New start up

Hello all. I have a dream of owning my own company. I’ve been operating heavy equipment for 20 years plus. I’ve been doing some form of construction since I was 12. I’d like to start doing weekend side work and after normal working hours during the week. I have access to a dump trailer and skid steer. I have been watching the auctions to see about getting a mini excavator and trailer. I have some questions as to how I might better benefit myself in the long run. I have some money to spend. So I’m hoping to be able to pay for the mini and trailer in cash. So besides insurance, overhead and maybe a truck payment I’m looking to start with the least amount of cost.
1. How should I advertise besides word of mouth?
2. How should I bid my time hourly or daily? Do I bill for the machine and operator separate or all under the same price?I am in southeast Pa. I have a pretty good idea of the rates.
3. I have been looking into kubota mini’s. Is there another reliable brand besides the big names? I’ve spent a lot of time on cat and Volvo excavators, but they can be pretty expensive even used.
I have many other questions but I will start there. Ive been doing my homework. I have some friends and bosses who are project managers on large sites that I have talked to and are helping me with ideas and questions. I wanna start small and maybe after a year or 2 then turn it into my full time job. I plan on maintaining my current job as long as I can before making the jump. Any input or advice is appreciated. Thank you all.

Bobcat, Kubota, Cat, Deere, they're all only as good as the dealer support.

This is a very expensive hobby though. If you're going to try and compete, just remember that the guys doing it full time have 7 days a week to recover overhead and machine expenses, vs after work and on weekends for you.

Not trying to discourage, but thems be the facts.

On the equipment I’d rather have a no name brand with an awesome servicing dealer than a name brand with a crappy one. Break downs get costly when you can’t work.
My advice is to rent some machines until you get a handle on it and see what’s really involved. Whatever your thinking your going to spend to get started quadruple it and then add some more for good measure. Owning a business with equipment involved isn’t for the faint of heart and right now especially. However before long I’ll bet a lot of equipment will be up for sale, whatever you decide I wish you the best of luck

If you're going to do residential type work see if there are community papers in your area. Commercial work is generally better though because you're not dealing with customers who have no idea and try to get out of paying the full price. Some jobs are bid by the complete job and some are hourly. Hourly charge so much an hour for machine and operator. Talk to home builders and renovation contractors. They might like to have someone smaller come in and do work so they don't have the hassle. Sometimes just going and talking to people, they will like you and give you work.

Dealing on the weekend and after work sounds good on paper but the reality is it takes a very small amount of work to get you scheduled out and you will be stretched people call with the expectation you are sitting on the couch waiting on there job to start they dont want to wait

How do you anticipate getting paid how long can you carry work before that check comes in

Builders and commercial will run a minimum of net 30 pay commercial in my area is getting closer to 75 day pay from date of invoice not job start homeowners think if they pay you cash they should get a discount it's worth thinking about cause the work is easy to do simple to get and can be hell to get paid and starting out it's scary

Most startup guys dont go broke from bad prices someone doestn pay them and it breaks there cash flow you will not survive without cash flow

And don't forget that when work is slow, the bigger guys bid jobs that are normally below them.

I have been in business for 21 years. All of my customers pay 50% down and balance at completion of jobs. The exception is on larger jobs, then they pay 50% down, %25 percent progress payment then a final payment of %25 when job is completed.


If they do not want to pay by those terms, I don't want their business. Learned real soon there are NON PAYERS out there. My work and my references speak for themselves and 99% of the time the customer agrees and pays the terms I stipulate .

In order to take money up front you normally have to be bonded. Too many shady contractors take the money and you never see them again. What guarantee does the customer have you'll come back and finish the job? There's non payers and also non performers. I would do jobs but expect to be paid promptly at the completion. Had a few people try to get out of paying the full amount but 95%+ never had a problem.

guarantee ? 1. 21 years in small east Texas county. scammers dont last that long. 2. Customer reference list I provide if a question is asked the downpayment .

There are lots of scammer contractors that take deposits and never come back. Bonding is basically insurance you will be back. It is the law here to be bonded in order to take money up front. It also gives you more credibility. There are big jobs like gov't. contracts where the contractor not only has to be bonded but they have to give a deposit, to prove they are financially stable enough to complete the job, in order to even bid the job.

https://advisorsmith.com/contractors/surety-bonds-for-contractors/

Welder Dave said:

There are lots of scammer contractors that take deposits and never come back. Bonding is basically insurance you will be back. It is the law here to be bonded in order to take money up front. It also gives you more credibility. There are big jobs like gov't. contracts where the contractor not only has to be bonded but they have to give a deposit, to prove they are financially stable enough to complete the job, in order to even bid the job.

https://advisorsmith.com/contractors/surety-bonds-for-contractors/

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I have a buddy that has family in North Carolina, and Maine. He says you never realize how regulated we are in Canada, until you work down there. He said his first question was always" You can do that?"

cuttin edge said:

I have a buddy that has family in North Carolina, and Maine. He says you never realize how regulated we are in Canada, until you work down there. He said his first question was always" You can do that?"

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It ain't that regulated everywhere...trust me. No bid bonds, or contractor licensing is required by law in Ontario, which is where I and 40% of my fellow Canadians live. Quebec and BC are however ridiculously regulated. ICI and municipal work is different, but it always depends on who's tendering the project.

NepeanGC said:

It ain't that regulated everywhere...trust me. No bid bonds, or contractor licensing is required by law in Ontario, which is where I and 40% of my fellow Canadians live. Quebec and BC are however ridiculously regulated. ICI and municipal work is different, but it always depends on who's tendering the project.

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Now I can't do a thing on my own property here in New Brunswick without a permit. Pools, fences, new step. The actual planning comission here in the city is crazy. Alot of developers have turned away from here because of the regs. I live in a subdivision on a corner lot. This was once a parish, that was absorbed by the city. I have about 450 feet of ditch with 2 driveways. It is a pain to mow , and I would like to pipe it. I can't do it without permits. They want 18 inch concrete pipe, and I have to install 4 manholes. Because of the grade, an 18 inch won't work under my paved driveway. If I build a garage, I can't pour a slab, it has to be a full 8 foot frostwall, or an engineered pad, complete with soil samples, and compaction testing.

Yes many commercial jobs require bonding here. I do residential customers 99% of time. Land clearing, house pads, lakes, ponds and roads ect.

Here any contractor large or small is supposed to be bonded if they take payment up front. Having the customer supply materials can be a different situation. They want you to spread a couple loads of topsoil but they supply the topsoil. I knew someone who wanted siding put on their house. Guy came and looked said he could do it and gave a price. She said OK and he wanted to paid up front for everything. He bought materials and came to the job but left after a couple hours. He complaining that the stucco on the old house was like concrete and the nails for the siding wouldn't go in and just bent. He said he can't do the job. She asked for a bunch of money back and he ignored her. She filed a claim and I delivered it the posing as someone who wanted a garage shingled. He paid her back $750. I had a friend help me put the siding on and we used concrete nails. Not the best but the material was there and worked OK in the end. Sad part was I never got paid. Home renovation has the most scam "supposed" contractors taking advantage of people, especially seniors.

Welder Dave said:

Here any contractor large or small is supposed to be bonded if they take payment up front. Having the customer supply materials can be a different situation. They want you to spread a couple loads of topsoil but they supply the topsoil. I knew someone who wanted siding put on their house. Guy came and looked said he could do it and gave a price. She said OK and he wanted to paid up front for everything. He bought materials and came to the job but left after a couple hours. He complaining that the stucco on the old house was like concrete and the nails for the siding wouldn't go in and just bent. He said he can't do the job. She asked for a bunch of money back and he ignored her. She filed a claim and I delivered it the posing as someone who wanted a garage shingled. He paid her back $750. I had a friend help me put the siding on and we used concrete nails. Not the best but the material was there and worked OK in the end. Sad part was I never got paid. Home renovation has the most scam "supposed" contractors taking advantage of people, especially seniors.

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Guy I worked with went to an older woman's home, she wanted her field cut. No hay, just mowed. Took pretty well 8 hours with his 75hp tractor and mower. He went to the house, no answer. A week later she called him wanting to know if he wanted his money? He went to the house, and she gave him an envelope. He walked to his car and opened it. Inside was a cheque for ten dollars. He went back and told her that was funny. She said why? He said I was 8 hours. Ten dollars wouldn't pay for the fuel to walk the tractor from my place to yours. She said that's all I am giving you, that's all it's worth. He said he would have even taken a hundred. She said I'm on a pension. This was a woman who's husband had money. 11 years and he never cashed the cheque.