Lol not sure who dave ramsey is but again, its more about i am GOING to find a way out of the car business. This is just the first thing that has actually interested me enough to consider. I could live on 50-60k comfortably. I dont need health insurance as i am on my wifes plan. I have no retirement now as i jave spent the majority of it on racing quads with my son lol. I see people making a good living doing it, so im confident i can do it. I just need to learn as much as i can about it to see if i WANT to do it. Honestly my biggest obstacle after getring establishes in my pretty much baseless opinion, lol, is what ro do during rhe winter months.
2 Likes
Do what the rest of us do. Clamor for work. Lol
If you live where its cold keep in mind. Youāll have to do the 75 in 9 months instead of 12. This is why we work so much in season.
Running this type of business isnāt as easy as it looks from the outside. It seems lile outsiders just the the dollar amount not the whole moriad of back end issues that we have to deal with to make a run of this.
I always say to myself. Window cleaning was a last resort. Lol. A damn good last resort. Lol
1 Like
Well, that was really big story to read. I am kinda lazy person to go through!
Lol. I warned ya! I think there is some potential. I dont see much for competition in towns within an hour in any direction, aside from the Des Moines area of course. There are a few, mainly one per town of 7-20k people, but most habe no website, or reviews on google etc to speak of. Gonna keep learning and researching.
Here is another question. Has anyone taken a small business or equity loan to supplement for slow startup? I wouldnt really want to do that but just curious if anyone has done it. Obviously there is no need to do that in order to buy tools or supplies, but it could be an asset i assume to get you through the early stages while you accumulate business.
dont overthink it-but do overdo it - i read that years ago on this very forum. its the gospel for window cleaning
your situation reminds me vaguely of a thread i also read years ago where somebody was asking did anyone know of any rich guy [Barrister type/ landed gentry ] that gave it all up to go and be a window cleaner ?
nobody did ,suprisingly
youre not landed gentry by the sounds,but youre the next best thing . have you got your squeegee yet?
3 Likes
Lol. I over think EVERYTHING so my wife says. I am so obsessed with being prepared for everything that sometimes i forget to enjoy things. I KNOW i CAN be successful wether i start a lawncare business, a real estate business, an Avon business, or a window cleaning business, it all comes down to what im willing to give up, especially initially, to get to where i want to be. That is my struggle.
Hurry up and slow down?
1 Like
Iām in Davenport, Iām 36, and Iāve done this for about 12 years, the last 7.5 on my own. I also have excellent health and a high fitness background geared around distance running which I feel has greatly helped me succeed in this work.
I would be surprised if there isnāt much competition in DM. Iāve met window cleaners from there. In the QC we have 5 legitimate WC companies, 3 or 4 legitimate PW companies, and a handful of under-the-radar businesses. DM is slightly bigger, so I would guess the competition would be as well. There are also many companies in IC.
That doesnāt mean you canāt do it. It just means it wonāt be easy. No disrespect, but 10-12 hour days are the norm when you are starting up. But instead of simply being mentally worn out, you will be physically exhausted as well.
We have income from mid-March until mid-December (provided you clean gutters, too), with a pretty heavy slow down just before school starts in August. Once you get into snow removal, you will be competing against not just window cleaners and pressure washers, but also landscaping companies. If you donāt do snow removal, youāll need to have your commercial business built up. If you have neither, your income WILL go to zero in January and February.
Another huge advantage I had was that my wife and I started this business together. Though she no longer works in the business, without her wholehearted support, it surely would have failed. There was so much to learn starting out, and her input was priceless. I know it was priceless because she never got paid for it 
The moral of the story is this: most of us on here would be very happy with a $75K/year job. Especially one where you can clock out and walk away at the end of the day. There are immense rewards for pursuing this line of work. And there is a deep sense of satisfaction in building your own business. However, it isnāt cheap, and it isnāt easy.
Please understand that in no way am I trying to insult you or your dreams. However, since we are in similar cities so close to each other, I feel like i do have some insight. There is very little chance youāll be able to replace that income in the first couple of years without heavy investment. I believe you could certainly get to $40-$50K in a couple of years with minimal investment. However, you will most likely work longer hours than you do now. And the toll on your body will be much greater.
I know Iām rambling at this point, but keep in mind that most of the āeasyā commercial jobs are taken by every other guy that just grabbed a squeegee and went down the street. Even in the QC where I am, 2 of the 3 biggest companies have completely changed their business models in the last 5 years to focus on residential. Why? Because they werenāt making the living they wanted on commercial.
So my advice is the same as everyone else. Get some equipment and practice. And then imagine spending years working harder but making less than you make now. Money isnāt everything, and most of us Window cleaners will agree on that. However, can you afford to make $20-$30K less for years?
And finally, how does your wife feel about it? Does she want less money coming in combined with increased insurance liabilities? What about you having to take time on the evenings and weekends to work or write emails? What about you deciding that you canāt take vacations in the spring and fall anymore because you canāt afford the irreplaceable loss of income? Is your family okay with all of this?
If the answer is yes, then go for it!
5 Likes
Now THAT is a response! Thank you very much for taking all the time to post that. That is exactly what i needed to help me see the reality of it all. Being a parts manager at a dealership is not only the most demanding position in the building, it is a never ending day. I do not punch in and out at any specific time. I get bothered on weekends, vacations, at night, etc. I rarely am able to go anywhere to get lunch. It is one huge nightmare after another every day and getting worse all the time. I have come to the conclusion that i have to find a better way or i will be absolutely miserable and it will cost me way more in the end. My wife is scared to death when i bring up the idea of any type of business. She is so used to the steady amouny of money. However she also realizes that me being so stressed and hating my job is not healthy and that i need to figure out a way to make a change. I was actually looking at staying away from Des Moines and focusing on a circle from Indianola to k knoxville, oskaloosa, down towards Ottumwa, over to albia and chariton, then osceola and winterset. I live in southeastern Warren county anout 13 miles southeast of Indianola. All withing an hour and a half or so each way from home. I was thinking going the more rural areas could open up a lot more variois services like junk hauling/cleanup, some mowing and heck even some small exterior painting like fences, sheds, decks etc. Like i said im just tossing ideas around and maybe nothing will come of it. I really appreciate having you all to bounce ideas off of.
2 Likes
Now thatāll be 3.99 per monthā¦
2 Likes
Cheapest therapy Iāve found yet!
If your wife is concerned about the financial challenges associated with a startup (and rightly so!) then buying a pre-existing business and/or routes looks like a strong option. I speculate that a significant number of service businesses that come up for sale are available for reasonable prices (after some negotiating of course) and that they have significant room for improvement with new ownership/management.
If you decide to go this route I recommend once again to get financing while you still have your current job/income stream.
You will notice that none of the respondents to this thread recommend buying a franchise. Giving a lot of your hard earned $ over the course of many months and years to another business is just silly, especially if you will be focusing on rural communities where word of mouth and establishing a good reputation rules.
Thanks HMB! I hadnāt given much thought to buying an existing business. That deserves sone research. I am 99.9% against buying into any franchise.
1 Like
How can we help you get that extra .1%? Find any alternative to franchises.
2 Likes
The .1 comes in after i have loads of money just as investment options so probably never see that .1% lol
Fordguy, I donāt know much about window cleaning but if you have any interest looking into Pressure washing I would be glad to visit with you. I am in a very completive market (Houston TX) and do very well. I spent some time on Google looking at pressure washing in Des Moines and there seems to be good potential there. If you are interested send mean email and Iāll give yo a call.
Robbie Miller
Quality Pressure Washing of Houston
[email protected]
Bonefish, yes that is on my radar as well. More start up cost, and i wondered about environmental issues, chemicals, licenses etc. Heck i see people are making money washung roofs. I didnt even kniw people did such a thing lol. Ill shoot you an email and its greatly appreciated!
Well said!
So would this be a good buy to get started just doing friends and family on the weekends?
