Home-based lawn equipment hire
Hire out mowers, trimmers and hedge cutters by the day or weekend from your shed or garage.
- A$3k-12k
- Side hustle
- From home
Estimates for a small start in Australia, not guarantees.
What it is
A small hire fleet of garden machines such as mowers, whipper snippers, hedge trimmers, blowers and pressure washers, stored at home. Customers book, then collect the gear or you deliver it with a ute or trailer.
Your first three steps
- Check local hire prices and pick 4 to 6 popular machines to start with
- Check with your council about running a home-based business, and arrange public liability insurance that covers hired-out equipment
- Write simple hire terms with a bond and damage policy, then list your gear on Facebook Marketplace, Google Business Profile and a simple booking page
Who pays
Homeowners with a one-off big tidy-up, renters, landlords, and small tradies or gardeners who need extra machines for a job.
How it makes money
Daily, weekend and weekly hire rates per machine, plus a refundable bond, optional delivery fees and extras like fuel, blades or cutting line.
Skills that help
- Basic small-engine maintenance
- Safe machine handling and demonstration
- Organised booking and record keeping
- Friendly customer service
Watch out for
- Council approval for a home-based business, including customer visits, noise and storage rules
- Public liability and product liability insurance, and whether it covers injuries from hired machines
- Safety: give a quick demo, supply safety gear or guidance, and keep machines serviced and records of checks
- Theft and damage, so use a bond, ID check and secure storage
- Safely storing fuel and transporting machines, check local rules
Deep research report · Australia
Everything you need to start: home-based lawn equipment hire
Researched with live web search for Australia: real startup prices, the licences and rules, what others charge, a break-even example, how to find your first customers and a 30-day launch plan. With sources.
- Startup costs with real prices
- Licences, registration and rules
- Pricing: what others charge
- Break-even example
- Finding your first customers
- 30-day launch plan
- Risks and how to reduce them
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to start a lawn equipment hire business?
Startup costs are typically around $3,000 to $12,000, depending on how many machines you buy, your trailer or ute needs, insurance and storage. These are estimates, so price your own starting fleet.
What rules should I check before hiring out machines from home?
Check council approval for a home-based business, including customer visits, noise and storage rules. Also check public liability and product liability cover, safe fuel storage and transport, and your plan for safety demos, servicing records, bonds and ID checks.
How much revenue can home-based equipment hire make?
Monthly revenue is typically around $600 to $3,000, depending on your range of machines, how often they are booked and your hire prices. Estimates start at about 5 hours a week. Revenue is not profit.
Other ways to run this business
Similar home services ideas
Garden design and project manager
Design a garden, then coordinate the landscapers and trades who build it for the client.
- A$3k-12k
- Part-time
- Out and about
Home render and repair specialist
Render and repair walls for homeowners: fences, retaining walls, facades and cracked or tired render.
- A$2.5k-12k
- Side hustle
- Out and about
Home asbestos inspection and sampling
Visit older homes, take samples of suspect materials and send them to a lab so owners know what they're dealing with.
- A$4k-12k
- Part-time
- Out and about
Irrigation maintenance for strata and businesses
Keep watering systems running at units, businesses and grounds with regular checks, repairs and seasonal tune-ups.
- A$3k-12k
- Side hustle
- Out and about
Subcontract water damage drying technician
Start small by doing drying and monitoring jobs for plumbers, builders and larger restoration firms.
- A$3k-12k
- Side hustle
- Out and about
Mobile commercial microwave repair
Drive to cafes, pubs, bakeries and offices to fix their microwaves on site, so they get back to work quickly.
- A$3k-12k
- Part-time
- Out and about