The business of running a small studio?

Yeah , thanks !

Thats it. I just cant find a scanner big enough for the blueprints.. hehe.
I will be taking many photos next Tuesday. I just want to get rid of all the crap thats accumulated down there over the build (heaters, Scraps, insualtion, a half set of stairs/pressure treated lumber (salvaged for my deck). The basic studio is in the attachement. This is not the entire basement space, just the part where the studio is located.

If theres any advice you can give let me know !
 
I just wanted to let everyone know that I am running a very small commercial studio and I don't have a day job to support it. I am the only employee.

My costs (commercial and living) are as follows:

Rent (studio): $300/m
Utilities (studio): $300/m
Maintenance (studio): $100/m
Rent (apartment) $225/m (675 split 3-ways)
Utilities (apartment) $60/m (180 split 3-ways)
Car (insurance/payments) $150/m
OTHER: $300

Total Monthly Living/Operating expense: $1435

I charge $25/h at the studio. I operate approx. 35 hours a week.

This comes out to $3500 a month before taxes.

After taxes and any other costs I forgot about, maybe $2500.

I have about $1065 left over each month.

I graduated with a bachelors degree in graphic design a year ago, and I had been running the studio part-time in a smaller space that was basically free. After graduation I decided to completely ignore my 6 years spent at college and do what I love and do the studio full-time. I found a new space to rent and did about $2000 in renovations and opened up in August. I don't make a ton of money, but I enjoy what I do a lot. My last job before this was in the produce dept. at a grocery store for 5 years and I hated it. Not having a boss and being able to make my own schedule is great.

People have been telling me that I should raise my prices because other commercial studios around here charge $35-60/h and my stuff sounds better, so I might be raising the cost to $30/h in a few months, but I am really hesitant. It almost seems like I would be cheating people because I love what I do. The best advertisement I have found is word-of-mouth. I am getting 4-7 bands a month and they each go out and tell other bands. Almost every band I get in has been referred by another band that I have already recorded. I pretty much do absolutely no advertising.
 
So I'm glad this thread was bumped, because I've never seen it before. I'm currently looking into doing one of the SAE Garage conversions at my home out in the country. It's mainly going to be for my own personal use, my band's use, and possibly some friends. I just have one main question. What exactly is involved in running a business out of your home in a residential area? I do plan on finding some way to make a profit out of it, and hopefully at least move down to part-time (if not fully quit) my day job, but I don't want someone knocking on my door with a 10K fine. We are out in the country, outside city limits in Guilford County, and have approximately 100 yards between our house and our closest neighbor (the other side is about 1/2 mile to a church, so I don't see them being bothered too much unless my "clients" use their parking or some such nonsense). Any advice? The studio is going to be built one way or another, but I would like to know what my options are in the future for opening it for possible commercial use.
 
Back in the thread again....

Hey People...

Someday, I'd like to start my own small recording/video/media studio. I understand that there are zoning laws about running a business, of this sort, out of your home, within city limits.

My question is whether or not these rules would apply to a home-based studio, outside of city limits... I'm thinking of doing this, somewhere in the area near me...

The idea is to buy a pre-existing farm, with house and a little plot of land. I would lease the land/outbuildings to area farmers and utilize the house for my living quarters and business.

Having a large farm house, might be an attractive option, from a high-end studio standpoint. Not that it would be "international", right off the bat (I'm talking generations from now :p ). But, in time, I could fix up "guest rooms", for international clients to stay in, while their project is being worked on (possibly hiring a staff to help out with the associated upkeep).

Buying a plot of land, in the country (less noise/traffic/crime), and building just the studio, seems the more attractive option, in the short term. Your thoughts on this?

Thanks,
Peritus

P.S. I'm speaking VERY long term here.. So, please bear with me, on the pessimism scale..
 
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