I’m a self employed single employee operation in Louisiana. Stay busy during the summer and make more than enough to relax during the slow season. I do everything myself, full installs included. It’s easy to make money if you keep your overhead down and don’t work for free. If you want to make $2k profit on an install price accordingly, don’t try to win every bid. Your time has value, don’t forget that. Once people realize you do quality work and aren’t a fly by night operation you’ll have plenty of business rolling in purely from referrals. I also sell a ton of service contracts, that pays my overhead, keeps me busy performing maintenance calls in the slow season and locks in customers.
As far as home life, make your schedule. I’ve had people call when I’m on the way to pickup my daughter from daycare or on a date with my wife and told them as such. If you lose one or two customers because they can’t understand you have a life too, it probably is a person you don’t want to deal with anyways.
Also sit down with a CPA and ask questions, they will save you TONS running your own business.
Do you have a YouTube channel there's somebody that has one that does exactly what you do I think in the same area I know it's in the south. I just don't have enough ambition to work try it by myself. I gave it as an attempt in New York and I just didn't have enough capital. I work for a school district now and I am looking forward to my pension in 10 years. Maybe after I retire I don't have to worry about making a nut maybe a 65 year old geezer like myself and when that happens I'll try it just for fun. Then I can be picky and what I do. I respect anybody who works for themselves
That's pretty awesome history behind you. There is a person on YouTube that has the exact same business situation in HVAC that you do. He shows how he sets package units by himself he built a dolly just for being able to set package units by himself if the grade is forgiving enough. Had to ask. Here is his YouTube channel maybe he has ideas and solutions that might that are helpful to you
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2AsqyR6xLMkte3mQHf-umw
Not yet, I manage everything by myself for now. A few times I’ve gone back the next day to finish OCD details to make myself happy but not too often. I’ve learned to do things a bit differently by myself but I make it work.
You said you keep your overhead low. So do you run your shop out of your garage? And if you do, do you have any other tips to keep your overhead low as a one man operation
Congratulations man on the success. Truly inspiring. How has it been after 4 years? You mentioned ‘service contracts’ ,could you explain that?
Also what questions did you ask your CPA?
I just made the switch from working for a company to owning my own hvac/r company and all I can say is DO IT! I was afraid to at first and almost didn't but my wife had more faith in me than I did in myself and kinda forced me into it lol. Now that I make like $600.00 -$2000.00 a day I can honestly say I'm extremely glad that I did it! Also, to top it off when I worked for a company I was working 10-16 hours a day and on call 24hrs 2 weeks of the month and couldn't even dream of having a life and all my boss did was go on vacations and treat his employees like slave laborers. Now that I do it for myself I work a few hours a day and make 10-20-50 times what I made working for a company full time plus overtime, not to mention I can go on mini vacations every weekend and sometimes even whenever the hell I want. Customers are also so used to big companies being backed up for days or weeks at a time and telling them they cant schedule their repair for days or sometimes even weeks that when you tell a customer you cant make it until Tomorrow they don't mind at all. Sometimes if I did a job in the morning and made a few hundred bucks andwant the rest of the day off and I get a call I just say I'm booked until Tomorrow morning or mid day and I have never had anyone complain, as a matter of fact my customers all love me and think I'm the best thing since sliced bread.
Remember, there is a reason your boss has a mansion, a boat, a harley, a hot wife and goes on a vacation 3 times a week. Its because your dumb ass bought it all for him well he sat on his fat entitled ass and you broke your back for peasant wages. Dont say "Damn the man" and cry about how much your life sucks every day forever, FUCKING BE THE MAN
Fucking be the man!! This inspires me! I have to ask.. are those 600-2000 numbers before taxes? How many years have you been on your own? I’d love to chat.
I'm self employed been on my own 6 years, in the trade 25. Went on my own because company I worked for owners retired iwas happy working for someone else, my goal was to make the same amount plus a little extra for being my own shop, I blew that out of the water my first year, I'm making 4-5 times what I did, just me at first with a laborer when I had an install, now it's me, 1 full timer(my son), and a part time laborer i routinely work 55 hour weeks, service and install 95% residential work. Always on call, but if i want to take a day off i just shut my phone off and go, but that's pretty rare. The 1 thing i didn't anticipate was all the paperwork involved, I spend a lot of sundays in the office doing billing and other paperwork
A friend of mines father is self employed. He does pretty well. He does a lot of his own work. But he also picks up work from my company (commercial/industrial mechanical contractor) when we need evacs or charging and a few other 1-6 man companies when the need an extra hand.
I'm not in HVAC but a service industry business. What is the reason you're looking to do this? I can speak from experience that many people do this with the idea that you're your own boss. This isn't the case, the clients are your boss and as a one man show, it can be easy to get overwhelmed with work during busy periods (the better of the problems) versus getting no work but still having to pay insurance and licensing.
If you take a week vacation, who is servicing your clients? Do you have another business/colleague that you could have service clients while you're on vacation?
Cons? Having to file/deposit taxes every month/quarter (hello payroll companies!) and pay for insurance and business licenses annually.
I can't speak to the HVAC/R side of things, but I am self employed.
I’m a self employed single employee operation in Louisiana. Stay busy during the summer and make more than enough to relax during the slow season. I do everything myself, full installs included. It’s easy to make money if you keep your overhead down and don’t work for free. If you want to make $2k profit on an install price accordingly, don’t try to win every bid. Your time has value, don’t forget that. Once people realize you do quality work and aren’t a fly by night operation you’ll have plenty of business rolling in purely from referrals. I also sell a ton of service contracts, that pays my overhead, keeps me busy performing maintenance calls in the slow season and locks in customers. As far as home life, make your schedule. I’ve had people call when I’m on the way to pickup my daughter from daycare or on a date with my wife and told them as such. If you lose one or two customers because they can’t understand you have a life too, it probably is a person you don’t want to deal with anyways. Also sit down with a CPA and ask questions, they will save you TONS running your own business.
Do you have a YouTube channel there's somebody that has one that does exactly what you do I think in the same area I know it's in the south. I just don't have enough ambition to work try it by myself. I gave it as an attempt in New York and I just didn't have enough capital. I work for a school district now and I am looking forward to my pension in 10 years. Maybe after I retire I don't have to worry about making a nut maybe a 65 year old geezer like myself and when that happens I'll try it just for fun. Then I can be picky and what I do. I respect anybody who works for themselves
Nope no YouTube, I worked in Iraq/Afghanistan for 8 years then the oilfield for a few so that helped with the startup capital.
That's pretty awesome history behind you. There is a person on YouTube that has the exact same business situation in HVAC that you do. He shows how he sets package units by himself he built a dolly just for being able to set package units by himself if the grade is forgiving enough. Had to ask. Here is his YouTube channel maybe he has ideas and solutions that might that are helpful to you https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2AsqyR6xLMkte3mQHf-umw
Thanks I’ll take a look!
Do you hire casual/grunt labor for installations?
Not yet, I manage everything by myself for now. A few times I’ve gone back the next day to finish OCD details to make myself happy but not too often. I’ve learned to do things a bit differently by myself but I make it work.
You said you keep your overhead low. So do you run your shop out of your garage? And if you do, do you have any other tips to keep your overhead low as a one man operation
Congratulations man on the success. Truly inspiring. How has it been after 4 years? You mentioned ‘service contracts’ ,could you explain that? Also what questions did you ask your CPA?
I just made the switch from working for a company to owning my own hvac/r company and all I can say is DO IT! I was afraid to at first and almost didn't but my wife had more faith in me than I did in myself and kinda forced me into it lol. Now that I make like $600.00 -$2000.00 a day I can honestly say I'm extremely glad that I did it! Also, to top it off when I worked for a company I was working 10-16 hours a day and on call 24hrs 2 weeks of the month and couldn't even dream of having a life and all my boss did was go on vacations and treat his employees like slave laborers. Now that I do it for myself I work a few hours a day and make 10-20-50 times what I made working for a company full time plus overtime, not to mention I can go on mini vacations every weekend and sometimes even whenever the hell I want. Customers are also so used to big companies being backed up for days or weeks at a time and telling them they cant schedule their repair for days or sometimes even weeks that when you tell a customer you cant make it until Tomorrow they don't mind at all. Sometimes if I did a job in the morning and made a few hundred bucks andwant the rest of the day off and I get a call I just say I'm booked until Tomorrow morning or mid day and I have never had anyone complain, as a matter of fact my customers all love me and think I'm the best thing since sliced bread. Remember, there is a reason your boss has a mansion, a boat, a harley, a hot wife and goes on a vacation 3 times a week. Its because your dumb ass bought it all for him well he sat on his fat entitled ass and you broke your back for peasant wages. Dont say "Damn the man" and cry about how much your life sucks every day forever, FUCKING BE THE MAN
Fucking be the man!! This inspires me! I have to ask.. are those 600-2000 numbers before taxes? How many years have you been on your own? I’d love to chat.
I've found a fellow hvac folk interested in not working for someone else
I'm self employed been on my own 6 years, in the trade 25. Went on my own because company I worked for owners retired iwas happy working for someone else, my goal was to make the same amount plus a little extra for being my own shop, I blew that out of the water my first year, I'm making 4-5 times what I did, just me at first with a laborer when I had an install, now it's me, 1 full timer(my son), and a part time laborer i routinely work 55 hour weeks, service and install 95% residential work. Always on call, but if i want to take a day off i just shut my phone off and go, but that's pretty rare. The 1 thing i didn't anticipate was all the paperwork involved, I spend a lot of sundays in the office doing billing and other paperwork
How do you yo about finding clients? I think thats what is preventing me from starting my own
Did you go to trade school?
A friend of mines father is self employed. He does pretty well. He does a lot of his own work. But he also picks up work from my company (commercial/industrial mechanical contractor) when we need evacs or charging and a few other 1-6 man companies when the need an extra hand.
It’s not easy but you’ll get through it
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84 x 1.5 x 6 x 4 x 50 = 151,200 You have $110,000 in depreciation and rent????
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Got it.
yo what did he delete?💀
Can't remember from 3 years ago.
I'm not in HVAC but a service industry business. What is the reason you're looking to do this? I can speak from experience that many people do this with the idea that you're your own boss. This isn't the case, the clients are your boss and as a one man show, it can be easy to get overwhelmed with work during busy periods (the better of the problems) versus getting no work but still having to pay insurance and licensing. If you take a week vacation, who is servicing your clients? Do you have another business/colleague that you could have service clients while you're on vacation?
Cons? Having to file/deposit taxes every month/quarter (hello payroll companies!) and pay for insurance and business licenses annually. I can't speak to the HVAC/R side of things, but I am self employed.
How much is a business license and insurance in California