Handyman price - just wanted to cross reference

stocks1j

Hi All, 
I have recently started a handyman business following from the pandemic and being short on money, I have had my first client get in touch with a number of jobs for which I have drawn up a price list below. I just wanted to make sure that first I wasn't over pricing / under pricing myself and my services as I am not in the business of ripping anyone off. I actually really enjoy DIY type works so its almost a hobby for me anyway! But of course, I still need to pay the mortgage: 
- Bespoke build of recycling storage with hinged lid (L: 1.45m W: 1m 600mm) £80
- Sand and paint decking (5m x 5m) £160
- Fit new fence post and reinforce existing fence £80 
- Install new curtain polls x 2 & shelves x 2 plus filling old holes etc £40
- Strip wallpaper around staircase & hall & paint £160
- build pull out bed & install £200
Please note. the costs above are for labour only, based on £20 p/h, if it goes over that I will still charge the set amount. I have not included any materials & will be providing full receipts to the customer for these!  
Where required to collect & deliver materials I will be adding a £10 charge to cover fuel etc. 
Any comments / constructive criticism welcome!

grumbler

Where do you live? IMO £20 is too high for the majority of UK.

Building a bed? IMO for a decent bed it's not an easy DIY job and requires certain skills.

Painting decking is a bad idea IMO.

Reinforce existing fence - too vague to estimate.

Stripping wallpaper can be harder than you think and you can find a lot of surprises under it. In old houses wallpaper can be the only thing holding plaster in place.

stocks1j

grumbler said:

Where do you live? IMO £20 is too high for the majority of UK.

Building a bed? IMO for a decent bed it's not an easy DIY job and requires certain skills.

Painting decking is a bad idea IMO.

Reinforce existing fence - too vague to estimate.

Stripping wallpaper can be harder than you think and you can find a lot of surprises under it. In old houses wallpaper can be the only thing holding plaster in place.

Hi Grumbler, to give some background I grew up around DIY, dad was a builder/carpenter and I was always helping out. 
Went on to work in the construction industry myself eventually up to a Construction Manager for large industrial & rail projects for the last 14 years so doing the works isn't an issue.
I live in Kent, I was looking online & prices seem to vary from £20 - £40 for DIY handyman type jobs, I guess I could always drop to £15 p/h if that seems more reasonable.
My question was in relation to my actual prices. Didn't want to give war and peace on the ins and outs of the fence etc but its simply a new post, and replacement of the horizontal featheredge with some thicker board to withstand a few football thuds. 
PS
Why is painting decking a bad idea in your opinion out of interest?

grumbler

Paint looks nice, but not for long. It wears, peels etc.  - especially on
wet decking. 

TELLIT01

I don't think £20 per hour is excessive.

FreeBear

For £160, you can come and strip & paint my stairwell as long as you fill any holes. Some of the plaster might be a bit dodgy, so that will need fixing too (in lime, none of this modern pink stuff)...

sk2402005

A typical day rate for a handyman round our way (south oxfordshire) starts at about £150 a day.

cattie

£20 per hour certainly isn't too expensive & none of your quoted charges look expensive to me. I think if I were you, I'd get my business underway with these 'special offer' prices, but then look to setting your price at £25 hour as business builds up.  But perhaps for larger/or a mixture of jobs people might want, consider doing a day rate.

I recently paid £200 per day to have various jobs around the house done. (In a suburb of Greater London)

ka7e

Way underpriced on hall/landing job! 1-2 days stripping paper and prepping walls, 1-2 days painting 2 or 3 coats. I assume this doesn't include ceilings or any wood work? I think £20 per hour in Kent is very reasonable and a reliable handyman is always in demand.

stocks1j

cattie said:

£20 per hour certainly isn't too expensive & none of your quoted charges look expensive to me. I think if I were you, I'd get my business underway with these 'special offer' prices, but then look to setting your price at £25 hour as business builds up.  But perhaps for larger/or a mixture of jobs people might want, consider doing a day rate.

I recently paid £200 per day to have various jobs around the house done. (In a suburb of Greater London)

Thank you for the advice, I think this is a good idea

stocks1j

FreeBear said:

For £160, you can come and strip & paint my stairwell as long as you fill any holes. Some of the plaster might be a bit dodgy, so that will need fixing too (in lime, none of this modern pink stuff)...

hmmm...this is a very fair comment, I will make them aware that this may be the case under the paper (looks like it has been there a while) - maybe I will increase the price on this part of the job. Will also inform them that the price may also increase significantly and have a friend on standby to plaster