How to start a landscaping company

Pick the work you are good at and show it. A portfolio of three patios sells the fourth better than a list of twenty services.

Some states license landscape contractors, and some license irrigation work separately. Hardscape work like retaining walls can fall under contractor licensing, especially above a dollar amount, and taller walls may need a permit and an engineer. Our general contractor licensing guide shows how each state handles contractor licensing; then check for a landscape or irrigation license of its own.

Weed control, fertilizer with pesticides, and insect treatments are a separate gate. The EPA says state, territorial and tribal authorities certify pesticide applicators, and that many states require all commercial applicators to be certified, not only those using restricted-use products.

811 calls itself the free national before-you-dig service. Anyone who plans to dig should contact 811, or the state 811 center's website, before digging, to have the approximate location of buried utilities marked with paint or flags. Plantings, posts, drainage and walls all mean digging, so make the 811 ticket part of every job's start, and keep the ticket number with the job.

The SBA lists the launch steps in this order: pick a location, choose a structure, choose a name, register, get federal and state tax ID numbers, apply for licenses and permits, open a business bank account, and get insurance. For a landscaping company working out of a truck, the location is usually your home address and the area you will serve.

• Structure. A sole proprietorship is the simplest. An LLC keeps the business separate on paper. Ask an accountant which fits your state and your plans.
• Tax ID. The IRS gives out an employer identification number (EIN) online, and says you never have to pay a fee for one. Websites that charge for an EIN are not the IRS.
• Self-employment tax. The IRS lists the self-employment tax rate as 15.3%: 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare. Income tax comes on top, so set money aside from every job.
• Bank account. Open it before the first payment lands, so every dollar in and out is easy to find at tax time.

Your name goes on the truck, the invoices, the Google profile and the yard signs, so pick it once. The free landscaping name generator gives 36 ideas for your town and style, each with a domain idea, and lists the checks to run before you commit: your state's business name search, a federal trademark search and the domain itself.

The SBA describes general liability insurance as cover for financial loss from bodily injury, property damage, medical expenses and defending lawsuits. It says businesses with employees are required to carry workers' compensation, unemployment and disability insurance, and some states ask for more.

Hitting a buried line, damaging a driveway with equipment, and a wall that moves are the claims to plan for. Ask your agent about general liability, commercial auto for trucks and trailers, and inland marine or equipment cover for machines and tools. Commercial clients and HOAs will want a certificate.

No total here on purpose. What you spend depends on what you already own, new or used, and how much work you plan to take on. Price your own list with a local supplier, then put the numbers in the startup cost table of the free business plan template, which adds them up for you.

• A truck and a dump or utility trailer
• Shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows, a sod cutter and edging tools
• A plate compactor and saw for hardscapes (buy or rent per job)
• A skid steer or mini excavator, usually rented until the work is steady
• Laser level or transit for grading and walls
• Safety gear: eye and hearing protection, gloves, boots

Heavy equipment is the swing. Renting by the day keeps startup costs down and the rental shows up as a line on each job's price.

Price projects as material plus labor plus equipment plus profit. Measure first: the free satellite measuring tool gives bed and lawn areas from above, and the lawn square footage calculator helps with sod and seed. Work out your crew's hourly cost with the labor rate calculator, mark up material with the markup calculator, and add rental days as their own line.

Say in writing what you guarantee on plants and for how long, and what the customer must do (watering, mostly). Unwritten plant warranties are where landscapers lose money.

• Show your work. Before and after photos on your Google profile and website, by project type.
• Real estate and builders. New homes need yards; listings need curb appeal.
• Your maintenance customers. If you mow too, your route is your best project lead list. Koira texts past customers when spring planting season starts.
• The neighbors. A new patio or front bed gets noticed. Koira mails nearby homes with the photo.
• Follow up on every bid. Koira nudges open estimates so a project does not go quiet.

Send options the customer can sign and take a deposit that covers material. For larger projects, bill in stages tied to milestones. Offer financing on patios and walls. When it is done, invoice and ask for the review.

Mix project work with maintenance so the crew has steady hours. Add a design service when you can show finished work. Read how lawn and landscape companies run on Koira.