JTK
$100 Site Donor 2025
It seems today you have to have a general idea of the cost prior to asking for quotes. Short of that, tell them I have no idea. I've only called you so far. See where that goes in terms of price range.
Great answer when requesting a quote- and the reply is "do you have a budget"?
- Thread starter GON
- Start date
Not continuously, just when someone answers the question in good faith
Say a contractor comes out to give a bid and is thinking, "yeah... this is a 15k job..."
Then the fishing attempt, "so, what are you looking to spend...?"
You answer, "15-20k is my budget".... And give up all of your negotiating power.
What do you think happens here? The quote magically comes in right under your max budget.
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Both of you aren't wrong. There's nothing wrong about a vendor wanting more money for a job just as much as the client wanting to save as much money as possible. Get multiple quotes and figure it out afterwards.
For work, if I ask vendors about pricing that I have no idea about the ballpark, I will outright tell them that I have no idea what I should be looking at and for them to quote me what they think is fair. I will also tell them that I am asking for quotes from multiple vendors.
I just tell them I haven't decided on a budget yet, can you quote what I asked. If they say no then just move on.
General contractors are mostly a scam. They don't actually do anything themselves, they take 40% off the top and sub it out. If its a complex job with many subs then its probably worth the 40%. If its simple task that takes one sub, you need to find the subs.
The subs often don't want to work directly with the end customer - for a variety of reasons - there not sales people, they don't want to deal with the business end, they don't like complaints. Sometimes its simply about hablo espanol or another language. To be fair, most end customers are jerks. They have no clue what is being done but have not problem telling you your doing it wrong.
I agree they shouldn't be able to do this forever, but they seem to have been doing it for a very long time.
General contractors are mostly a scam. They don't actually do anything themselves, they take 40% off the top and sub it out. If its a complex job with many subs then its probably worth the 40%. If its simple task that takes one sub, you need to find the subs.
The subs often don't want to work directly with the end customer - for a variety of reasons - there not sales people, they don't want to deal with the business end, they don't like complaints. Sometimes its simply about hablo espanol or another language. To be fair, most end customers are jerks. They have no clue what is being done but have not problem telling you your doing it wrong.
I agree they shouldn't be able to do this forever, but they seem to have been doing it for a very long time.
Just had two companies quote to re-do my ensuite bathroom.
First company never asked budget, quoted 61k. All super high end tile, custom vanity and fixtures and what not. I laughed.
Second company straight up asked and I said trying to keep it to 30k. Quote ended up being for 24k plus some extras like tile and toilet because it depends on what we want. So I figure 27-28 all in.
First company never asked budget, quoted 61k. All super high end tile, custom vanity and fixtures and what not. I laughed.
Second company straight up asked and I said trying to keep it to 30k. Quote ended up being for 24k plus some extras like tile and toilet because it depends on what we want. So I figure 27-28 all in.
Years ago, we were getting our house sided and a new roof. I had three contractors give me quotes. The middle quote was really the contractor I wanted to do the job. He came recommended and based on lawn signs, he did a lot of homes in the area. I called the highest bid and told him I got two lower prices. He immediately said he could knock off $2000.00 which still put him a bit higher than my preferred contractor whom I called next and told him I had a lower bid. He (Chris) told me straight that he had no idea how that lower bid could give me a satisfactory job for that price. Chris went on to say that the price he gave me was fair for me and fair for him; he uses quality materials and quality workers and there was no negotiation from his price. I was impressed by his approach and gave him the job and was not disappointed. Anytime someone says they can knock off some $ from their initial quote, I feel like I'm being ripped off because if I don't ask, they are content to "overcharge" for the job. Buyer beware.
They're just looking to pre-qualify the opportunity. Nothing wrong with that.
As with any product or service, you have to test the marketplace to get a feel for what the market is.
I wouldn't be ashamed to tell the vendor they're the first to quote and that you will be testing the marketplace.
As with any product or service, you have to test the marketplace to get a feel for what the market is.
I wouldn't be ashamed to tell the vendor they're the first to quote and that you will be testing the marketplace.
I had a local guy quote $17,000 and a bigger company quote $24,000. It's a smaller master bath. Had the existing shower removed, tub removed, and a tiled shower, new vanity, plus closet where the old shower was. Plus all the associated new walls , plumbing, fixtures, etc. We furnished the vanity/tile. The only thing was the lower quote guy was a perfectionist, therefore it took him about twice as long as it should have. But yea-he finished and the master bathroom remodel was perfect. Just signed the contract for hall bath for early next year-same guy.
The first company should have asked for your budget. Our budget was $20,000.00. It came in right about that.
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Some estimates are variable... a "bathroom remodel" for example... you could be 10k to 50k+ depending on your budget and requirements. In those scenarios, it's different from an estimate that is relatively objective and measurable in scope.
That said, the "what is your budget" question may or may not be appropriate depending on the situation.
That said, the "what is your budget" question may or may not be appropriate depending on the situation.
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It’s a good question for contractor to see if it’s is viable project for them, the quality/attention to detail you’d expect and see if you are a worthy of working on.
Smart contractors will price under if it can be done and explain caveats and allow for the potential overages. The challenge is majorly of tradesmen while experts in their craft are disasters with client relationships.
Smart contractors will price under if it can be done and explain caveats and allow for the potential overages. The challenge is majorly of tradesmen while experts in their craft are disasters with client relationships.
This is the perfect example as to why it's important for a contractor to know your budget.
You mean auto dealers not necessarily auto makers.
I give quotes all the time( even with my prices clearly listed) I quote them the price, and then I ask, "does what work with your budget?", that seems to work most of the time. I never ask for a budget , sometimes I do have it or an idea of what it is depending on where the lead comes from.
I am not a contractor.
I am not a contractor.
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As usual, understudiohub has a short for this situation.
