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Are you noticing garden services price increases?
Old 08-05-2016, 12:27 PM   #1
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Are you noticing garden services price increases?

Maybe it is just my inexperience as I tend to do-it-myself in the garden. I've tried to have some bigger garden tasks done by landscape guys. It seems in our area the prices are quite high. Is this an after-the-recession phenomena?

In calling some trades guys I have gotten requests to text them with my contact information. Seems that they are very busy and I suspect being selective about jobs now.

Example: Quote for replacing edging on a garden path with 3/16 metal edging was $3000. I was expecting maybe $1500. The materials might be $700 or so. Around here in Northern California (higher priced homes in my neighborhood) the labor rate per hour seems to be in the $50 to $70 range for experienced and licensed people. That would seem to imply 38 hours of work on this at $60/hr. I don't think the job is that complicated.

Do people ask for quotes that separate labor and materials? Maybe I should have asked for that?

Maybe I should wait for a business slowdown period for non-essential tasks like above?

P.S. Maybe this is all a good thing as I am making more on my stock investments nowadays and don't want the bad old days to return.
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Old 08-05-2016, 12:28 PM   #2
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Yes my billables to DW are way up this year!

But seriously, I have certainly noticed that costs for plant material have increased dramatically in the past years. Seems much over inflation.
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Old 08-05-2016, 01:02 PM   #3
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Estimates to mow our lawn are more than twice what we paid during our last year overseas ($300 per mow, versus $140). The $140 was in 2007.
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Old 08-05-2016, 01:50 PM   #4
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It just seems that everything is going up except wages like factories or large corporations. The self employ can managed to increase their prices but it also has to do with insurance costs, plates, maintenance costs.
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Old 08-05-2016, 04:08 PM   #5
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Hard to comment without knowing the distance you are talking about, but that sounds ridiculous to me.

I have a larger than normal suburb yard on a corner but not a McMansion type place. I get quotes of $37 per mow for front and back yard with trimming and blow away the clippings off sidewalk.

Some companies, especially established ones in my experience with roofers, is they won't even touch a job under $2K.

So I was curious as I could use some edging as well, looked it up and while some places hide their pricing (weird) I did find some metal edging that sold for $2.00 - $3.00 per foot, including spikes.
I also noticed folks on Home depot site said it was easy to install.
So you could judge the material cost based on that.

Here is a site and one review fellow said they used a sidewalk edger to make a tiny trench which seemed like a smart idea.
Anyhow all the reviews of it were good, and it has me excited to go measure mine

http://www.amleo.com/col-met-steel-l...ions/p/VP-CLE/
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Old 08-05-2016, 04:45 PM   #6
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I live in FL, about a 1/4 acre lot. I have paid $85 per month for basic lawn cuts - 2x per month for winter/spring, weekly for summer/fall.

It's going up to $90 per month now - best check I write ever. Well worth it vs. the time/sweat and equipment maintenance.
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Old 08-05-2016, 06:32 PM   #7
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I've always been appalled at the price of lawn upkeep. My yard's 130' x 220', and it's all bermuda sod with 100% watered. With good zero turn mower, I can mow the yard in 20 minutes while having a great time doing it.

Some of the houses in my neighborhood have lawns that look like golf courses greens. I'd just hate to see what they pay for the Thursday-Friday onslaught of landscape trailers causing a traffic jamb.

Thankfully in the South, we can easily find aliens that are willing to do serious landscape work for $12 per hour or less per man.
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Are you noticing garden services price increases?
Old 08-05-2016, 09:57 PM   #8
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Are you noticing garden services price increases?

Prices here seem to be about the same as they were years ago, despite inflation. But, that may not be true in your area. Maybe you should ask around among your friends, relatives (if any live nearby), and neighbors.
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Old 08-06-2016, 06:44 AM   #9
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I have always taken care of my lawn and garden except for a couple of years when I had health issues and the neighbors child mowed to make some extra money for college. I'm back to mowing again while I still can. Maybe a couple more years. Then I will have saved enough money over the years to hire and not worry about the cost. I hope.

Cheers!
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Old 08-06-2016, 07:50 AM   #10
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I pay $60 a month in florida . A lot of my lot is swimming pool so he basically mows the back and a small side yard . The front is all native plants .
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Old 08-06-2016, 07:59 AM   #11
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I have had the same gardener for fifteen years. When he started, he charge me $50/month to mow the lawn once a week. A couple of years ago he increased it to $55/month.
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Old 08-06-2016, 08:34 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunset View Post
Hard to comment without knowing the distance you are talking about, but that sounds ridiculous to me.

I have a larger than normal suburb yard on a corner but not a McMansion type place. I get quotes of $37 per mow for front and back yard with trimming and blow away the clippings off sidewalk.

Some companies, especially established ones in my experience with roofers, is they won't even touch a job under $2K.

So I was curious as I could use some edging as well, looked it up and while some places hide their pricing (weird) I did find some metal edging that sold for $2.00 - $3.00 per foot, including spikes.
I also noticed folks on Home depot site said it was easy to install.
So you could judge the material cost based on that.

Here is a site and one review fellow said they used a sidewalk edger to make a tiny trench which seemed like a smart idea.
Anyhow all the reviews of it were good, and it has me excited to go measure mine

COL-MET Steel Landscape Edging, Set of Five 10-foot Sections - Edging, Mulch
Thanks for the thoughts on my specific example Sunset. The path I want to fix up is curved but does not come near a lawn. So it is not all that critical to have great edging. There are 3 possibilities I will be looking into for the garden path:

1) Do nothing except to take out some of the old wood edging that is not aligned any more. This path may be OK just left to itself.
2) Search at Home Depot for garden path edging I can install myself.
3) Get another quote and specify the easiest way to get the cost down.
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Old 08-06-2016, 08:39 AM   #13
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Thanks for the responses so far. In the OP I was referring to the larger garden projects that might require getting an estimate from a few landscape people.

I am not referring to standard maintenance work to be done on a regular monthly basis. I do the maintenance now and will until I am too old. We do not have a lawn in this drier area of Northern California. Removed the lawn last year and re-landscaped. Spent a bundle and had a landscape guy do the work. Sold the old mower.
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