Contractor labor costs

[Lester Walkowicz]

Hello everyone, 

I wanted to know if $30/hour in North Jersey is a reasonable or too high to pay a contractor for labor.  He is someone I know that is very good.  He just started to be self employed and has no real experience in pricing out a rehab, so we though of an hourly pay for labor.

He would do pretty much most of the interior work, from flooring and tile installation, cabinet installation and trim.

Thanks in advance for feedback.

[Anthony Portella]

Tough situation. As far as labor cost goes. I am a Contractor with my own business. $30/hr is cheap labor if you are talking about a properly scheduled out Scope of work. With time lines attached to certain milestones within the scope of work. 

The reason I say this is because a hard quote based on hourly work is mostly calculated. Loss is mitigated by small percentages for incidentals. With all this math already calculated.  

$30/hr with a loosely bonded time frame means how fast someone thinks they are working and how fast you think they are working are directly connected. Where as with an estimate the price does not fluctuate with the temperature,weather,health of the Contractor.  House renovation is an evolving process. The hrs "put in"sometimes are not directly tied to production.( I.e. Designing, changing ideas, most importantly problem solving). A lot of time spent in home Remodeling is thinking, problem solving, seeing how multiple factors all marry together. 

A suggestion would be, use that $30/hr as a starting point. Both of you walk the property with a Statement of Work checklist, discussing time expectations  on items.  This allows both of you to have a good idea of exactly what needs to be done. Agree in real time regarding realistic time frames on each item. This then allows him to add those transparent numbers up to a total estimated hours, ( giving him the practice and confidence in his estimating ability)that can then be multiplied by the $30/hr add  in 10% For unforeseen issues and you then have a transparent number that you can both start to work from. 

Best Friend, Cousin, Husband, it never hurts to have transparency. It takes out the uncomfortable feeling of working with friends and family