I know this has been mentioned in posts before, like a long time ago, but I would like to take a poll and see who would be willing to participate in a study of land surveyors fees? I am going through some tradesman guides that help establish an idea of what the fees should be for replacing the pea trap on a sink for example, but I can't seem to find any guide on what it that would look like for surveyors.
AND before anyone goes off the cliffs of insanity called "THAT"S PRICE FIXING" then don't reply. I have heard that argument before and think it is a one off a load of bunk.This is a discussion on prices and if I know what you charge and the reasons behind it, then I am better educated to make my own decisions. It would be interesting, of course, the study would have to be anonymous, but would telling nonetheless.
Any ideas on this? How you justify/calculate your hourly fee? Per job fee? What about overages? Do you charge extra when you get into a job and find way more problems than solutions? How do you handle that?
Combined actual labor amounts (of all members on crew) times 3 is a good start.
I will say what I tell everyone that asks, "My fee is based upon what it cost me plus an appropriate amount for what you ask me to provide".
Generally speaking, lot surveys are $700 and 5 acre tracts run about $1000.
My costs really depend on what is being asked to be survey and what I believe the time to complete times my hourly fees.
The challenge that you're going to have getting usable data is that projects of the same type can be very different depending upon site size and conditions, details of the scope of work, governmental requirements, equipment & methods used, and regional wage & cost of living.
Getting cost comparisons for something like plumbing, other minor construction and home improvement services, auto repair and the like is far different because the amount of effort to accomplish any particular tsk can be much more easily standardized for those things. My mechanic uses a program that takes input of make/model/year/task, and it spits out typical parts costs from a regularly updated database, and labor time based on some standardized tables.
I think that what you're trying to get at would be useful, but you would need to develop a questionnaire that specifies certain parameters, asks for info such as typical terrain in the region the responder works in, equipment & methods, etc. You would also have to specify or ask about local government requirements and fees factored in to be able to compare both survey fees of one area to those of another, and to compare government meddling, um, I mean requirements and fees between different jurisdictions.
The closest thing I've seen to breaking down a survey project for costs along these lines is on the website for a Seattle area company. I think it was the company that Dan Beardslee is or was part owner of (IIRC). That on-line project estimator was for client use to get a rough estimate of what their project might cost and to show them how adding or subtracting certain scope items added to or reduced the cost. It sounds like for the data you want, you would need to take a model like that, gear it toward a professional response pool, and perhaps add some questions about wages, benefits, and charge rates.
To produce data of much use, you're going to have to spend a fair amount of time preparing a questionnaire designed to capture usable and comparable data. Then you'll have the challenge of finding enough surveyors willing to spend 30 or more minutes to fill it out and send it back.
Not saying that it can't be done or is not worth the effort. Just saying that it's going to require a lot more than posting 3 or 4 paragraphs to be able to get anything useful. Which is what Paden and AHarris said with less explanation.
Edit: A couple of replies since I started typing...
In the area I work in, and in most areas I've worked in the past, about the only things that might be able to be tagged with a standard cost are boundary surveys for lots in newer (1960s or more recent) residential subdivisions, and in some areas, elevation certificates. Pretty much everything else is subject to wide variation in cost due to a myriad of differing factors from site conditions to availability of records.
C.Tompkins, post: 444459, member: 975 wrote: Do you charge extra when you get into a job and find way more problems than solutions? How do you handle that?
Sent this out five minutes ago, Boundary survey on two adjoining 12 acres parcels - wooded and (for here anyway) steep
Payment: All the services outlined above will be performed at an hourly rate with an estimated budget of $7,900. Estimated budget assumes work will be performed when the trees are in leaf-off condition.
Note: Should initial land records research or field work indicate that the estimated fee would need to be substantially exceeded to complete the project, (insert firm name) will stop work and discuss options going forward with the client.
I've worked for quite a few firms over the years and have got a look at a lot of fee schedules. Frankly,they don't vary a great deal. Pay rates and benefit costs are more or less similar wherever you go. The reason that a lot boundary survey in OK is maybe $500 and a lot boundary survey in OR is more like $3k is that they are entirely different products with entirely different levels of effort.
C.Tompkins, post: 444459, member: 975 wrote: Do you charge extra when you get into a job and find way more problems than solutions? How do you handle that?
You write into the contract an assumption that all monuments called for in the deed or pertinent survey and plats are in place, accessible, and in substantial compliance with record dimensions.
C.Tompkins, post: 444459, member: 975 wrote: Do you charge extra when you get into a job and find way more problems than solutions? How do you handle that?
This one is simple. You, as the professional, are to price your job based on what you think it will take to get the job done. If you miss your mark and have more time in it, unless you are billing hourly, you take your lumps and eat the added cost. I usually will look at a project and if there is something sketchy with it, the fee gets bumped up for contingencies.
Tommy Young, post: 444471, member: 703 wrote: Generally speaking, lot surveys are $700 and 5 acre tracts run about $1000.
It's probably different where you are, but there is no way I could come up with a "general" price. Especially with GPS the size of a parcel has very little correlation with the effort required to survey it. I suppose that it would if considering two parcels created by the same surveyor in the same time period.
Mark Mayer, post: 444482, member: 424 wrote: I've worked for quite a few firms over the years and have got a look at a lot of fee schedules. Frankly,they don't vary a great deal. Pay rates and benefit costs are more or less similar wherever you go. The reason that a lot boundary survey in OK is maybe $500 and a lot boundary survey in OR is more like $3k is that they are entirely different products with entirely different levels of effort.
And for the most part you get what you pay for.
Typically firms use a 3 or 3.5 multiplier, I just left a 4 multuplier, that prices me out of small jobs, but makes a lot of profit on bigger jobs. Occasionally we would bill equipment and atv if we could, and always billed .70 a mile on trucks.
That being said, there are variables as all have mentioned.
Jon Collins, post: 444524, member: 11135 wrote: Occasionally we would bill equipment and atv if we could
That has oil & gas written all over it.
Tommy Young, post: 444471, member: 703 wrote: Generally speaking, lot surveys are $700 and 5 acre tracts run about $1000.
Uhhh...that's cheap.
dmyhill, post: 444530, member: 1137 wrote: Uhhh...that's cheap.
Uh, you don't work in Tennessee.
My Sherman Act appropriate response is my rates are based on how wide much the client grimaces when we talk cost.
dmyhill, post: 444530, member: 1137 wrote: Uhhh...that's cheap.
That's similar to Oklahoma rates. Not conceivable in any west coast jurisdiction. It's just a different game.
James Fleming, post: 444527, member: 136 wrote: That has oil & gas written all over it.
Good guess. Partially right, ND boom state mentality......but Water wastewater primarily.
The oil and gas companies have tightened their belts. The Bakken is a much more competitive market than it was just a couple of years ago.
