How much to charge for lease?

[hannahwdel2101]

Ok so I own a hunter jumper barn in Kentucky. We have 15 school horse and ponies for full and half lease. I know that the lease price varies from horse to horse but I just want an estimate for what to charge. Most of our horses can jump 3 ft and most of our ponies have either gone to Pony finals or qualified this year. I need prices for of 6 lease options:
12mo full lease:
6mo full lease:
3mo full lease:
12mo half lease:
6mo half lease:
3mo half lease:

With a full lease you get 4 hacks and one lesson, and rights to show the horse whenever.
With a half lease you get 2 hacks and one lesson.
Also, for board we charge $1000

[hunterrider23]

1/3 of estimated value for one year full (however this rule normally applies to full leases that do not include lessons, and you have full control of horse, no set limit on hack days etc. Then subdivide that for any other period of time. Half lease would be 1/6 value.

[Snowfox]

I charge 20% of what the price of the horse would be if I sold her due at the start of the lease, then charge board. They pay for blacksmith and worming and any vet bills that occur because of their riding or management. Any other kids of vet bills I pay for. I only do 12 month full lease. If they are new to horse leasing/ownership I put them in as many lessons as they need until they are able to manage on their own, after that they get 2 lessons a week + hacks. (lessons are at additional cost)The horse is exclusively theirs for the length of the lease.

[ElementFarm]

I just leased out my AO horse at 25% of her value, for the year.
For an in-barn lease though, where you retain a lot of the control (and are already making money off board/lessons/show expenses) I would think you’d charge less. For my last barn, 1/2 lease was approximately half the price of board+shoes+vet, and was used as a stepping stone (ie. not scary-expensive) for lessons students familes to venture into horse ownership. For Full lease of a pony finals type that will stay in your program, I’d guess 5-10% of the ponies’ value per year, plust you charge standard rates for all the board, services, etc (billed directly by the month/service) not rolled into the lease rate.
Just my thoughts.

[westie55]

[QUOTE=ElementFarm;7269641]
For Full lease of a pony finals type that will stay in your program, I’d guess 5-10% of the ponies’ value per year, plust you charge standard rates for all the board, services, etc (billed directly by the month/service) not rolled into the lease rate.
Just my thoughts.[/QUOTE]

Prices do vary from area to area and based on individual circumstances, but for a “pony finals type” pony we are talking about one who can get champion at A shows. My opinion is that to charge 5-10% of the pony’s value for a lease fee is extremely generous and not industry standard in my experience. It is not uncommon for a top pony to be leased for 50% of its value per year.

To me, a full lease allows unrestricted access to the horse. The only real difference is the horse is not owned and must be returned at the end of the contract. A full lease fee of approx. 30% is normally charged on top of all other expenses.

Half leases in my area are normally half board plus half shoes. This entitles riders to 3 rides per week and priority to get to ride that horse in lessons and shows.

[ElementFarm]

westie55. I agree that a traditional lease (off farm, off program) is generally 25-50% of the horse’s value. I think though, that if OP is looking for current students who will stay in the program, and pay full board, lessons, show expenses, it might make sense to make prices competitive so they lease from OP instead of one other programs specializing in PHs. I would take a financial cut to keep my horse in my program, where I control how much it jumps, how it’s shod, etc. The prices for off-farm leases are higher (in my opinion) partly because we’re giving up control. My horse can come back in a year with a stop, or a suspensory issue, or whatever. I agree a 10%-of-value would be a fantastic deal for the leasor, but the OP gets a lot of out the deal too (since board and training expenses are direct income) And afterall, 10% is quite a bit if you’re talking something competitive at PF level. I guess a consideration is if OP wants to lease horses to make money, or is trying to maximize participation of current lossoners and financial gain of current horses.