<HTML><HEAD></HEAD> <BODY> Yeah...in 1974 I was charging $20/tuning and I was= the highest.   Time to check what the local= tradespersons get for plumbing, electrical and make sure your= not selling yourself short.   You might be surprised= how many people thing the most expensive must be the= best... David Ilvedson ...   ----- Original message= ----------------------------------------> From: Avery Todd= <<A href="mailto:avery@ev1.net">avery@ev1.net</A>> To:= Pianotech <<A= href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A>> Rec= eived: Fri, 16 Jul 2004 18:57:52 -0500 Subject: Re: hr rate;= complete regulation of the grand piano Julia, I understand that you have to= "live with" the market you're in. But that price now-a-days,= is totally unbelievable! When I moved to Houston 12 yrs.= ago, I'd been charging $45.00 in a small town in West Texas= and I was the highest priced tuner in town. But thanks to= tuning for the symphony and the university there, I was able to= get it. Others were charging as little as $19.00!= When I got to the university here, my predecessor had= been charging $65.00 for an off-campus tuning, so I went up= to that. I'm now charging (for a couple of yrs. now) $85.00= and should probably charge more. Several in town are.= Good luck on getting your prices up to where they= "should" be! Avery At 02:26 PM 7/16/04, you= wrote: <BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite">Greetings,       &nb= sp;      I live 52 miles west of= Philadelphia. I charge $35-$40 plus parts. If the client is more= than say, 15 miles out of town, I charge an extra $10 non-local= travel fee. I have been doing this business for about 16 months.= I get about 3-4 appointments a week. I am told that my prices= are reasonable. This has gotten my foot in the door at several= area schools and= churches.         &nb= sp;      I suppose when the demand for= my services goes up, so will my rates. This area is tough, its= 'Pennsylvania Dutch Country', and the poeple are always looking= for a bargain...they're tough. Julia= Gottchall, Reading, PA </BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>