Detailed line item cost break down.
It depends on the project. If you are laying pavers down, it goes by the square foot. For example, lets say its 20 per sq. ft, so for 100 sq. ft, 20 x100= 2000 which includes labor and material. If it is remodel or new build, I calculate the material , cost for labor, and multiply my percentage allocated for overhead to get my total expense , and multiply my percentage profit , lets say 10 %, so let say material , 10000, labor, 5000,=15,000, with 30%I(4,500) overhead I would divide the total( 19,500) by 90% to get the total for my estimate or sale price including my profit.which total sale would be 21667…
Put together a list of wants and a list of needs. Pick what is really important.
Depending on the size of the remodel we may have the project professionally estimated. If it’s a simple estimate, we will use our estimating software to come up with a fair market value for the job.
For every square foot of concrete its $4.75 to replace with additions on the side such as gravel, labor, etc.
SQ FT, Zone, and Conditions of it.
There are multiples formulas used in the industry to calculate pricing for any job. 3 contractors bidding a project are all going to use the same materials if the specifications are clearly spelled out, as they should be. Each one is going to have similar labor costs if hiring the work done, or similar hourly costs if doing the work themselves. I use a 3 point system to get me in the ball park. 1st, I calculate all materials, estimate labor costs and multiply that factor x 2. I will then add the materials and labor. This gives me a basis. 2nd I will use the local area market price for the project. 3rd I will think the project through thoroughly in my mind and come up with the number my gut tells me is where my company needs to be. All 3 of these numbers should be real close. If they are not, something is off and I need to go back and find the variable that is causing the discrepancy. In the end, the number has to be one that will allow us to run proper profit margins. Every company’s margins are different. Sometimes a lean company can win the bid with the same margin percentage due to lower overhead costs. Too many people are selling jobs on market prices that don’t support healthy margins for their company. Market prices can be driven up or down by economic conditions. Knowing your market is one thing, knowing your business is another. Knowing your margins is paramount.
A great deal of our work is insurance based. In this scenario the insurance companies set the pricing for the industry. Much like they do in medical billing.
Both per square feet pricing and actual cost of material ,labor, overhead and profit.
There is no “formula for budget” but there might be a process. Coming up with a budget can be an iterative process between funds available and desired attributes of a project. This is a cost-benefit discussion, but you must make sure you start by defining the benefits. For landscaping we define benefit in categories of pleasure, convenience, health, and financial. But for us at Rising Sun Landscaping & Maintenance, these benefits are also dependent on the intersection of Aesthetics, Function, and Low Maintenance value. So considering each attribute of landscaping, can it serve more than one of these? If not, how can it be adjusted so it serves more than one? Make a list of each landscaping attribute and define its benefit value first. Later see how much it costs from your contractor. Adjust this list as you go, and at some point draw a line on what you can and cannot afford. See if what you cannot afford on this project can be deferred to the next project. We have a longer blog post about this here: Lanscaping Benefits: Aesthetics, Function, and Low Maintenance | Rio Rancho, Albuquerque, Bernallilo | Rising Sun Landscaping & Maintenance.
We use several bidding platforms from our own xcel spread sheets to Xactware programs that have updated pricing for material and labor every 30 days.
Mostly Time & Materials. I don’t take on two large of jobs…so I am always fair with my prices.
The first issue is always location. access to a site and nearby vendors is very important.
Estimates are particular to each job and they include sq ft, materials and hours.
The things we consider when coming up with a budget are general condition costs, which includes the costs of supervision, management and temporary measures for the oversight of the project. Plus all of the trade subcontractor costs such as electrical, HVAC, plumbing, architectural components, structural components. We also take into account soft costs such as insurance, permits, design, contingency sales tax, overhead and profit.
Our projects vary from a few hours to a few months. We work directly with homeowners and business owners as well as through some of Austin’s most prominent General Contractors. Our budgets are developed using historical data, historical cost-per-foot numbers and subcontractor input. Because we self-perform so much work, budgets are often driven by our estimating department based on anticipated material costs and projected labor allowances determined by the amount of time we project for a job to be completed. Our in-house labor force produces high quality and works efficiently, which allows us to better develop true production rates on some of the most complex tasks. We’re not relying on budget numbers from a book, the internet or out of thin air. These are real numbers that work and have substance.
For budgets, we have historical data that we refer to for in-house pricing on our projects. We’ve been doing this for so long, with so many homes in Palo Alto, that we know what our foundation costs are. All homeowners want to know a price per square foot, and we can use our records to calculate that.
No, there’s no consistent formula when coming up with a budget. Every project is different, so experience is critical. We do a lot of work in the range of $50,000 - $250,000. Any project that falls in that neighborhood, we can look at our historical data and be really close with a estimate ballpark when we’re talking to a client before we go into full estimating. And to be clear, people are never happy with the price but ithat is just want these things cost and in the end they are happy with the result. Our clients, in the end, just want to make sure they get something really nice.
Project budgets are based on the type of budget the client is looking for. There are three methods of budget estimating: 1. Competitive Bidding, 2. Negotiated Contract and 3. Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM). With ROM budgeting the contractor provides the client with an in-house budget that captures the intent of the project. This method usually leads to a negotiated budget where both the client and the contractor work together to develop the best approach. The negotiated budget approach is where the contractor has an existing relationship with a current client and they work together to achieve both budget and schedule parameters. This approach can also be used with new clients. Competitive budgets are formulated by the information provided in the bid documents. This approach the contractor will solicit numerous subcontractor estimates in order to put together the most competitive budget they believe will win the job. Clients benefit with this approach due to the fact that with multiple estimates they can get to their anticipated budget. The key to a successful competitive budget is to make sure the budgeting is accurate, both in cost and inclusions.
Budgets must be individualized - it has to be.