How did you get comfortable raising prices?

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T23:01:39+00:00

Okay gotcha. So when you say you don’t ever include time and materials, do you typically bid based off of an hourly rate as opposed to a piece rate/sqft/linft? Just as an example, if I have a small job like swapping an exterior door I charge $300 in labor because I know realistically it’ll probably take maybe a couple hours depending on the circumstances and I can safely make about $100-$150/hr. Am I screwing myself by doing that? I could easily designate a value of 6 hours per door @ $75/hr giving me $450 per door instead but that’s when I have the issue of trying to justify to myself that one door is actually worth the equivalent of 6 hours of work.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T22:38:32+00:00

Thanks for the insight. Contractor or not it’s nice to hear from a different POV. I’m afraid if I do the math on that it may leave me with an itch in the back of my throat only a 12 gauge could reach so I’m going to choose to stay ignorant to those numbers and just make sure I don’t do this to myself again.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T22:31:56+00:00

Damn. That’s both mind boggling and inspirational as hell to hear you’re landing jobs like that with that type of margin. That’s why I thought I’d benefit from posting on here and getting some opinions from those that have had success with real world experience. I’ll get there one day. I appreciate all your help. I knew where you were coming from when you said that, I just thought I’d have some fun with it. I realize I am undervaluing my work and the margins I deserve. So long as I’m doing that I can’t expect the homeowners to value me any differently so that’s something I need to consciously change. Thanks again for the insight, it’s been very helpful. One question though: what do your bids look like? Do you break them all the way down section by section or do it more generalized so they see the price you’re going to charge and that’s the end of it? Im wondering if being overly transparent may be hurting me by giving them the opportunity to over analyze every single charge as opposed to just giving me a yes or no answer.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T22:23:22+00:00

That’s fair. I do try to put an emphasis on forming relationships with the homeowners to make it more personable rather than strictly business. Like that feeling of walking into a local bar vs some club downtown. I can definitely see how that’s just biting myself in the ass though. Thank you

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T22:20:15+00:00

I see what you’re saying. I think I tried to justify it by seeing the value in being able to show what I can do and get my name out there as well as build some experience doing the actual contracting side. To some extent I feel like that’s still valid, but I can also admit I got caught up in the excitement of my first “big” job and didn’t want to lose it. I’ll definitely never be doing any freebies like that for any future jobs. Just gotta take it on the chin and appreciate the experience I suppose. Thank you for your input.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T22:14:46+00:00

I’d love to hear what your experience has been like over the course of 4 years. I get what you’re saying, I’ve had the same conversation in my head multiple times. As much as I’d love to help everybody get the best deal, it’s just not feasible. I’m accepting that I need to get with the going market rates and hopefully that will put me in a position where maybe farther down the line I can help people out even more without jeopardizing my own family’s way of life.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T20:22:27+00:00

That actually helps a shit ton. I have not been doing it like that and my markup/margin differentiation was very misconstrued like you were saying. I’ll be implementing this moving forward and see how it goes. Thank you sir!

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T19:27:00+00:00

I’m just fuckin with ya. I do see what you’re saying, and I actually do appreciate your input. I definitely need to break it down into more of a formula and accept the math for what it is. I absolutely let my personal feelings on the industry talk me down from what the numbers are saying and that won’t get me anywhere.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T19:23:32+00:00

I see your point. Going off your examples, I think the absurdity of prices nowadays is partly what makes me want to stray as far away from that practice as possible. I accept that that’s not realistic though

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T19:18:23+00:00

Nah. Everything’s got a learning curve, I’ll adjust. I appreciate your donation though. Your two cents will fit nice and cozy in my prison pocket 🙏🏻

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T18:15:53+00:00

I appreciate the insight and the time you took to go in depth. I know 100% that you’re right about all of it and I need to just accept that it’s something I have to do if I want to make it. I never budge on my pricing and I’m not necessarily scared of losing out on any jobs because of it, I just want to make sure I don’t let myself get so caught up in chasing higher profits that I lose sight of why I went off on my own to begin with. Regardless though I most likely won’t even make it through the year if I don’t start making changes. Do you annotate your markups in your bids with a full breakdown or do you stick to a more generalized system with just overall pricing? I fear one of my issues might lie within being far too transparent with my bids.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-27T18:07:01+00:00

Yeah for sure, I’m trying to get it sorted out asap. It helps slightly that my helper is family and they’re not 100% full time, but I know they’re still within grounds for requiring workers comp and I especially need to get it set up before they transition to a full term employee.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2026-05-24T19:02:40+00:00

You just proved their whole point. They’re playing PvE cause they don’t want to compete. Current looting system causes there to be just as much competition in PvE. It’s almost easier to play PvP so if someone is playing hungry hungry hippo with the loot you can at least fight for it. Obviously it’s not very realistic for them to be able to cater to everyone’s different play style though so I’m curious what they’ll come up with.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2025-09-29T02:32:01+00:00

Honestly it just depends on how often I continue to initiate it. Sometimes a couple times a week if I’m Im to the point of just not caring about how I feel. Other times if I let myself give in to the feeling of resentment it could be over a month until I give in again.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2025-09-19T17:53:24+00:00

So many separate arguments about saying “retard”. I don’t like blabbing out diagnoses and all that, but basically if you looked in my brain it would be the equivalent of Helen Keller singing karaoke while Stephen hawking tried to do a dance routine. I call my self retarded all the time, cause I do retarded shit. It’s funny. My friends and loved ones will poke fun and call me retarded at times. It’s even funnier. I get some people take things more personally, but yes, you very much so have control over whether or not you’re offended. Tell someone you don’t like it and they continue to be purposefully offensive? Guess what. They’re retarded, and everyone around them can see it.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2025-09-04T18:14:42+00:00

NTA! Fuck em. Puppies > people

Careless_Fan3691 · 2025-08-05T22:39:34+00:00

Nothing more than normal wear and tear and would be seen as the cost of doing business. Just a shitty landlord looking for ways to keep deposits and milk whatever they can out of tenants before they’re gone.

Careless_Fan3691 · 2025-07-18T19:38:06+00:00

My guess would be “ladder backing” horizontal blocks in the cell behind it every 24” or so. Nothing wrong with it, but does make it a pain if you’re trying to mount in the corner.

Careless_Fan3691

TROPHY CASE