How Much Does Lawn Care Usually Cost

What Should I Beware Of

One thing to be mindful of when comparing lawn-mowing prices is whether the quote youre getting seems reasonable.

Also, keep in mind that a lawn-mowing professional or company might try to bump up the price simply because you live in a fancy neighborhood. Why? Because they think you can afford it, Farley says.

Regardless of what sort of neighborhood you live in, there are some things you can do to avoid lawn care rip-offs. The Better Business Bureau, Better Homes & Gardens, HomeAdvisor and the National Association of Lawn Care Professionals offer these tips:

Lawn Aeration Cost Breakdown

Lawn aeration costs fluctuate from one company to another, as companies have different overheads and operation expenses. The best time to install aeration is in late fall and early winter. This is referred to as a contractors down season, and you can expect significant discounts.

Always add around 7 to 15% to calculated aeration costs if you need to pay for unexpected extras. Aerating a lawn is a strenuous task and can cause a sore back. Hiring a landscaping company to do it for you is worth the cost, and they are also clued up on where to find the best prices for lawn aeration.

Does Your Company Use A Gas Mower

Fluctuating gas prices will have an affect on the cost of your lawn mowing and trimming services if your service provider uses a gas mower. Some companies will reflect those prices in their cost per service each time, while other companies may update their pricing yearly. For example, a company may increase prices by $5-$10 after a year if gas prices have continued to climb, but they won’t change their prices on a week-by-week basis.

Some companies use only electrical mowers and trimmers, so fluctuations in gas prices don’t affect them. Their equipment runs from pre-charged batteries or through extension cords plugged into your electrical outlets.

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Landscaper Lawn Mowing Costs

If you hire a lawncare company, the average cost to mow a lawn is 1.2 cents per square foot, which works out to $45 to $90 for lots of the most common sizes. But for very small areas, the cost per square foot is much higher. Most companies have a minimum charge of at least $40.

Youll probably pay about half that price if you hire a neighbor kid who is looking to earn spending money. But dependability of someone who doesnt do it for a living might vary.

When using a landscaping company to handle your weekly or bi-weekly yard maintenance you can expect them to first clean up branches and debris that may have fallen onto the grass. Then theyll cut the lawn at the correct height for the season. After the yard it cut, theyll use a string trimmer to cut in your edges around the sidewalks, driveway, and planters. Finally, theyll finish up with using a blower to remove all debris from the hard surfaces. This is commonly referred to as a Cut, Trim and Blow by landscapers and yard maintenance crews.

Factors That Influence The Cost Of A Lawn Care Service

Your final price of lawn maintenance services relies on several factors. A customer service representative should cover these factors during the quote process to provide you with an accurate estimate. We have listed some of the most crucial factors for you below.

• Lawn size: One of the most significant factors is your lawns size. The larger the lawn, the higher the price.
• Obstacles: Features like trees, fences, rocks, planters, and other obstacles that workers will have to work around will add to your cost.
• Steep hills: If your lawn is hilly or features some steep hills, you should expect some extra cost added to your monthly price due to the challenges they present.
• Labor: Depending on the number of services you require or the size of your lawn, a lawn care company may have to add multiple technicians to your job. The number of workers and hours worked will influence your cost.
• Travel time: In a similar vein to the labor required for the job, if your home is further out for the lawn care service than other homes, then additional charges may be added to your monthly fee.

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Is Lawn Service Worth It

Having a professional provide lawn services to you means that they will utilize their professional knowledge, which they have accumulated over years of experience. They will also have access to professional tools and equipment that would take you quite a bit of time to get your hands on and grasp an understanding of if you were doing it yourself.Lawn care professionals hold extensive knowledge about the problems a lawn may run into, be it pests, diseases, fungi, or soil health. This means they will be able to diagnose the issues with your lawn and put a treatment regimen in place fairly quickly to remedy the situation.Looking after your lawn on your own is a demanding task that eats up a substantial portion of your free time, especially if unfavorable weather conditions line up with your schedule. Having professionals do this job for you means you will have more free time and wont be swamped constantly with tasks relating to lawn service.

Determining What You Want To Pay For Lawn Care

We know that everyone has a different level of expectation for their lawn. Some people just want to get rid of the bulk of the weeds fast and arent really thinking about long-term solutions. Instead theyre focused more on treating major symptoms as they arise. Folks with this mentality could be the same ones shopping for the cheapest lawn care price. The problem with this way of thinking is that by failing to ever get to the root of the issue, the same symptoms return again and again.

Other homeowners may care about a higher level lawn maintenance program and they want most issues taken care of, but theyre also on a tight budget. These folks are the ones who may want a higher quality company and service but may take on their basic level package, getting most of the big issues addressed and possibly choosing to add on services later.

Finally, some want the best and they dont want to compromise results. They know that paying for value often means they have less headaches and will get the lawn theyve been dreaming of a lot faster. They also know they are paying for a long-term solution . Theyre willing to pay a higherlawn care cost per year because they know their investment will pay off with the results they really want.

Sometimes the homeowner that invests more at the onset saves more in the long run as they prevent costly problems down the line.

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A Basic Overview Of How Much It Costs To Get Your Lawn Mowed

First, lawn mowing prices vary according to region. For example, if you live in New Jersey, you may find youre paying less than those living in Texas. Second, a decent price guide for lawn mowing takes factors such as size and number into account. If you dont have a front yard, you may find youll pay between $48 and $211. Lawn mowing costs per acre or square foot vary depending on many factors.

Lets say youre booking a lawn care service in the summer. You should mow your lawn every two weeks to maintain an even look. That means your lawn mowing costs will be around $360 per month. When autumn and winter roll around, your grass wont grow quite so rapidly. You can reduce your mowing frequency to every four to five weeks. For the sake of simplicity, lets say that means youre paying around $180 per month. Thats great news, right? But what if your lawn is slightly bigger than average? And, how do you calculate the costs of hiring someone to cut your grass accordingly?

What Influences The Prices For Lawn Mowing Jobs

Time, Place, Accessibility and Size

The typical lawn mowing cost is affected by several factors, some of which weve previously mentioned in the last section. Supply and demand tend to shift, depending on where you live.

The size and accessibility of your lawn can play a part in increasing prices due to the difficulty of the job, requiring different mower sizes to be utilized.

The time of the year can also be a big factor in whether you can take advantage of seasonal discount prices when demand might be slowing down.

Equipment Models

Lawn mowing services may also charge you depending on the equipment they use. Electric lawn mower variants may not cost that much but make use of your electric line to charge up instead.

Gas lawn mower models will have to consider gas usage and possible maintenance costs, raising the price but providing a more effective clean sweep of the lawn.

If your lawn only needs the barest of maintenance, they may opt to use a lawn cutter instead, which might lead them to charge you less for equipment use.

Cordless mowers allow a more quiet and compact way of trimming grass, although the limited battery life can be a barrier to a thorough cutting.

Ride on mower prices are the highest-prices of lawn cutter models, reaching up to $6,999 per unit, but arguably give the most convenient services provided your lawn has reasonable ease of access.

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Structural And Legal Expenses

Business License You dont need any type of permit specifically for a lawn care business, but you do need to get a business license for your company and a name. An LLC typically costs around $100. In some states, you can file a fictitious name fee, also known as a DBA, which costs around $50. Other expenses might include legal fees for setting up a corporation.

Taxes You also have to register with the federal government and IRS to get a number for withholding taxes.

In addition, most states require you to collect and pay sales tax on services completed. Check with your states department of taxation for the requirements of your state.

Insurance You also have to get insurance if you plan to hire staff. Workers compensation insurance is mandatory. Workersâ compensation rates range from $0.50 â $2.00 per $100 of covered payroll.

You also have to pay any company or employee insurance premiums, which are usually based on estimated income. Youll also have to open a business bank account for your company to process checks and make cash deposits so that you can pay your bills with business checks. The alternative is accepting cash only, which will severely limit your customers and make it impossible to offer expensive services.

It may sound complex, but it is possible to complete these procedures in as little as one day. With all of the resources available online, its easier than ever to get started.

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Save Money With Lawn Care

What are the true costs to purchase and maintain equipment? On averageat a minimum, a riding lawn mow mowing is $1,500, a blower, $150, and a string trimmer, $100the total cost adds up, furthermore, these costs do not include regular maintenance, repairs, and/or gas. With the initial costs at $1750, mowing an average of 30 times per year will cost the homeowner $36 per cut. . In light of these estimates and those in the previous paragraph, are you really saving any money?

In a recent study, researchers have found that most people can spend 1248 days of his/her performing lawn care. It does not matter if you are mowing grass in Ames, Iowa or cutting the lawn in Story City, Iowa, that is a large amount of time.

Do something else

What else could you be doing? If you spend roughly 3.5 years mowing the lawn, thats time you could be spending with family, hiking, shopping, or whatever you wanted. That time equates to over 29,952 hours it takes the average person over 10,000 hours to master a skill or trade. That is three trades that can be mastered instead of mowing the lawn. Who wouldnt want to be able to play Beethovens Symphony #5 on the piano? Additionally, how much money is your time worth? Taking an average salary of $50k that equates to a hefty $175k. What extra could you do with that money?

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Lawn Replacement Or Restoration Costs

Sod costs between $120 and $400 per pallet. Youll pay between $2,500 and $6,620 to fully replace or restore an average-sized lawn thats about one-fifth of an acre.

To seed a lawn costs between $410 and $1,510. It takes between one and two years for a seeded lawn to fully grow in. During this time, its susceptible to pests and damage. Sod is a much quicker way to get the look and feel you want.

How To Save Money On Lawn Care Services

If you love the idea of professional lawn care but not the added household expense, think strategically about signing on for the long term with a lawn company. “Lawn mowing is a competitive business,” says one lawn care pro. As a result, many companies will negotiate discounts and deals based on frequency of visits.

If you are planning to become a regular customer, ask about package rates and bundling lawn mowing and trimming with other lawn care services such as landscaping and fertilization. Lawn care pros benefit by providing you with multiple services, your pocketbook benefits from the discounts, and your lawn benefits from the holistic care.

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Cost To Maintain A Lawn

These estimates are for BASIC work performed in serviceable conditions by qualified trade professionals using MID GRADE materials. Work not mentioned on this page and/or work using master craftsman, premium materials and project supervision will result in HIGHER COSTS! Explore the full range of lawn care service new installation labor options and material prices here.

These estimates are NOT substitutes for written quotes from trade professionals. Homewyse strongly recommends that you contact reputable professionals for accurate assessments of work required and costs for your project â before making any decisions or commitments.

The cost estimate includes:

• Costs for local material / equipment delivery to and service provider transportation to and from the job site.
• Costs to prepare the worksite for Lawn Maintenance, including costs to protect existing structure, finishes, materials and components.
• Labor setup time, mobilization time and minimum hourly charges that are commonly included for small Lawn Maintenance jobs.

The cost estimate does NOT include:

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Length And Type Of Grass

The length and type of grass is also a consideration. Of course most types grass can be cut, but if it is usually difficult and might take more time costs increase. Different types of grass grow at different rates, with summer seasons type of grass growing at a higher rate. Weather such as temperature, and rain also affect the growth of grass. One helpful rule is not cutting more than one-third of the length of the grass from just one cutting.

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Best Ways To Save Money On Lawn Care

Given the relatively high cost of all-inclusive lawn care, many homeowners will look for ways to save money in the process of treating their lawns.

The below tips will help you keep costs down and lawn health at a maximum:

• Shop around: Get quotes from a few professionals, but be sure to compare based on value and not cost alone

• Request a contract: Having a detailed contract will help keep costs under control

• Look for deals: Many professionals offer discounts on spring services for new customers or for certain holidays

• Carry out maintenance: Once you fix any existing lawn issues, carry out maintenance to prevent the problems from coming back

Exploring Lawn Care Prices

As you aim to determine what youre willing to pay and what youre getting for your investment, here are some questions you can ask the best lawn care companies in Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton, PA. This will help you determine what youre getting for your investment.

• What is included in your programs?

• How many visits are included?

• More importantly, what specific treatments are included each time you visit my property?

• What products are included in this lawn care price? Are they high-quality professional grade products or just the standard materials?

• Are your technicians licensed and trained on an on-going basis?

• How will you handle a problem?

• Do you provide a quote based on an online image or do you come out and inspect my property?

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Seasonal Costs For Lawn Maintenance

Of course changing seasons can bring different requirements for your lawn care regime ans thus impact on lawn are coat.

Cleanups

Clean ups in spring and fall yard tend to follow the same procedure. Both of these services snip off and haul away dead and dying branches with fallen leaves. They should trim back dead flowers and shrubs and bald spots in the lawns to make them healthy again. In terms of adding to your lawn care cost they usually run $100 to $250, but they are worth it because professionals can tell that different plants require different care during different times of the year.

Winterizing

In the winter, a lawn is just like a child who needs to take a long deep sleep. While plants that are just flowers in the summer go asleep in winter, plants that are cool in the summer need some nutrition from fall to get better. They will require a different type of fertiliser- one with higher percentage of phosphorus and potassium than can increase their hardiness in the cold weather. It is vital that you remove any debris like fallen branches, together with anything that would kill grass. In terms of lawn care cost for winterizing your lawn it can be in the range of between $80 and $380, depending on the certain conditions you require. If you require winterizing for your sprinkler system, you are more than likely to need an extra $50 to $110.