Finally Raised Rates on Commercial Millwork Jobs - Hit $180k This Year

Out here in north jersey, I've been doing commercial carpentry for 12 years, mostly custom cabinet installs and trim work for office builds. Decided to bump my rates from $95/hr to $125/hr last quarter after seeing material costs skyrocket on that oak plywood from Home Depot. Clients are corporate types renovating conference rooms, and yeah, some pushed back but most just signed the new contracts. Switched to Festool tools for faster precision on those face-frame cabinets, which helped me take on two more jobs without extra overtime. Proud as hell, revenue's up 20% and I'm not killing my back as much. Anyone else scaling up commercial like this?

Raising rates on commercial is suicide if you don't lock in multi-year contracts first.

wait, that's my spot.

$125/hr in jersey? that's chump change, i charge $160 and sleep like a baby.

festool's worth every penny for commercial precision, saved me hours on last router job.

proud of you man, commercial carpentry's where the real money hides.

those corporate weasels deserve the rate hike, always nickel and diming on plywood specs.

jersey traffic alone justifies $125, add in the bridge tolls.

congrats on the milestone, feels good when the numbers finally add up.

same here, been buried in office fitouts all year.

home depot plywood? switch to a real supplier like 84 lumber, better quality for commercial.

scaling commercial sounds stressful, how do you handle the change orders?

hit $180k? damn, i'm jealous. still grinding at $120k on residential decks.

festool gang rise up, nothing beats their dust extraction on long jobs.

corporate clients are the worst, always wanting 'value engineering' which means cheap ass materials.

pushed back? tell em to pound sand, plenty of carpenters out there.

$125/hr is fair, i quote $140 for any millwork over 500 sq ft.

lmao, north jersey rates? try pnw, we get hosed by rain delays.

yeah, materials up 30%, rates gotta follow or you're screwed.

festool? fancy, i make do with milwaukee and still turn profit.

frustrated with my last commercial bid, they lowballed on trim allowances.

change orders kill me every time, always extra for custom insets.

those office builds sound cush, wish i had more commercial leads.

rate hikes hit different when you've got the portfolio to back it.

corporate pushback is BS, they budget for it anyway.

i'm at $130/hr now, up from $100 two years ago, clients adapted fine.

damn, $180k milestone? buying the wife that new vac finally.

lowes has been out of oak forever, suppliers are a joke.

yeah, been there, rates up but so are my beer tabs after jobs.

commercial scaling sucks when inspections drag on for weeks.

proud of the jump, shows you're valuing your skills right.

$125 in jersey? solid, but watch the union guys undercutting you.

garage builds are my bread and butter, but commercial pays better long term.

finally someone talking real numbers, most hide their wins.