I'm in the wrong business...

[941designs]

Tonight, in the "Sunshine state" of Florida, a wicked thunderstorm rolled through town. Apparently it downed a tree near my rental house. So at 11:30 pm I get the call the tenants have power, but no a/c (read 220 volts is out). It appeared the main 200 amp breaker was bad. Sooo, due to the time of night, and coupled with the fact that I am not an electrician, I had the "Mr. Sparky" people respond, (those in the Tampa area know their annoying radio commercial all too well). Well within 10 minutes the guy diagnosed the main breaker as bad. Did he have one with him??? Of course not. He was able to do some re routing to get the air conditioning on, which was the real priority. The new breaker goes in at 9am.

Anyone guess on the damages....????


$819


I was floored. I get the $125 for waking the guy up, but another $690 (ish) to replace a main breaker??? LORD.


I felt guilty for buying a framing nail gun today at lowes for $130....not any more!!!

Goodnight!

 

[Carsandtools]

I know how you feel. If you're going to be in the rental/landlording business, it pays to be a jack of all trades: electrical, plumbing, carpentry, roofing. That's the only way it pays. I have been into it since 2002 and having done all the work myself, I'm getting tired. I could do better in the financial markets instead of being somebody's landlord. My last tenant is moving out in two weeks and that house gets sold to the first reasonable or unreasonable offer.

 

[gbh]

Welcome to the world of the landlord.
My realtor paid their "handyman" $500 out of my rental income to replace 3 upright planks on a fence that were broken by a tree limb. Planks work out around $2 each...he didn't even remove the 6 foot tree limb, he just rolled it under a bush in the garden.

 

[ZRX61]

You're not paying for what he did, you're paying for what he knows.

 

[safetyman665]

You're not paying for what he did, you're paying for what he knows.

You read my mind. You paid for his time as well as his experience and expertise in his trade.

 

[nehog]

Tonight, in the "Sunshine state" of Florida, a wicked thunderstorm rolled through town. Apparently it downed a tree near my rental house. So at 11:30 pm I get the call the tenants have power, but no a/c (read 220 volts is out). It appeared the main 200 amp breaker was bad. Sooo, due to the time of night, and coupled with the fact that I am not an electrician, I had the "Mr. Sparky" people respond, (those in the Tampa area know their annoying radio commercial all too well). Well within 10 minutes the guy diagnosed the main breaker as bad. Did he have one with him??? Of course not. He was able to do some re routing to get the air conditioning on, which was the real priority. The new breaker goes in at 9am.

Anyone guess on the damages....????


$819


I was floored. I get the $125 for waking the guy up, but another $690 (ish) to replace a main breaker??? LORD.


I felt guilty for buying a framing nail gun today at lowes for $130....not any more!!!

Goodnight!

If that is for two calls, one emergency, the breaker, the fudging things to get the AC working, parts and supplies, I'd say that is a fair price.

 

[Stuart in MN]

You're not paying for what he did, you're paying for what he knows.

You're paying for what he knows in the middle of the night.

Remember that the guy who came out didn't make anywhere near $819, that's what his company charges for emergency services.

 

[Norcal]

You hired a "flat rate" contractor, you get hosed any time of the day or night. " After hours" work should always be premium rates, but the franchise contractors will always be expensive.

 

[ratdoggy]

Tonight, in the "Sunshine state" of Florida, a wicked thunderstorm rolled through town. Apparently it downed a tree near my rental house. So at 11:30 pm I get the call the tenants have power, but no a/c (read 220 volts is out). It appeared the main 200 amp breaker was bad. Sooo, due to the time of night, and coupled with the fact that I am not an electrician, I had the "Mr. Sparky" people respond, (those in the Tampa area know their annoying radio commercial all too well). Well within 10 minutes the guy diagnosed the main breaker as bad. Did he have one with him??? Of course not. He was able to do some re routing to get the air conditioning on, which was the real priority. The new breaker goes in at 9am.

Anyone guess on the damages....????


$819




I was floored. I get the $125 for waking the guy up, but another $690 (ish) to replace a main breaker??? LORD.


I felt guilty for buying a framing nail gun today at lowes for $130....not any more!!!

Goodnight!

Was it mandatory to get his a/c working in the middle of the night? I mean he had power to everything except the a/c.

 

[trainer]

If you think electricians are expensive, you should try calling a refrigeration contractor after hours.

 

[terryo1965]

It's funny, I know a guy who owns a Mr. Sparky franchise and he just said to me, "Maybe I'm in the wrong business..." Apparently after all the expenses, franchise fees, stocked trucks that looks like a Snap-On rig, finding and paying good techs, he isn't getting rich either. The charge sounds a little high to me as well, but the Sparky guys are generally on time, always dressed in a clean uniform, and are well trained. I guess like everything in life you get what you pay for.

 

[Ray Kelly]

Sounds high to me too, but..........You'd better learn to do more for yourself. Especially something like this. Learn ASAP!!

 

[LutzTD]

Was it mandatory to get his a/c working in the middle of the night? I mean he had power to everything except the a/c.

in FLA in July YESSSSSSS

 

[JimVonBaden]

I know how you feel. If you're going to be in the rental/landlording business, it pays to be a jack of all trades: electrical, plumbing, carpentry, roofing. That's the only way it pays. I have been into it since 2002 and having done all the work myself, I'm getting tired. I could do better in the financial markets instead of being somebody's landlord. My last tenant is moving out in two weeks and that house gets sold to the first reasonable or unreasonable offer.

I know the feeling. The second I am able BOTH my places are going on the market!

Jim

 

[JimVonBaden]

in FLA in July YESSSSSSS

It would have been MUCH cheaper to put them in a hotel for the night!

Besides, though it *****, there is a clause in most rental agreements that allow for 24 hours to do a repair. I would not have done it in the middle of the night.

Jim

 

[bassman]

Of course he didn't have the breaker with him, you wouldn't believe how many makes and different styles each manufacturer has. They are too expensive to have all on hand, take up to much room too. Also, if you had an fpe or zinscoe, the breaker itself might have cost you almost that much. We are not at jobsites 100% of the time, there are other aspects of the trades that take our time out of our work week that are factored in to our prices.

 

[Falcon67]

Not too much out of line. There is no AC service company in our city, so it's $75 for the trip on regular time and $125 after hours, plus the hourly rate which is about the same. Emergency after hours capacitor replacement runs $250. Big $ - sure. BUT - they have expertise to diagnose quickly, overhead expenses, travel time, the part, fuel, equipment, etc, etc. I can put in a $40 cap - then if that's not it, I'm already out $40 plus the hassle of waiting and finding the part.

 

[theoldwizard1]

You're not paying for what he did, you're paying for what he knows.

Yeah, that is what the sparky I hired told me !

Now I know how to drill holes through the bottom plate of an existing finished wall (long flexible drill bit) for wall outlet/light switch and install ceiling boxes (4" circular saw, with debris catcher; additional holes required in the side wall just below the top plate and ceiling to make the 90° turn).

I could have bought those tools for less than 25% of what I paid him.

Glad I did the rest of the rough and finish wiring. Of course, I had to find out the hard way that there are 2 different styles of Square D QO load centers and the breakers are not interchangeable. (The old style has been out of production for more than 20 years, but breakers are available ... at a premium price !)

 

[Zeke]

If you can afford to have a rental house, you're in the right business.

 

[JimVonBaden]

If you can afford to have a rental house, you're in the right business.

Generalization. I have two, both by default when I got married and we both owned places we couldn't live in. I will sell them once we are no longer upside down.

Jim

 

[scw1991]

My estimate to replace an aging Federal Pacific 150amp breaker box was $1050 in Orlando. Figure about $200 for the breaker box, $50 for permit, and the rest is labor at an estimated rate of $85-100/hr. It is very time consuming especially if older wiring has been cut in length to fit the original breakers. Lots of time must be spent stripping, wire nutting, and creating jumper sections of wiring to reach the new breakers.

 

[Spam16v]

Call for after hours generator service.... then you'll be glad it was only that much. If you're in Buffalo, NY I'm the one breaking that wonderful news to customers.

 

[cburnscrx]

As somebody said, it would have been cheaper to put them up in a hotel for the night. There's no way on earth I am paying that much to get the A/C fixed in the middle of the night. I too am in the rental property business, and as far as I am concerned...not happening.

 

[truckman5000]

Im a refrigeration, hvac, plumbing tech. And we charge $120 and hour.
At night, its a duty charge, time and a half charge, and we charge from when the guy leaves his house till he gets home.
We did this to slow down late nite shenanigans.
It didnt help and we make a killing, and the tech. gets payed more

 

[941designs]

Holy ****, thanks for all the replies. I am very capable of handling most repairs, i.e. flooring, plumbing, etc...but when it comes to messing around inside that panel at 1a.m., I chose not to risk killing myself out of stubborn pride.

As far as being able to afford a rental, I am in the business like many others, by default. My wife and I both owned our own homes prior to getting married, so of course when our families merged, we sought a larger home (with room for my 30x50 garage I built recently!)

As another poster said, when the market gets to a point that we can sell both and make a profit, I will gladly do so.

I fully respect the skill and experience the technician had. And I agree the cost was for those aforementioned talents, not the actual labor or parts.

That being said, I was simply venting as this bill comes at a crappy time. I just cut a check for $800 the same day to our local power company to have power run to my garage...as I have been working off an extension cord for months.

This unexpected snafoo set my progress back and I have been dying to get lights and outlets in my workshop FINALLY.

In conclusion, I maintain that I am indeed in the wrong business, for many reasons, not just last nights deal. Thanks folks, this forum is the best!

 

[Carsandtools]

If you can afford to have a rental house, you're in the right business.

Not hardly. I got into it because things were very good back in 2001/2002. I made money the first few years but when the economy slowed, real estate prices tanked and anybody who had a decent job and who could afford to pay rent could also afford to buy their own home. I found that most renters are those who are unemployed or don't have the credit rating to buy a home. Unfortunately that means that they are likely to be slow payers on rent.

I got deeper into the stock market and options trading at about the same time. If I had the foresight to know what I know now, there is no way I would have become a landlord. The same money that went into buying rental houses could have gone into buying stocks and other high quality investments. As long as you do the homework and study enough to make a good buying decision, the stock market is a better place to invest. It carries the advantage of not having to do home repairs on a moment's notice and you don't have to listen to tenants explain all the sorry reasons why they are coming up short on the rent.

 

[2CRUZ]

Would your home owners insurance cover some of that?

 

[941designs]

My deductable is $1000 so that wasn't an option.

 

[Bronson]

When I was in the Rental field, AC was not an "emergency". It would have been first on the list the next day. A "no heat call" or running water was an emergency. No one is going to die from being wo AC overnight.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Well within 10 minutes the guy diagnosed the main breaker as bad. Did he have one with him??? Of course not. He was able to do some re routing to get the air conditioning on, which was the real priority. The new breaker goes in at 9am.

The main breaker was bad and he did some rerouting ? I'd be curious as to what he did in his "rerouting". Did he bypass the main ?

 

[941designs]

I wish I could answer that. To have them come out at night only added $125. Perhaps I am far too empathetic for my own good. If I were the one in that house with my kid in summer I would have wanted the a/c to work.

 

[rwhite692]

When I was in the Rental field, AC was not an "emergency". It would have been first on the list the next day. A "no heat call" or running water was an emergency. No one is going to die from being wo AC overnight.

^^^Exactly. No AC until the next morning is hardly an emergency, no matter how hot/uncomfortable. By treating it as an emergency you probably doubled your total cost to have it fixed.