Can we make a living in the winter months.... (Carmel: flat fee, how much)

[CravenClan]

Hi, We looked into moving to the Carmel area, last year we made a trip there in Oct/Nov....it was chilly but i thought, this isn't bad...Well as we watched the months go, i saw a lot of snow, and a lot of COLD.......

Being that my husband is an owner of a landscape company, would we make it there?? We live in Souhtern CA, he commutes to LA, 3 days a week. We own a landscape here, and would be buying one in Indiana. BUT, how do these companies work in the winter months or do they not?? I think i posted something like this in the past, and someone said nearly everyone was on unemployment, which sounds horrible, but NO ONE, i mean noone with a house payment, BILLS and kids can live on unemployment....

So if anyone has any insight, i'd love to hear it!!!

We are alos researching Texas, we had visited there a coupe years ago, but since weather is a factor, we are revisiting it.....
Thanks

[rrah]

Many of the landscapers I know do a couple things: save for the winter months when they aren't doing landscaping jobs and purchase a snow plow attachment for their trucks. They work as snow removal contractors plowing drives, commercial parking lots, etc. It's sporadic though. Usually by March they are booking jobs for the spring/summer but that doesn't bring money in until later.

[CravenClan]

Hi, i should have stated, we are more in the maintenance business, for residential, commercial, hoa's...that type of thing, along with repairs or new construction.

[jcamber]

I think being resourceful is the key. Indy is not LA for sure and as long as you have the assumption that summer won't last year-round, you should be fine. Even snow plowing is not a great business in Indy as snow fall amounts are not consistent. I remember where we had tons of snow and others where we barely saw any...

[Future Trooper]

I agree long as your resourceful and save your money you will be fine. The snow plow business I would recommend getting into. As someone has already stated snowfall amounts are never consistent. Some years we hardly get any while others( like last winter) we get alot.

[Naptowner]

I remember the previous thread. I believe you asked how people who work in landscaping make it through the winter here, and I said that some draw unemployment. Then you clarified that you do more actual construction, and not just landscaping.

As you have recognized, Indiana gets cold in the winter. In the months of December through February, with some overlap into November and March, it is generally below freezing. Grass and plants don't grow, and the ground freezes so that it's difficult to do hardscape work or pour concrete. If your workload is mostly inside, you're not going to have a problem. Likewise if you do underground work - trenching, foundations, etc., because the cold weather won't stop you. But if most of your work is exterior, you're going to have a hard time doing anything but pushing snow, and even that is only good for maybe a few weekends most years. There will be spells of relatively nice weather here and there, but from mid December to mid February it is usually very cold, and very difficult to do any outside work whatsoever.

[CravenClan]

I definatley know that Indiana is no LA, i would not consider it if it was.....

On my OP, yes we were in more the start to finish area of landscape/concrete, but when the market got horrendous here, we did buy an established maintenance business in LA...Therefor my husband now commutes 90 miles ONE WAY, traffic is a killer, so some times it can take him 3 hours to get home....That is not any quality of life.....

I know this past year was not the typical, but i think when we visited, in Nov, it was cold, but when we got home and watched the weather over the course of the few months following, it really scared us!!!!

I have always wanted more "seasons" as we really only have sunshine, but the fear of freezing cold, and possibly being broke, were a scary combination!!

[aptslawn]

how much"per hour" do they charge for plowing?

[rrah]

aptslawn--I've never paid an hourly fee for plowing my driveway. I've always paid a flat fee, and I don't really remember what it was.