Hello, I’m interested in starting my own Window Cleaning business. I have plenty of time off from my regular job with three to four days off a week including Saturdays. I would start with working out of my truck and eventually add an enclosed trailer with pressure washing equipment.
My idea is to start with window cleaning and add services to keep me busy on my days off throughout the year, however, Albuquerque has very mild seasonal weather so I don’t know if I might be able to stay busy year round. My goal is to quit my regular job after two to three years.
Questions:
Would you recommend S corp from the beginning?
Aside from pressure washing, which I would add, which services would you offer?
Which business software is most common for book keeping?
Hello and welcome to the forum! I went to UNM 94-96 and I really liked NM, especially the food!
I use Freshbooks, it is very user friendly. A lot of forumites use The Customer Factor. Quick books has a lot of options but might be overkill for a mom and pop operation.
My business is an S Corp. it is a good fit for owner operators.
Additional services: might be a good idea to just focus on WC and PW and learn from your clients what their additional needs are before making additional investments.
I’ve been in Albuquerque since 98. The food is outstanding! I’ll check out Freshbooks. Thanks for the reply!
On another note, it seems I notice windows everywhere I go now. I just went to Subway for lunch and their windows looked terrible. I asked the employee if anyone cleans their windows and she said, “No. We used to, but he quit coming by. We try to do it ourselves, but we can’t reach them too well.” There are at least 6 other businesses in that small plaza, including a Starbucks and a Village Inn and not including the surrounding banks and hotels.
Seems like there is definitely a need in the market and that is less than three miles from my house. Exciting.
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Albuquerque has very mild seasonal weather so I don’t know if I might be able to stay busy year round. My goal is to quit my regular job after two to three years. [/quote]
Naw, Albuquerque is great. Storefronts and commercial go all year. Houses drop off from Dec-March.
I’m an LLC.
Pressure washing and window cleaning can make you bank. I don’t do pressure washing since that’s mostly off hours, but if you want to work super early or super late, pw is good money.
We use quickbooks, but you could get by with xero, freshbooks or just about any of them. The biggest pain in the butt is gross receipts.
Get The Customer Factor for scheduling and it’ll sync with quickbooks not sure what else it will sync too but that’ll save you a LOT of time on your books.
Some observations:
Subways are eh. If you’re a regular in one you might get it, but I know the owners of a few of them and they just won’t spring for window cleaning. I had one for about a year but they dropped it a couple months ago.
Starbucks are locked up with one window cleaner who does ALL of them (like 37 of them from los lunas to santa fe). I personally wouldn’t go after them because they’re a pain - have to do them all, can only get inside during business hours, and don’t pay too well.
That being said, there’s plenty of glass out there. I’ve just gotten old and lazy and don’t like leaving the truck for anything less than $25. You could easily start at a $15 minimum/$2 per pane in/out.
Houses are excellent money. Just be professional, get some estimate sheets, a uniform and look good and you won’t have any problems getting houses.
Great! Thanks for the feedback. Nice product, by the way! If you aren’t too busy, maybe we can grab lunch sometime. I’m just scratching the surface on all the info, but it would be nice to pick an experienced brain.
