An experienced maintenance staff will know how long it usually takes to perform a particular type of work and will charge accordingly. While some maintenance workers choose to charge a fixed hourly rate, others charge a variable hourly rate depending on the job. There is no right or wrong way for a maintenance person to charge for their service; just make sure you understand how your maintenance staff charges for the work they must have done before they start working. However, you still have to answer the question: “How much should you charge? And this is where you'll encounter the same challenge that every new service provider faces.
Most maintenance personnel will offer free quotes or cost estimates and will charge an hourly rate for non-standard work. Most maintenance workers will charge a profit margin of between 20 and 50% when they purchase the materials themselves. Recently, a lady asked me to go paint three rooms in her house, but I turned her down simply because I didn't know what to charge other than my normal hourly rate. A maintenance staff may charge a minimum fee for their services to ensure that they cover your company's operating expenses each time you accept a job.
Your maintenance staff is likely to charge a fixed fee for this service, as they can easily estimate how long it will take. Many maintenance workers travel with the typical nuts, bolts, nails and screws needed for minor home repairs, and include the minimum cost of these small parts in their hourly rate. A maintenance staff can charge an hourly rate regardless of the type of project, or they can charge variable hourly rates depending on how dirty, dangerous, or complex the project is. A maintenance staff can quote for jobs by the hour for a minimum charge or offer jobs with a fixed rate for labor and materials.
Some operators charge a flat rate for any distance beyond the reach of maintenance personnel, while others charge per mile. However, local maintenance personnel, who charge a variable hourly rate, will provide a fixed budget regardless of how long it takes to complete the repair. As you probably know, some sites, such as Craigslist, are popular with more budget-oriented customers and the maintenance personnel who serve them. Decide which radio you are willing to serve and whether or not you will charge more for jobs located outside your service area.
While some operators install a new lamp, most only install a new lamp in the same place as the old lamp. I was there for 30 minutes, charged the customer for an hour, but then she proceeded to ask: “Why do you charge me an hour when you were here for only 30 minutes?.
