Opening up for boarders. Trying to figure out what to charge

[mamaberry2190]

Hey horsey friends! My husband and I are in the process of building a few paddocks to take in some boarders in central Florida. I would love some input on what I should charge for board. Here's what I've got:
Three Large paddocks 100x150' with a 12x24' lean- to
Two horses per paddock
Large arena 100x200
Round pen 60ft in diameter
Tack room
Parking area
Gazebo with table and chair for relaxing
- I would like to provide hay and grain
Coastal hay fed twice a day
Grain (thinking of safe choice) fed twice a day
FULL CARE: I'll be feeding, watering, cleaning paddocks ect

I am about 7 minutes from a popular show ground, close to two major highway and and I'm also about a mile and a half off of a major roadway. And feedback is very much appreciated!

 

[CrazedCowgirl]

Have you tried going to the Craigslist page for your area and seeing what other barns around you are charging? The price for full care should be whatever your break even point is per horse per month. ( hay+shavings+feed+your time and energy = board price) in Oregon, full board runs anywhere from $285 to $350 per month depending on features you have at your barn and how close you are to show or fair grounds.

How many stalls/runs or horses are you planning on taking in for boarders?

 

[mamaberry2190]

I'm planning on starting with 6. Two horses per paddock. I've look through craigslist, Facebook and googled several place in my area and prices vary so much. I want to make sure that I am reasonably priced. I was thinking anywhere between $250-300, which seems pretty fair for where I am. Obviously I don't want to overprice myself and not bring anyone in, but I also don't want to undercharge and loose money

 

[CrazedCowgirl]

Do all the barns around you have the same features you do? If so, I'd start your price in the middle and if you find it isn't working out, talk to your boarders and see if they would either mind helping out by covering some of the work (PM feeding, weekly rotations on mucking paddocks etc...) or if they would mind if you raised board by $15 or $20.

Make sure you give a visual of your monthly expenses if you ask to raise board. A lot of people just don't understand how expensive it is to care for someone else's horses. Make sure you include how much of your time it takes up for how much per hr you pay someone to do the work for you.

This one small thing has saved me a ton of boarders who had thought of leaving because I decided to raise my prices. I update a spreadsheet quarterly so it's always up to date. I've had some of the same boarders now for almost 8 yrs. I'm pretty flexible with them too. If they're having a tight month due to a new job or something like that, I also let them work off their board. Always things to do at the barn.

Good luck!!