Here in North Carolina it runs $25/sheet hung and finished. Worth every penny. 1000 sq ft. was hung in 2 days and final sand was 5 days later.

Approximately 1.5 years ago I had my basement drywalled. Part of it was already drywalled. I had the guy do 2 rooms, both 13' x 23' and 2 other rooms approx. 10' x 13'. One of the 13' x 23' walls was already done in one of the rooms and one about a 10' section was already done in another room. He didn't do any ceilings, because i was using a drop ceiling. He and his partner came in one day and hung it in about 5 or 6 hours. He came back 3 other times to finish, approx 4 hours a time and he charged me $1500. I thought that was a steal considering it would have taken me a few months to complete. I live in Missouri, by the way.

I can't help but keep wondering if it would be cheaper for me to fly someone from the east coast out here (CA) and but them up in Airbnb to veneer plaster my remodel which will be down the studs. It's hard to even find someone local to do plaster so I'm expecting something like 2-3X, not 50% more.

"This is all dependent on the mud drying accordingly." Drywall mud doesn't "dry". It will cure underwater, just like concrete. This guy is clueless. See that big "20" on the bag? That means the mud sets up in 20 minutes. An experienced guy should have no problem doing a level 4 finish on a small repair in a day at most. Geesh.