# Starting my business



## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Welcome to the forum.


----------



## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Hire Peter D and seat back and let him do all of the work.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

I'd probably start with getting training as an electrician. Next, I'd acquire the necessary licenses and purchase insurance. 

Best of luck, and welcome to the forum.


----------



## 10492 (Jan 4, 2010)

Rigid97 said:


> want to start an electrical handy business on the side,


On the side of what?


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Get lots of money to start with.
Get a balance sheet.
Get market research.
Get a business plan.
Get licensed.
Get insurance.
Get bonded.
Get customers.

Then, you might just get lucky and make it.


----------



## FragElectric (Mar 2, 2010)

Rigid97 said:


> want to start an electrical handy business on the side, how would i go about doing that?


What exactly is an electrical handy business?


----------



## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

What does on the side mean? :blink:


----------



## user438 (Jun 6, 2007)




----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Rich R said:


>


Is that dog chit or people chit?


----------



## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

NolaTigaBait said:


> Is that dog chit or people chit?


 
Does it _really_ matter :laughing:


----------



## captkirk (Nov 21, 2007)

:laughing: I just got it......shi t hitting the fan.....:laughing:


----------



## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

i need a job hire me:thumbsup:


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Black4Truck said:


> Does it _really_ matter :laughing:


Dog chit is a little less offensive. I can deal with it, but if I ever stepped in human chit I would be sick.


----------



## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Rich R said:


>


 :laughing::laughing:


----------



## Rigid97 (Mar 15, 2010)

Im a union electrician, but im sure as with a lot of people, things are a little slow. I wanted to start a business just doing small jobs $600 or under, so i wouldnt have to get a contractors license and pay insurance. Just wondering if anybody else has some business knowledge that could help


----------



## 10492 (Jan 4, 2010)

Rigid97 said:


> Im a union electrician, but im sure as with a lot of people, things are a little slow. I wanted to start a business just doing small jobs $600 or under, so i wouldnt have to get a contractors license and pay insurance. Just wondering if anybody else has some business knowledge that could help


 
Yeah right, and you want us to help you?


:laughing::laughing::laughing::laughing:


----------



## leland (Dec 28, 2007)

Rigid97 said:


> Im a union electrician, but im sure as with a lot of people, things are a little slow. I wanted to start a business just doing small jobs $600 or under, so i wouldnt have to get a contractors license and pay insurance. Just wondering if anybody else has some business knowledge that could help



 $600 jobs don't burn down houses and kill people?
Damn! We should all down size!!


----------



## Rigid97 (Mar 15, 2010)

Its nice to stop off on your way home from work and throw in a couple of ceiling fans for some quick cash, being able to advertise small work like that would not be stealing work from unions, my prices arent low, just dont like getting caught up in bigger side jobs. Im sure someone would be able to understand that. And.. I am state certified. Im a foreman for a big company in San Francisco, can anyone understand the need for extra easy cash?


----------



## 10492 (Jan 4, 2010)

Rigid your an asshole.

The only help your going to get from legit contractors is help in turning you in to local authorities.


----------



## FragElectric (Mar 2, 2010)

Rigid97 said:


> Im a union electrician, but im sure as with a lot of people, things are a little slow. I wanted to start a business just doing small jobs $600 or under, so i wouldnt have to get a contractors license and pay insurance. Just wondering if anybody else has some business knowledge that could help


If you don't have a license and insurance then you can't have a business. What you are doing is called side work and the way you are doing it is illegal. 
It doesn't matter if its a $2 job, you need to have insurance. You are taking work from legit contractors who would sure like to have some of those $600 jobs you are talking about.


----------



## RIVETER (Sep 26, 2009)

Rigid97 said:


> Its nice to stop off on your way home from work and throw in a couple of ceiling fans for some quick cash, being able to advertise small work like that would not be stealing work from unions, my prices arent low, just dont like getting caught up in bigger side jobs. Im sure someone would be able to understand that. And.. I am state certified. Im a foreman for a big company in San Francisco, can anyone understand the need for extra easy cash?


How much money does a foreman with a big company make? Good luck whatever you do but you won't get a great deal of sympathy here on this forum. WAIT, I just had an idea. Would you want to install power savers?


----------



## LAElectrician (Dec 8, 2009)

FragElectric said:


> If you don't have a license and insurance then you can't have a business. What you are doing is called side work and the way you are doing it is illegal.
> It doesn't matter if its a $2 job, you need to have insurance. You are taking work from legit contractors who would sure like to have some of those $600 jobs you are talking about.


Rigid97, I’ve been an electrical contractor in California for 30 years and I need to keep 18 electricians working every day. So over the years I have had to learn a thing or two about how to find new electrical customers every day. I actually could tell you exactly how to find those customers you are looking for but for reasons already voiced here by others, I’m not going to tell you.

I’ll will give you one piece of advice, which is that California law requires all contractors to have a state contractor’s license for home improvement jobs that are valued at $500 or more in supplies and labor.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

LAElectrician said:


> I’ll will give you one piece of advice, which is that California law requires all contractors to have a state contractor’s license for home improvement jobs that are valued at $500 or more in supplies and labor.


I'm not sure about CA, but in many states with similar laws, that also means that you can't do a job VALUED AT $750 (for instance) for the cut rate price of $499 just to avoid the law. What matters is the real value of the work, and not what you settled to do it for.


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Shoot. I've been doing it all wrong, getting licenses, insurance, registering, all that crap.

I could do every job that comes along for less than $600 easy.

I'll do a $500 job in the morning, then a $500 in the afternoon. Another $500 job tomorrow morning. Then another $500 job tomorrow afternoon.

Man, what a racket!

Jeez, I could wire a nuclear power plant for $500.  (in 4 hour increments!)


----------



## user438 (Jun 6, 2007)

480sparky said:


> Shoot. I've been doing it all wrong, getting licenses, insurance, registering, all that crap.
> 
> I could do every job that comes along for less than $600 easy.
> 
> ...


 
I'll do it for $250 as long as they can wait for me to me show up in the company truck after 5pm

You what is really funny ? in this trade even the side jobbers low ball each other


----------



## user438 (Jun 6, 2007)

Just finished up working on a $7000 bid for a remodel in a condo community. Instead of simply faxing the bid over I have spent the last 1/2 hour trying to figure out how to get it to the customer without leaving enough time for the GC or other douches to bid shop it.

Maybe I should hide in the tile ceiling until like 20 minutes before they have to decide and then just spring out with contract in hand :thumbup:


----------



## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

Rigid97 said:


> Im a union electrician, but im sure as with a lot of people, things are a little slow. I wanted to start a business just doing small jobs $600 or under, so i wouldnt have to get a contractors license and pay insurance. Just wondering if anybody else has some business knowledge that could help


There is a guy here on the forum that does $500 and under jobs. He even has a nice website to explain why and how he does it.

I would try to look him up if I were you.
Can anyone help out here??


----------



## knowshorts (Jan 9, 2009)

LAElectrician said:


> Rigid97,
> I’ll will give you one piece of advice, which is that California law requires all contractors to have a state contractor’s license for home improvement jobs that are valued at $500 or more in supplies and labor.


While this is true, CA state law also does not require you to have liability insurance. If you don't have it, you are a complete idiot. 

I do tons of $300 to $500 jobs, but I do it legit. So, you may not think you're hurting the big union shops, but you are hurting me. So I guess that means I will have to start going after the big PW union jobs, and have you riding the pine, so you can install a ceiling fan for $100.


----------



## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

Sounds like California needs better requitements. In Washington State you have to have a contractors license to do a any electrical job.


----------



## LAElectrician (Dec 8, 2009)

MDShunk said:


> I'm not sure about CA, but in many states with similar laws, that also means that you can't do a job VALUED AT $750 (for instance) for the cut rate price of $499 just to avoid the law. What matters is the real value of the work, and not what you settled to do it for.


That's not the case in Calif. And who would determine what the "real value" of a job should be? 



knowshorts said:


> While this is true, CA state law also does not require you to have liability insurance. If you don't have it, you are a complete idiot.
> 
> That's for sure. I've never figured out why Calif. doesn't require liability insurance. Personally, my company carries a 2M policy with an additional 2M in umbrella coverage. I would think even the insurance lobbyists in Sacramento would want Calif. politicians to pass a law requiring it. Do other states require contractors to have liability insurance?


----------



## hiamp (Mar 14, 2010)

None required in Wa. but a bond in required. And I agree, if a contractor doesn't carry insurence he is a fool


----------



## nitro71 (Sep 17, 2009)

hiamp said:


> None required in Wa. but a bond in required. And I agree, if a contractor doesn't carry insurence he is a fool


 
Are you sure liability insurance is not required in WA? I was under the impression that it is.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

jrannis said:


> There is a guy here on the forum that does $500 and under jobs. *He even has a nice website to explain why and how he does it.*
> 
> I would try to look him up if I were you.
> Can anyone help out here??


Yea, I've heard of it:

www.steal.food.from.my.kids.com

Great site, explains how he steals work from legitimate small businesses that don't have that nice fat check to count on from their "real employer". Sure would be nice to make a little "extra" cash on the side as a small business owner, too bad all the "extra" work is being taken by the guys who already have high paying Forman jobs. Maybe I should shut my business down just as I'm starting and go get a Forman job so I can have access to that "extra" money.
As a one man business those $100 to $500 dollar jobs are the meat and potatoes for us, you guys taking those jobs are killing someone else’s income, income that isn't "extra".


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

Rigid97 said:


> Its nice to stop off on your way home from work and throw in a couple of ceiling fans for some quick cash, being able to advertise small work like that *would not be stealing work from unions*, my prices arent low, just dont like getting caught up in bigger side jobs. Im sure someone would be able to understand that. And.. I am state certified. Im a foreman for a big company in San Francisco, can anyone understand the need for extra easy cash?


That’s what I hate about the union mentality, all they care about is themselves and the overly bloated "union". They don't care about their neighbor with the family owned small business just trying to support his family, screw them right Ridgid, if it doesn't effect the overly bloated union machine then who cares!  :no:


----------



## Innovative (Jan 26, 2010)

Florida requires 800k liability, which is a really small amount. They should require 2-5 mil. Florida also requires a State License for ANY electrical work.


----------



## rnr electric (Jan 29, 2010)

wow,were we all born contractors or did we all start right were this poor guy did.if you get an elect contractor lic.then welcome to the club as far as i am concerned just dont think you git the big trucks and boats the first year and be prepared to work your but off just to pay insurance and overhead.


----------



## bauler (Jan 2, 2008)

True, in California you can do jobs for $500 or under without a license, but there are a few conditions to add:
$500 or less including labor and materials, can't break it up into smaller jobs
Can't be part of a larger job, i.e can't hang a ceiling fan in a room addition job
Any job that requires a permit

I think when you advertise you have to state "Not a licensed contractor"
No insurance required, but you have to disclose it to customers in your contracts. You have to have a bond, but can't advertise you are bonded. I know I see it all the time "licensed and bonded" you can get busted for it.

Reference: California Contractors License Law & Reference Book

Bottom line, if you are going to do work for the public, go get your license. It's shouldn't be that hard and it lends a lot of creditability.


----------



## woodchuck2 (Sep 18, 2009)

No wonder why i have trouble getting by financially. Its all this insurance and taxes i keep paying. Now i have to ask, what kind of job are you doing for only $600? I have been finding it tough to even leave my home now for only $600. That wont even fuel my trucks for the week.

Another thing that bothers me is any time a Union member goes on strike the replacement worker is a "hack or scab" yet you feel it is OK to come out of your Union work zone and take work from us. That takes brass balls buddy.


----------

