the uncledaddy thing going on!) hes gonna paint 3 rooms for 4 hundred! hell if hes any good Id sub that fool out and make money off him! must be one a them crankheads! needing a jump start. I cant work at that rate, notta!

 

[cole191919]

See this is the problem. The homeowner could potentially just only WANT to pay that much and never actually got a quote from another company. Happened a few times here. Not saying thats actually what happened and that there is a supreme moron out there charging 3 for $400 incl. materials.

Some customers think that estimating is as easy as standing 15 feet away from your kitchen, squinting a little bit and saying, "Ummm, this here is about $300 worth of painting."

 

[vermontpainter]

Some customers think that estimating is as easy as standing 15 feet away from your kitchen, squinting a little bit and saying, "Ummm, this here is about $300 worth of painting."

Some painters think its that simple too!

 

[Rich]

Some customers think that estimating is as easy as standing 15 feet away from your kitchen, squinting a little bit and saying, "Ummm, this here is about $300 worth of painting."

it's not just me who finds these people!?
what a relief

not only does everyone and their mother think they can paint, they also think they know what everything should cost

I keep it simple, when I get the feeling that someone needs to hear what painters are charging, I simply tell them that most legit painters charge on average $40-$50/hr. They might cringe, but it helps ease them a bit and they can understand more about the estimate they first thought was high.

 

[Kelly Painting]

My charge for removing wallpaper from an average size room is $200.
My charge for bringing the walls back to normal (prep wise) is also $200
then I charge for painting and supply's.

 

[brentcof]

We just finished the paper removal job from hell! Two layers that were primed in between with glue applied to the top layer of prepasted paper. We maybe had about 300sq ft to take off, and we ended up charging $1150 - t/m just for the removal. That is the only way to go! I refuse to give a firm price for this type of work. It is not worth the misery to loose money on these type of jobs.

While we are on the subject, what have you all found to be the best chemical remover or method?

 

[timhag]

We just finished the paper removal job from hell! Two layers that were primed in between with glue applied to the top layer of prepasted paper. We maybe had about 300sq ft to take off, and we ended up charging $1150 - t/m just for the removal. That is the only way to go! I refuse to give a firm price for this type of work. It is not worth the misery to loose money on these type of jobs.

While we are on the subject, what have you all found to be the best chemical remover or method?

Try this my brother http://www.painttalk.com/search.php?searchid=25622 everything at this site has something to do with wallpaper

 

[ProWallGuy]

While we are on the subject, what have you all found to be the best chemical remover or method?

Method depends on the type of paper.
Best chemical is Safe and Simple 603.

 

[Paul_R]

Your competition had teen aged sons working for $5 an hour. :whistling2: I have never stripped a room for under $250, and that is with the understanding that NO wall repair is included if needed. Wall paper stripping is very labor intensive, generally speaking. Last big job that I bid was entire house, I think about 10 rooms, and I counted an entrance hall for two of those rooms, at $3000. I did not get the job, as I was over the HO buget, and I am not sad. NO, NO, NO!:no: Funky looking, like a hemp placemat with strands of fiber woven in a chris chros manner.:blink:

My opinion, HomeGuard, you are in the ball park, HE HE:yes:
Happy painting, Paul.

 

[JTP]

Check this little story out

I gave an estimate based on a guy going by a job I was working on. Saw my truck with my name on it and stopped. The job was an empty apartment. This guy says to me: "I'd like an estimate on a lot of work. I'm tired of the drunk painter I hired and need someone to finish up." It's about $6000.00 worth of work."

So, at lunch, I mosey on up to the place for an estimate. It's close so I don't kill a lot of time driving there. But, the estimate took a couple of hours to see. Big place with different types of buildings that needed to be sprayed out.

My partner and I talk over the job. I tell the prospect, I'll email a job quote. We figured the job was a minimum of 11 grand. Needless to say, the potential customer never called. What he was saying, if you listened carefully was: "I have 6000 to pay for the job, if you can bring it in at that, the job is yours."

Yeah right and cows fly over the moon too. Here was a dude ranch manager trying to lowball the painters and probably keep 1/2 of the paininting budget for himself. The 11 grand was actually a pretty damn tight bid. We would be making ok money, nothing great.

Point Being: Lots of prospects will lowball other prices they have. Sometimes, the prospect will just make up the figure because that's all he wants to spend.

When price is an issue at the close of sale, I sometimes say: "Would you sweat your own copper pipes? Would you pull electric wire for your 220 dryer and put in the receptacle? Painting is a meticulous trade, if you want quality, you have to pay for it.

There is a problem in all contract bidding which is all over the business threads in these forums. What do you do with the lowballers? You may get a job after they have slopped up the place, but then again, if you don't close with a yes from your customer on the first shot, you rarely hear from them again.

It's fine to know you are worth every bit of what you bid, it's another thing to get that price and keep working. Ah--there is the rub!

JTP

 

[Paul_R]

JTP, what is that on your hand, drywall dust? Happy painting, Paul :drink:

 

[JTP]

Paul--It's paint. And, it indicates just how good my techinique is for slapping the bucket! If you saw my whites, which I am beginning to see are an outdated uniform indicating olden days, you would know I use them instead of a fan deck. I really have had customers point to color on my pants and say: "I want that one!" Lots of Luck.

JTP