The worked example
The lot is 12,000 sq ft with 2,500 sq ft of beds, driveway and patio, so there are 9,500 sq ft of turf. The aerator has a 2 ft swath, runs at 2.5 mph and loses 40% to turns and gates, so it covers 15,840 sq ft an hour. Two passes take 1.20 hours. Seeding at 25,000 sq ft an hour is 0.38 hours and flagging, gates and cleanup add half an hour, so each person is on site 2.08 hours.
Two people each spend those hours on site, half an hour driving and half an hour loading: 6.16 crew hours. At $22 an hour plus 12% payroll cost, labor is $151.76. Seed at 6 lbs per 1,000 sq ft is 57 lbs at $2.80, $159.60, and starter fertilizer is $31.35. The aerator burns fuel and costs $18 an hour in depreciation and upkeep, $25.14 in all. The truck drives 30 miles at 13 mpg, $8.54 of fuel plus $10.50 of wear. Card fees are 3% of the quote, $15.60, and $4,800 of yearly insurance and truck payment over 120 jobs is $40.00 on each job.
| Line | Per job |
|---|---|
| Billed | $520.00 |
| Total costs | $448.49 |
| True profit | $71.51 |
| Margin | 13.8% |
| Profit per crew hour | $11.61 |
| Take-home after a 25% set-aside | $53.63 |
At 120 jobs that is $8,582 of profit a season. The overhead is covered after about 43 jobs.
What the quote has to be
For a 30% margin after 3% card fees, the costs that do not move with price ($432.89) are divided by 0.67, which gives a total of $646.10. At $520.00 this job is $126.10 short. On 9,500 sq ft of turf that is $68.01 per 1,000 sq ft against the $54.74 quoted.
Comparing two jobs
A bigger lot of 20,000 sq ft with 4,000 sq ft of beds brings in $800.00. It makes $142.00 against $71.51 for the first, and $17.07 per crew hour against $11.61, because the drive and the load are spread over more turf.
Run your own numbers: open the calculator.
Common questions
How do I price core aeration and overseeding?
Start from the turf you can actually work, which is the lot minus beds, driveways and buildings. Work out the aerator hours from swath, ground speed and the number of passes, add the seeding time, then cost the seed and starter fertilizer by the pound per 1,000 square feet. Add crew labor with payroll cost, machine fuel and rental or depreciation, the truck, card fees and a share of your yearly overhead. Divide the costs that do not move with price by one minus your card-fee percentage and your target margin to get the lowest quote.
Why do two passes cost so much more than one?
Each pass is another full trip over the turf, so aerator hours double, and fuel and machine cost double with them. The calculator shows aerator hours separately so you can see what a second pass adds before you quote it.
What is a sensible minimum job fee?
A small lawn still needs the truck, the drive, the load and the setup. Put your minimum fee in and the tool bills the job at the higher of your quote and the minimum, and tells you when the minimum is what is being charged.
How many aeration jobs do I need to cover my overhead?
Take what one job earns above its direct costs, which is everything except the share of yearly overhead, and divide your yearly insurance, truck payment and overhead by that. The calculator shows the break-even jobs a season and warns when it is more than you plan to book.