What should my son charge to mow lawns?

[jenr812]

A few times when we just haven't had time, we've paid a guy $40 to mow our 2/3 acre lot with a good sized hill in the backyard. He edges too. He does our neighbor's lawn and that is his standard rate. DH and I have been discussing if maybe we should have DD13 do it instead. It would help DD make some money, and give her a sense of responsibility and pay her $25-30 to do it. I think that is fair in our case because the other guy uses his own equipment and we'd be using our own if we paid DD. I really don't think it would save us much money (since we'd be using our own equipment and gas, etc) but it's the other things that make it an attractive idea (DD is at that very self absorbed, self centered phase ).

OK I went kinda off topic - sorry!!! Good luck finding a solution and I hope that your son makes some good money this summer. I know how pricey those school trips are - DD just got back from a Disney trip with her school and it cost $430 (which I thought was reasonable for 2 nights/3 days with meals). High school is next year and band goes to Hawaii I am so scared to see the cost of that - maybe she should start mowing the neighbor's lawns, too!!

ETA: We have a riding mower. I wanted to point that out because it would be horrible to try and mow our lawn with a push mower. That would be worth much more than $30!!

 

[abcboys]

My 8 year old has become very interested in mowing the yard. He mowed our yard yesterday and I payed him $2. Don't worry, I supervised him the entire time. But, I thought I got off super cheap for $2 and he thought he was making big money. He did a pretty good job, too. He wanted to weedeat but he's not quite ready for that yet.

I would think it would definately depend on the size of the yard and how long it would take him. I used to cut grass when I was a teenager. One older lady had me cut and rake up all the grass. It took me forever, a couple of hours (she was soooo picky) and she paid me like $5. I was not happy.

 

[kellia]

I just paid $30 to a lawn company for the first time to mow & edge my 60' lot on the rental house I live in. That is using a riding lawn mower, the 2 other companies I got quotes from were $35 & use the bigger commercial riding lawn mowers.
After reading these posts, I must ask, why are you willing to undercut & pay a teenager LESS for the same type of work (if of course they do just as good of a job as a lawn company)? In fact I bet the teenager is working harder as they are probably using push mowers rather than a riding lawn mower? When I was searching for companies, the first one I checked with quoted me $35 & I watched and waited for him to cut the grass across the street from me, it literally took him a total of 15 minutes to cut & edge & another 5 minutes to pack up & leave. if this guy did 3 yards in an hour (which he can do when he has several houses on the same street to do) he would be making about $105 an hour but some of you want to pay a teenager $20 for about 45 minutes to an hour of the same work (or more!)? not too fair if you ask me.

But to be fair, the companies have a lot more overhead than just a kid using his dad's lawnmower, not to mention they have to pay taxes on that money, which I am sure the 12 yo doesn't!

 

[perdidochas]

Good morning! My son who is 12 is going to try to mow some lawns this summer to earn money for a school trip to Washington DC next year. It was $600 this year , I and can't see paying that for just him for a long weekend (That's Disney tickets in my eyes for the whole family! ) So, he really wants to go, so we said he had to earn some on his own.....

How much should he charge????? Thanks in advance for your help!!

I would say $15 for an average sized lawn, $20 with weed-eating. Reduce that by $5 if he has to use their equipment.

 

[TAEMom]

We pay ~$30 here for someone to mow and edge 1/3 of an acre. He's in college and gets the whole job done well in about 30min!

I would probably pay a 12 yr. old less, maybe $20. To be honest, my son is a responsible 11 and I have a little trouble imagining him cutting people's grass next year - but then again, I am still too nervous to allow him to actually use the mower yet!

 

[princesscj]

Thanks for all the responses!! He mowed our yard, my sis, and my parents last summer, so he is somewhat experienced.

I think we have got it all figured out !

 

[Kimkimba]

We have 1/2 acre and pay $30 a week to a professional landscaping service - but they weed wack and do the curb really nice (we live on a corner lot).

This is cheap in our area.

Honestly, I wouldn't feel comfortable for safety reasons letting a 12 year old mow our lawn.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

My ds is 13.5 and has been cutting our lawn since last summer. He does an excellent job and we even got a complement from a neighbor out jogging, asking who is our lawn service. He bags it too which we have special recycling buckets for lawn/leaf stuff. Dh wears, and makes ds wear safety glasses, not tight fitting goggles like chemistry class but look like bigger than avg. for coverage. (Dh is a welder and very into safety.) Dh does edging and weed wacking while ds is cutting.
We pay him $10 for 1/4 acre. We think it's a bargain. It gives dh a break and gives ds $ for his piggy bank; already saving for a car.

Just wanted to throw this out there for all the moms who think their kids CAN'T, without even giving them a chance. How else do they ever learn? Kids who grow up on farms learn these types of chores at a much younger age even. We are all about showing the path to independence!
Of course with a huge 'safety course' before starting.

When ds10 was 8, knew how to start the leaf blower and operate it. He explained it all to me in his wee little voice, "set this on half-choke, pump the primer bulb..." I almost had tears in my eyes to see him doing such grown up things.

I was def. cutting my parents' lawn, 3/4 acre w/riding mower, by 12. My brother even at a much younger age. They taped wood blocks to the pedals so my brother could reach. Never had an accident and did a great job.

fwiw, ds13 also knows how to operate the snow blower and made some $$ this past winter. I do watch him much closer with that since it's easy to get too close to someone's car and do some damage.

 

[pilesoflaundry]

I have a small yard, I mean really small. Half of it is dead. Two different kids have come to my door asking $20 to do it and they don't weed eat.

I used to get one of the kids down to $15 because really it's not much of a yard but in this heat and with gas inching up a little I stopped trying to bargain with him and just pay him the $20 because I hate cutting the grass and my husband doesn't have much time lately. Dh trims the bushes and does the weed eating.

 

[DOOM1001]

Our house is on half an acre and we pay $50.

 

[pyrxtc]

Good morning! My son who is 12 is going to try to mow some lawns this summer to earn money for a school trip to Washington DC next year. It was $600 this year , I and can't see paying that for just him for a long weekend (That's Disney tickets in my eyes for the whole family! ) So, he really wants to go, so we said he had to earn some on his own.....

How much should he charge????? Thanks in advance for your help!!

Sorry, I don't know anything about lawn mowing prices but ......

My DD will be doing the DC trip this year with 8th grade too. I know $600 is a lot of money for such a short period but I look at it this way..... You are paying for the experience. How many times in their lives will they go away with friends/classmates and do something like this. My price covers all meals and tour guides. I'm actually hoping I'll be able to go as a chaperone. It will cost me the same price as her. I don't know if we can swing double the cost (especially since I know how much that will buy in Disney) but it would be worth it for the experience. I want her to experience life in all different ways and go places. This will be one of those things.

 

[Alex&Evan'sMom]

The original post is from 2007. Hope he got to go to DC.

 

[soccerchick]

The original post is from 2007. Hope he got to go to DC.

How dO these things get bumped?

 

[pyrxtc]

Wow !! Crazy old threads being thrown forward.

 

[mjkacmom]

$20 - $25, depending upon the size of the yard. I paid $25 to a kid for my 60 x 100 lot. He usually had to move some toys around, and I was thrilled kids still did this. Unfortunately, he moved.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

How dO these things get bumped?

Some people have more time on their hands than others.

 

[Gale]

I agree with the person who posted a reply on trying to look at how long it takes to do the job, as well as the person who looks at whose equipment is being used. We have a small front yard in a cul-de-sac with small strips on the side of the house. The back yard is landscaped and mulched in, so no mowing needed. It takes about 20 minutes to mow and edge with a weedeater. Giving that the kid is using our equipment, gas, etc. and has no expense, $15 with sweeping the drive way is more than reasonable. If you don't agree, just look at what the hourly rate at a teenage job such as Fast food after taxes and transportation would be for 20 minutes worth of work. I think paying more is a dis-service to society in creating expectations of lots of pay for little work. I also agree that if a kid is doing a really good job and reliable to throw in a little extra for a school trip if they are saving up for one. However, it should be made clear that the extra money is not to be expected but a donation for expectional work.

 

[HHSTigerFan]

Just remember, when you hire a kid, if he gets hurt on your property or if he breaks a window, that cost is on you..

 

[dimimi]

Holy cow that's cheap!

I'd say $20 - $25, esp. if he's going to bag and edge.

I can't even believe paying between $5 and $10. We paid the $20 to $25 for the kid to use a rider and not bag and edge.

I would ask around and see the going rate for your area. Just by reading the posts here, the range is huge and is obviously based on the area you live in.

I would make sure to make sure the person cuts and edges or if they do your yard with a rider they miss areas.

This is a great job for your son. I wish our son could do this, but everyone here does there own yard or hires a company to come and do their lawn. Also, we don't have a rider and that adds a lot of time to the job.

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

Double zombie thread!!!