[flatline]

$250/hr is a reasonable ballpark figure. Working as a contractor, providing own benefits. I've worked with a lot of people in this position. He should expect to pull about $300k/yr gross, which is about how a company is going to allocate costs for a full time employee. He needs to be setting aside money for retirement, paying for health insurance, paying all relevant taxes, compensating himself for his own expenditures such as laptop, and paying himself a comparable wage for the industry.