Jump to content

is there a ratio to charge for kit rental?


Recommended Posts

I am getting a lot of various gear in my kit and trying to find a reasonable amount to charge production. I have over $1,200 worth of marks, charts, tools, bags and measurement equipment. I have been charging $100 a week, but I wonder if I can get more. Is there a ratio to figure it out? I am about to buy a cart and want to know how much that will add to my kit rental.

 

In short how much do you all charge for your kit rental both daily and weekly? And what does that get production i.e. Basic kit, cart, filters, and the like.

 

Thanks,

 

Erik Gunnar Mortensen

Mostly 2nd AC and Sometimes 1st

LA, CA

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Premium Member
I Is there a ratio to figure it out? I am about to buy a cart and want to know how much that will add to my kit rental.

 

In short how much do you all charge for your kit rental both daily and weekly? And what does that get production i.e. Basic kit, cart, filters, and the like.

 

Gday Erik.

 

Most rental companies work to a rule of thumb that is 100 days rental should pay back the cost of the equipment. So take your total cost, then divide by 100. That should be the daily rate. Of course that is just a beginning and some things go for a lot more (filters etc) and some less. But that's usually where they start.

 

Also, most rental companies also offer 3 or day day weeks, so it sometimes take a little longer to hit your 100 days !

 

All the best..

 

jb

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am getting a lot of various gear in my kit and trying to find a reasonable amount to charge production.

 

Hello Gunnar: Everyone uses a different approach and a lot depends on the cost and availability of the item. I've typically seen 5% of the cost of the item as a daily rental fee but there is nothing written in stone. The 100 days formula doesn't add up right for me on things like cameras, lenses and electronics. After 100 days in rental you're going to have a lot of wear and tear on equipment as well as normal "non-billable" service and repair work. I'm not talking about damage that is billable back to the renter.

 

My HVX200 packages go out for $650 a day including P2 cards, P2 Store, Firestore, mattebox, rods, basic 4x5 filters, focus / zoom, batteries, tripod etc. I have about $25k invested in each package so in this case I'm only getting 2.6% but it seems to be a competitive rate and they were both out over 200 days each in the first 12 months I owned them.

 

On the other hand, I have about $100k invested in my Steadicam kit and sometimes you'd think Production is going to die when I ask $800 - $1,200 for daily kit rental, PLUS my day rate for ten hours. That's like 1% so in that case it would take 100 days to pay for it. But, I am the operator and it gets tender lovin' care compared to normal rental gear. The ONLY way my rig would go out is to a fellow Steadicam owner/operator who is in a bind or in need. On a smaller scale I get $35-50 a day to rent out my extra camera cart which is a Magliner JR with shelves. It's 15 years old and has way more than paid for itself about 10x over.

 

The ACs here will know the going rate and what is customary for your items but some items are "tools of the trade" and they may not hold any rental value other than you're expected to have them to work professionally.

 

You can always ask for a higher rate and negotiate down. One thing someone pointed out to me is in negotiation on jobs that if you drop any rate it should be your kit rental if you have to but not your hourly/day rate. The reason is that you get over-time after X hours but kit rental does not.

 

Robert Starling, SOC

Steadicam Owner Operator

Las Vegas

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...