Pricing past and present

[spruce]

Might seem a bit weird but I’ve never asked another window cleaner when I’ve spoke to him what he charges. Seemed like an unwritten rule. I have reactions of shock that I charge too much & a that’s quite cheap!! I think it boils down to what the customer is willing to pay/what they think it’s worth. But like I said in an earlier comment I don’t see many windies where I work so I presume competition is minimal. My old gaffer works in & around the area I work & I remember him saying he’s happy to earn £80-£100 a day but not a clue how many houses he does to do it. When I worked for him over 15 years ago his prices weren’t great, I presume they’ve gone up over time tho.

We have a general idea of what the opposition are charging but not customer for customer obviously.

We now do 4 executive houses over 3 floors on the side of a hill in a street of 7. We have done them for around 10 years. We charge £15 for these. A local windie moves into the house on the end of the street, a house we once cleaned when a different tenant was in there.

This windie worked with another chap. During the previous few years we lost a bit of work to him due to pricing - he also threw in a garage door clean to sweeten the clean.

Within a couple of months he sells up his window cleaning business lock stock and barrel to the local cowboys and he goes back into a 'proper job.'

Anyway a few weeks later he sees us working in the street a few blocks away and asks if I would clean his windows when I clean everyone elses I do in the street. I asked why he had given up and he told me he couldn't earn a living from window cleaning. He asked my price and when I told him it was £15 he was shocked. "I quoted £8 to them all and included the garage door clean in the price. That's a fair price.'

I told him I knew that. I think we cleaned the house twice and we struggled to get the second payment from him. We did catch his wife and she went to the atm and drew money for us. We then got a rude text cancelling our over priced window clean service.

Customers have since forgotton who he was but they haven't forgotten the £8 price he quoted.

 

[Part Timer]

The biggest problem with getting decent prices very much depends on how many windies are in your area. Ever since I was a child I can't ever remember not having a window cleaner. All of them, even today are traditional and cheap, fairly certain they declare they're working for 18 hours and getting benefits as well. Not knocking the lads that do it as they don't know any different.

 

[Dave B]

I won't get out my van for less than my £12 minimum nowadays.

Picked up an old dear yesterday for £12 (2 up 2 down front and back) and thought it didn't go down too well however next door phoned me this morning so I have the 2 of them.

So 8 windows and 2 doors for 24 quid lol.

Don't be scared to price well.

 

[dazmond]

im still shocked when i find out how little some of the old trad cleaners still charge for big houses.....i think some older window cleaners/customers lose track of how everything goes up in price and years go by so fast in a blur its easy to think 1999 prices are still relevant today.....

a while back i had a phone call off a woman who said her last window cleaner just stopped coming so i went to price up and said id clean it for £65 8weekly...she was fine with it......it takes me just over an hour to clean wfp...

i know the window cleaner who stopped going so i asked him why?as its a nice big house with a stunning view....he said he couldnt make it pay!his dad had given him half his round and this particular job was priced at £25!and took him 2 hours on ladders(lots of leaded windows) so it worked out at £12-50 an hour!?

of course i told him how much i charge her and he didnt believe me!?

i feel sorry for him really as he s inherited his dads very underpriced round.....his dad had a lot of work in this area for many years and over the last 15 years i must have picked up at least 150 jobs off him, if not more.....his dads still doing a bit at 75 but he doesnt do a good job and hasnt done for many years so i invariably pick up some at much better prices......in fact he has helped me out a lot without even realising it!its been really good for my round in the area....im a lucky guy really as its nice area to window clean in.....

 

[ks789]

No wonder some of them give up and say it wasnt worth it. Thats the trouble with charging too little. If I could only get £8 for a house I'd say sod it and go get a factory job. Mind you, i can sympathize as there may not be a factory job possibility in a lot of these areas. its a tricky old struggle sometimes.

No wonder some of them give up and say it wasnt worth it. Thats the trouble with charging too little. If I could only get £8 for a house I'd say sod it and go get a factory job. Mind you, i can sympathize as there may not be a factory job possibility in a lot of these areas. its a tricky old struggle sometimes.

oh yeh, to answer the question, round suffolk the price seems to have roughly doubled since around 2003. Dont know what it was between then and 2015 as was doing other jobs. So say £6 to £8 for 2/3 bed semi to £12 to £15 now.

 

[Korev]

1969 my mother paid 15 shillings (75p) a fortnight to get our mid terrace 3 windows front 3 back plus 1 door half glazed cleaned.
Inflation calculator says should now be £12 so nothing has changed for many window cleaners.

However the rest of the workforce have shared in the growing economy a low paid 13 quid a week job in 1969 should now pay £210 adjusted for inflation. But the minimum wage is now £328.40. Plus a pension contribution. Substantially more than inflation.

So if window cleaners had shared in the nations increasing wealth 6.5 windows now should pay £19 or £3 per window. That's how far behind many window cleaners have got.

As for the last 10 years a £20 job should now be £26 just to keep place with inflation.

 

[dazmond]

1969 my mother paid 15 shillings (75p) a fortnight to get our mid terrace 3 windows front 3 back plus 1 door half glazed cleaned.
Inflation calculator says should now be £12 so nothing has changed for many window cleaners.

However the rest of the workforce have shared in the growing economy a low paid 13 quid a week job in 1969 should now pay £210 adjusted for inflation. But the minimum wage is now £328.40. Plus a pension contribution. Substantially more than inflation.

So if window cleaners had shared in the nations increasing wealth 6.5 windows now should pay £19 or £3 per window. That's how far behind many window cleaners have got.

As for the last 10 years a £20 job should now be £26 just to keep place with inflation.

its not that accurate though is it mate?too many other factors to consider too,how compact the work is and how fast you can clean it!

i dont know about you but ive never had it so good as a window cleaner in 26 years of being in this job!

NO evening collecting

NO risking my neck up a ladder

£40+ an hour EVERY hour "on the glass"

this job is so easy these days and a lot better paid for fewer hours and no evening collecting,ok expenses are much higher and more admin work to do but im still much better off than years ago...

i remember picking up a few bungalows in 1993 at £1-20(the last window cleaner charged 70p!)??I dont miss them days........

 

[Korev]

its not that accurate though is it mate?too many other factors to consider too,how compact the work is and how fast you can clean it!

i dont know about you but ive never had it so good as a window cleaner in 26 years of being in this job!

NO evening collecting

NO risking my neck up a ladder

£40+ an hour EVERY hour "on the glass"

this job is so easy these days and a lot better paid for fewer hours and no evening collecting,ok expenses are much higher and more admin work to do but im still much better off than years ago...

i remember picking up a few bungalows in 1993 at £1-20(the last window cleaner charged 70p!)??I dont miss them days........

Yes all that is true but the guy doing mothers windows in 1969 earned more in real terms than many here now.

He would have been earning £80 week that's £1280 in todays money, with very little outlay.

It did not do him much good as he did time for stealing from customers.

I started  in 1986 and can relate to your £1.20 prices I started on £1.50 previous guy same 75p. Soon realised I had to charge more.

Evening collecting also a thing of the past, what a pain. Friday night always late down to the pub.

Yes your right its a better job these days and provides a fairly good living. Happy days all round.

 

[Martyn]

Some really good well thought out replies, I think the jump to WFP is the big step forward in terms of earning capability, I did that eighteen years ago.

 

[Potta81]

Some really good well thought out replies, I think the jump to WFP is the big step forward in terms of earning capability, I did that eighteen years ago.

Must been even more difficult going wfp back then as I presume most were still trad, fair play. Wfp seems to be coming the norm now. I’m Should be normal by the summer lol

 

[dazmond]

Yes all that is true but the guy doing mothers windows in 1969 earned more in real terms than many here now.

He would have been earning £80 week that's £1280 in todays money, with very little outlay.

It did not do him much good as he did time for stealing from customers.

I started  in 1986 and can relate to your £1.20 prices I started on £1.50 previous guy same 75p. Soon realised I had to charge more.

Evening collecting also a thing of the past, what a pain. Friday night always late down to the pub.

Yes your right its a better job these days and provides a fairly good living. Happy days all round.

i bet he wasnt as materially better off than us window cleaners today...i dont believe that for a second!we ve got it easy these days!it used to be a pretty hard slog on the ladders(most were wooden too!heavy as F**** to lug around!)?

 

[mike007]

i would say most of my very compact estate work(8 days work)is quite cheap but like spruce says i have the monopoly..... my prices range from £8-£15...front onlys can be as little as £4!the thing is the minimum i make per hour on this work is £40 an hour....most  jobs are 4 weekly and i use the best,lightest equipment on the market and an electric reel and hot water.....this is my worst paying work these days but ive been doing them for many years,some have been with me from day one(1993!),im slowly bumping them up,ill be adding another quid to most of them next year........the thing is there is 4 other window cleaners on there all cleaning a couple of houses each and thats how its always been since i got established on these estates 20+years ago!

Not moving your van often and making £40 per hour, you surely cannot complain about that.

 

[dmw]

When I bought a little round back in 1991 in the book I remember terraced houses were £1.65 all round and having gone from a driving job at £95 per week to window cleaning at £150 per week I felt like a millionaire!

I also remember after collecting on a Friday night going to the pub and changing a shedload of copper and silver.

I do miss having a few pints as an excuse though.

 

[dazmond]

Not moving your van often and making £40 per hour, you surely cannot complain about that.

2 or 3 van moves a day for 8 days on my estate work,yes its ok but im glad i also have days where im only cleaning 5-10 larger jobs with a bit of driving about in between,i actually earn more on these than the estate work because their higher priced larger jobs....

 

[fast_muchly]

Interested in this as I think pricing depends on area . 

A little test then HOW MUCH WOULD YOU PRICE THIS HOUSE AT HONEST QUOTES PLZ  ( no fibs ) 

Will let you know what I price later as it is one I do .

Included Front and Back of property .

 

[Pjj]

Interested in this as I think pricing depends on area . 

A little test then HOW MUCH WOULD YOU PRICE THIS HOUSE AT HONEST QUOTES PLZ  ( no fibs ) 

Will let you know what I price later as it is one I do .

Included Front and Back of property .

View attachment 18484

View attachment 18485

£15 if I had a lot in the road ,if not £20 

 

[fast_muchly]

Hi PJJ well that just shows you different areas and different prices cant believe you have just put that , to me that's rip off pricing . Im not having a go at you honest just shocked at your quote and that just shows you how areas are different .

Im Trad only  been doing this about 6 years started doing it at £8, last year put it up to £10 ( monthly clean ) and I think its stealing money at £10 as its nice and easy. If I tried £15 I would deffo get sacked .

Come on folks this is an interesting one lets have more HONEST quotes see what people would do it for wether its £4 or £50 .

 

[wee man]

Interested in this as I think pricing depends on area . 

A little test then HOW MUCH WOULD YOU PRICE THIS HOUSE AT HONEST QUOTES PLZ  ( no fibs ) 

Will let you know what I price later as it is one I do .

Included Front and Back of property .

View attachment 18484

View attachment 18485

£12 or £15 depending if I had many more around.  I'm in N Ireland.  

 

[Martyn]

 £20

 

[Oli]

I’d be £15 for a detached like that. I wouldn’t be able to get £20. 
I’m in South Yorkshire

 

[Pjj]

Hi PJJ well that just shows you different areas and different prices cant believe you have just put that , to me that's rip off pricing . Im not having a go at you honest just shocked at your quote and that just shows you how areas are different .

Im Trad only  been doing this about 6 years started doing it at £8, last year put it up to £10 ( monthly clean ) and I think its stealing money at £10 as its nice and easy. If I tried £15 I would deffo get sacked .

Come on folks this is an interesting one lets have more HONEST quotes see what people would do it for wether its £4 or £50 .

I make that 11 windows in total including the doors so evan at a £1 per window it should be £11 and that’s a very out dated way of pricing , we have a minimum  for anything of £10 if it’s one window and a door it’s £10 , we have hundreds of properties similar in design  to this but I accept the windows are bigger than your picture but that’s how I would price it and I get the vast majority I Price , Green pro has always stated he can price work up anywhere in the country practically the same money , I do feel that there are different prices for different areas , but that’s honestly what I would charge and i get over 80% of all the quotes I do .

Just out of interest what would that property cost where you are ? Down hear where I am it would be £250-275 for a 3 bed detached , for  a top of the range one with onsuite £300k