[villages07]

For those of you who have done large projects to your Villages home....birdcage, lanai enclosure, new structures, etc

When you get estimates from contractors, do you accept the cost bid they submit or do you attempt to negotiate the cost? Say a contractor bids $8K on a birdcage..... would you then say $7,500 and the job is yours.

Does it depend on the contractor (yes to small, new business; no to big guys like T&D and White's)?

Like many Americans, I don't like to haggle prices. But, I wasn't sure what the norm was down here on renovation/construction type projects. I don't think this topic has been discussed on TOTV before.

Your thoughts?

[bike42]

Far more important to your final cost and satisfaction -- get at least 3 bids on any job, large or small. You will be amazed at the differences in prices you will get. You will also learn a lot in the process. Be sure to get a fixed price contract. Check references on the contractor who seems to be giving you the best deal and who makes you most comfortable, THEN negotiate the final scope of work and price.

[njbchbum]

good advice offered by bike42. for our exterior projects we also ask for the addresses where we might be able to see their work on a driveby. and after all of that sort of research has been completed and the selection has been narrowed down - we ask if there is a lower quote for paying cash - there frequently is...but our final payment is NEVER made until the project has been copleted to our satisfaction. we never pay anything up front!

[mrfixit]

Originally Posted by bike42

Far more important to your final cost and satisfaction -- get at least 3 bids on any job, large or small. You will be amazed at the differences in prices you will get. You will also learn a lot in the process. Be sure to get a fixed price contract. Check references on the contractor who seems to be giving you the best deal and who makes you most comfortable, THEN negotiate the final scope of work and price.

.......Excellent advice bike 42.....
.......IMHO...........a DATE CERTAIN......for start and completion is always a good thing......along with the "cost per day" that the contractor must kick-back for missed deadlines..........Always specify....daily cleanup and all disposals.. NEVER pay more than 30% up front...if any at all. We include the above with all our contracts.......... Primary.......CHECK references....and be sure the refs are legit..........Price does NOT determine who is BEST for the job undertaken. ....ALWAYS check to be sure the contractor is licensed and insured and bonded.to perform the jobs specified.... End of sermon....now please turn to Hymn number 394.

[villages07]

All good points and generally how we go about hiring contractors....the thrust of my question was, after all the due diligence of research and bids and you've settled on the vendor and solution you like best, do you simply accept their cost proposal or attempt any negotiation?

And, bike42 you are so right, different vendors bring in all sorts of proposals...cost, materials, scope, terms, etc. hard to do any apples to apples comparison.


For the record, up to now, we usually just go with the price quoted by the contractor we felt most comfortable with after soliciting and evaluating several bids.

[new peeps]

Villages07, I think all of the above is excellent advice. We did a lot of the above suggestions in our last project. The bids we received had a $25,000. variance from highest to lowest bid. Each contractor has a different idea on what the cost of materials and scope of the project would be. In the end, the contractor that had the best reputation, completed work that we could look at and was also open to us being able to talk to the owners of the houses that had the work done got the contract. It was not the cheapest quote. The final bid was negotiated on what it included and the price paid for that part of the contract. It is very important that in the final agreed bid price that the contract is rewritten to make sure those items are included in writing on the contract. This will keep both the contractor and yourself in check. Keep in mind any additional work agreed after the work is started will probably be additional dollars. For this reason make sure you have thought about everything you are after in the addition. Good luck on your project.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by villages07

All good points and generally how we go about hiring contractors....the thrust of my question was, after all the due diligence of research and bids and you've settled on the vendor and solution you like best, do you simply accept their cost proposal or attempt any negotiation?

And, bike42 you are so right, different vendors bring in all sorts of proposals...cost, materials, scope, terms, etc. hard to do any apples to apples comparison.


For the record, up to now, we usually just go with the price quoted by the contractor we felt most comfortable with after soliciting and evaluating several bids.

I think that informing a company giving a quote that you're getting three quotes encourages them to give their "best price". Usually we just accept the quote, e.g., for a birdcage, and go with it. I did negotiate with Solar Guys cuz we got five sun tubes.

[hedoman]

I like to get a number of bids and the wife is a great negotiator. When I had quotes to redo the driveway we liked Amy Newsome, her attention to detail, her ability to work with Lynn on designs and colors and her ability to tell us when the job would start and be completed. Her price was slightly more than others on an apples to apples comparison and we told her so. Lynn asked her to match the other bids and she did. Same scenario with Investment Painting they came in slightly higher and accepted the request to match the other qualified bid.

My Pap used to always say "you don't get if you don't ask, the worst thing they can say is no". My Mom always said "it doesn't hurt to ask". Now we didn't hold them at gunpoint for thousands but we got the contractors we liked at what we thought was a reasonable price. They got the job and made a profit. It's a win - win

Now I say "it's easier to ask for forgiveness then beg for permission" which has nothing to do with the above.....just sayin....

[jebartle]

nice chatting with you at Crispers!

Originally Posted by villages07

All good points and generally how we go about hiring contractors....the thrust of my question was, after all the due diligence of research and bids and you've settled on the vendor and solution you like best, do you simply accept their cost proposal or attempt any negotiation?

And, bike42 you are so right, different vendors bring in all sorts of proposals...cost, materials, scope, terms, etc. hard to do any apples to apples comparison.


For the record, up to now, we usually just go with the price quoted by the contractor we felt most comfortable with after soliciting and evaluating several bids.

[ijusluvit]

A number of the above posters have done a lot of work, very good stuff, before agreeing on a contract price. I have done most of those things too, but when I get to the end of the process I feel very comfortable that I am getting a fair price. At that point I feel good relations with the contractor are very important, so I smile, shake and agree to their quote.

The only reason I would ever even think of negotiating after all of that, would be if I could not afford to do the whole job. I would talk about doing less than quoted, not just paying less.

[JohnN]

all of the above is good advice.
I'll say that like "Pap" above, I always ask if that's there best price.
If I think there's some *wiggle* room, I'm not shy.

That said, I really want quality and service, and realize they have to make a living. Everything is competitive, they know that and so do we.

[TrudyM]

Not in TV but general situation I have found. If you are planning something that is a little different from what the contractor has built in the past they have a tendency to slap on a cushion to cover their ass. I get a copy of RS Means exterior Home impovement costs or RS Means Interior home improvement costs from the library or Amazon.com. It prices out discriptions of different projects materials lists etc. It gives you a ball park number (there are regional multipliers in a chart in the back of the books) I find if the contractor is way higher than these books which are put out by the company that prints the big estimator books and software that contractors use, that they can be negotiated down by referencing the book. If you want real high end materials ie special windows doors etc or just want to choose the style yourself have them back out that material cost and price them out yourself. I always say I will provide the windows and doors as I want better than contractor grade and don't want them marking them up an additional 25% over cost.

Just my experience

[hedoman]

Originally Posted by villages07

All good points and generally how we go about hiring contractors....the thrust of my question was, after all the due diligence of research and bids and you've settled on the vendor and solution you like best, do you simply accept their cost proposal or attempt any negotiation?

And, bike42 you are so right, different vendors bring in all sorts of proposals...cost, materials, scope, terms, etc. hard to do any apples to apples comparison.


For the record, up to now, we usually just go with the price quoted by the contractor we felt most comfortable with after soliciting and evaluating several bids.

We usually tell a vendor we like that we wanted to use their services but we have a better price from XYZ. If the costs are not out of whack we have always gotten the contractor we wanted for the better price. From driveways to house painting my wife has always negotiated a better price. She is gooed!