To charge or not to charge...

Now he's looking to plant grass and he wants me to come out and level his yard with my disc and drag and then spread grass seed for him. My problem is I run a small lawncare business on the side and don't have a lot of time for his stuff. What time I have is valuable to me and he is tighter than the bark on a tree with his money. He lives about 15 miles away and I have to trailer the 8N there. He doesn't realize the time it takes to load a tractor and secure it, or the anount of upkeep there is on a 50 year old tractor that is used frequently.

I guess I'm wondering, should I charge him for the work or not? If so, how much? If not, how do I let him down easy? We are co-workers and good friends so I wouldn't want to strain our relationship, but I also don't want to get taken advantage of just because he won't get his own equipment. Thanks for your help...

Has your "friend" ever offered you a dime to cover your expenses. Why do I think he hasn't. He sounds not so much like a friend as a aquaintance who will use familarity to guilt someone into working for free. I'd give him your normal price list for what it would cost for any of your customers, then knock off a few bucks for "friendship" and watch him become an ex-friend.

And you'll be better off for it, that way you quit wasting your time on a mooch. That's my opinion, there are as many takers out there as there are givers.

Good luck.

Mike

When I posted my first response I hadn't read through all the responses, the one most interesting is yours about the fact he could spend 4 grand on a posh garden tractor, that right there tells you he has no intention of ever covering your costs, just wants you to get things ready so he can use his garden tractor. If it a good garden tractor he can obtain implements for it and do the job himself.

I still see him as a user more than a friend, as I said, work up a price as if he was a regular customer, knock a few bucks off (already know what this is going to be and DO NOT exceed that number) for friendship. And I still think you'll see an ex-friend. You don't have to like everything in life, that's just the way it is.

Again, good luck, you've already been a lot better friend than he has.

Mike

Sounds like a one way street. I think you feel this way too, hence the question.

He may think this is no sweat for you since you do it all the time. Problem is: it'd be for free.

good luck!

I'm not looking to rake him over the coals, I'd just like to get a little something for my trouble and to make it worth my while. It's pretty much he assigns a task and I do it because he can't. He's not very mechanically inclined and doesn't know how or why things work.

I've tried to get him to buy a tractor but he says $2000 is too much for an 8N with a blade and bush hog. I'd let him borrow my disc for as long as he needed it if he had his own tractor. He would rather spend $4000 on a new lawn tractor and then buy implements for that. Just a little insight into what I'm dealing with...

My wife rented a trailer to a professional sheepshearer, I always paid cash money for him to sheer my flock, he then paid the "rent" to the rental agent (wife) but he always found time to shear my flock when the wool was dry. (and in the rainy pacific north-WETT, thats sometimes hard to do)..... ..Dell

CONFUSING? GOOD? Hope this helps. :)

I suppose my advice is worth what you are paying for it.:-). Here is what I would do. Since you say you are coworkers and friends, there is already a relationship there. It depends on how much you value this relationship.

If he were as good a friend to you as you are to him, he would naturally offer you some kind of payment. It is up to you whether or not to take it. On the other hand, if he expects you to continue using you tractor and equipment for nothing, he is definitely taking advantage of your kindness as a friend.

I have a policy of sorts on this issue. When it comes to friends, relatives, and neighbors, I don’t charge or expect any payment. On the other hand, as someone else has said, if they offer, I accept. The only problem with this policy is that when you accept what they offer they think you are indebted to them from now on. HTH. Rick H. Ga.

Soundguy

True friends don't charge each other for favors! Equipment, on the other hand, doesn't understand friendship. Maintainance expenses really do require cash...along with the original purchase. For that reason, I never accept payment for my help. BUT!!! I never refuse a donation to the tractor fund.

George Willer

friends can be great!
on the other hand, SOME friends like my tractors and pick up more then me....
hhmmmmm mm
dale b