IT Project Manager Contract Position in San Fran Help?

[DanGarion]

This might be way out there but I know a lot of you guys know a lot of stuff. I have a friend that is going to be doing a contract out in San Fran for a large utility type company. He knows nothing about San Fran (he's in NY) and is trying to figure out what type of hard hourly rate he should tell them.

about a five month contract and they need a hard hourly rate from me tomorrow. I will be in charge of all my expenses and because I do not know how short term rentals work in San Francisco, I do not want to underprice myself.
Would $180/hour be too little for a project manager on a software install, upgrade and config or am I way off the mark on what the market would sustain?

Anyone have some suggestions I can give him? Or if you want to hit me up on Facebook I can maybe hook you two up so you can talk with him? Any help is appreciated.

[DanGarion]

Personally I've never worked contract work, so I really don't have any gauge to give him, but I know we have some smart guys around here.

He says looking on Craigslist rent is looking like $1500+/month. And using public transportation, maybe buy a bike out there instead of shipping mine out too.

[jeff061]

Really don't know how relevant this is. In New England we generally charge our clients about 160-190/hr and pay 100-120 if we are subbing to a contractor. If there's an agency involved that changes things as well.

[jeff061]

1600/month in San Fran seems unrealistically low...no? Is that pretty much a closet?

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by jeff061

1600/month in San Fran seems unrealistically low...no? Is that pretty much a closet?

I agree, that seems low. I just told him that.

[DanGarion]

He said he's looking to just rent a room.

And he's paying for everything, including my own EQ, as well as travel.

[Buccaneer]

According to GSA, the per diem for just food and lodging in SF is $226. For 5 months, that's hefty but at least that's a published guideline.

[DanGarion]

I think he is going to just use his estimate based on what his estimate would be if the job was in Manhattan. Any suggestions or input are appreciated. Thanks in advance, I'll send him the like to this post later.

[cartman]

Back in the '98-2000 time frame we had no problem getting $225/hr for contract work in the Bay Area. If he is doing the work for PG&E, that was a client of ours, so I might be able to provide a little more detailed info.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

This might be way out there but I know a lot of you guys know a lot of stuff. I have a friend that is going to be doing a contract out in San Fran for a large utility type company. He knows nothing about San Fran (he's in NY) and is trying to figure out what type of hard hourly rate he should tell them.



Anyone have some suggestions I can give him? Or if you want to hit me up on Facebook I can maybe hook you two up so you can talk with him? Any help is appreciated.

180 feels about right. Unless he's bringing technical skills to the table? That should equate to about 300K a year which is certainly enough to live on as a single person.

[jeff061]

-vaca/holiday, -benefits and making enough on top of that to put a lot cash away, contract work is extremely volatile.

Still may be enough, but 180/hr doesn't equal 300k with benefits

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by jeff061

-vaca/holiday, -benefits and making enough on top of that to put a lot cash away, contract work is extremely volatile.

Still may be enough, but 180/hr doesn't equal 300k with benefits

It equals almost exactly that on the top which is all i was saying. Maybe a lot more if you bill o/t. Even subtracting out paying for your own benefits its a very comfortable situation, especially if you don't have to support anyone else or buy a home.

The situation isn't nearly as volatile in SF as elsewhere. I think unemployment in the tech sector is somewhere around 2.5%.

[DanGarion]

Thanks everyone, he's very appreciative of your input.

[finketr]

I don't think I'd go back to doing contract work unless I absolutely had to. For example, current employment evaporates which would be quite shocking.

[jeff061]

I've always avoided contract. I'm not much for volatility with my paycheck and It's easier to work your way up the ladder as a full timer(if you want to). I'd rather work towards moving into a position that gets me contract pay as a full time employee.

But lot of people out there thrive on the contract work, traveling the country.