Major Landscaping Project

[miltthemower]

I have a new client. This client wants a flower bed installed, a percentage of her land cleared and graded, sod installed, and does not want to pay for none of the materials. This is my first big job. I do not want to lose the job. How should I go about it? What should I stipulate in the contract?

Lawn care business tips

when you say Originally Posted by [b Quote[/b] ]and does not want to pay for none of the materials. You mean that you have to supply them...of course covered in the total contract price? Just to clarify. Now are you having a problem pricing it? Or are you not sure what steps to take on getting to the finished product? Have you performed all of these jobs in the past? Will any be your first time? If it is just the contract you are having problems with, I am sure we can all put in some advice. Since it is a new client and a larger job, I would make sure to get a deposit. 25% is fair upon signing of the contract, 50% 2 weeks in and the remaining 25% upon completion. That way you have the funds to carry you through the job and not have to worry about credit, or whether the client will pay at the end.

Please explain what you mean by "the customer does not want to pay for none of these materials"

Does the customer not want to pay the tax on the material, just a service price?

[NickN]

Dittos on the deposit,but I'd require 1/2 up front.
Make up some Change Work Orders as well.If the customer wants something different, half way through the job,have them sign the change order as well.This way there's no "he said/she said" going on.
As far as the contract,I'd have one for the landscaping, and one for the sod/land clearing/grading.

[miltthemower]

Thanks for the responses guys. I have found a contract on this site that was very helpful.

Client does not want to pay for any of the items but will reimburse me when job is completed. I do not feel comfortable with that, but the contract protects me.

I will request 50% deposit the other 50% when job is completed.

[NickN]

"I do not feel comfortable with that"

Nor do I.Don't fall for that one.Ask them if a homebuilder will build their home and then let them pay at the end of completion.Of course not,and neither should you.Be very careful with this one.

I personally feel that this is a red flag. Do not do the project. That is my opinion. I have been burnt too many times in the past with landscaping installation projects, and my gut feeling is that you are going to get burnt on this one

[Steve]

Hi miltthemower,

Keep us posted on how this goes. I think when we are new at something and we get our first big job, sometimes we do things we would not normally do, and then we open ourselves up to be burned by these decisions. I am very happy to see many veteran business owners were able to point out the red flags to you.