Price quotes on household projects- are they negotiable?

[VeteranMom]

I'm having different contractors in to give me quotes on various projects.  How does it work?  Do they expect that I will ask for them to take some money off of the quotes?

[Farrar]

IME, sometimes yes if it's an independent outfit - one guy, or a couple of guys. Not if it's a company with a bunch of employees and a nice website and an actual office - even if it's still a small business. And you just say something like, look, I'm getting quotes, yours is high, I can't afford that, but I like your workmanship/attitude/whatever and I'm wondering if there's some flexibility there. And if they say no, oh well, ball's in your court.

[Angie in VA]

In my experience, some contractors size you up before giving you a quote. A very well-advertised company that does roofing and siding (always has ads on the local Christian radio station) came to our house site to give us an estimate on siding. He walked INSIDE my house. He had no need to. We invested in building material (ICF) and in our windows (after living in more than one house where the windows wouldn't close, much less lock!) and invested in low maintenance siding (not vinyl) and based on the coin we put out on those things, he gave us an outrageous quote. 

 

I won't even go into our ordeals w/ the plumber whom I caught stealing building materials or the sub-contractor we sued (and we won!).  :mad:

 

The man whom we did hire to do our siding never entered our house. (Imagine!) 

 

I was talking to two architects (married couple, sweet friends of ours) who had the same experience. They got quotes for a deck that ranged from $6K - $45K. They finally took to calling w/ the measurements and material they wanted to use and getting quotes sight unseen. 

 

Craziness. I sure hope your experiences are better.

Edited April 27, 2016 by Angie in VA

[Arcadia]

Yes. Negotiations are expected. I have stayed in many high COL zipcodes and the quotes, even for painting, run higher if they ask for address beforehand, lower for generic quotes.

[Prairie~Phlox]

My husband was a self employed contractor for 20 + years & rarely had anyone challenge the quote. I think it really depends on several things.

[SparklyUnicorn]

In my experience I've rarely been able to get more than one person to even show up.  Lot of these people wig out.  My guess is they agree to come, but then don't if something that pays (or pays better) comes along.

 

And then with certain projects they can't even 100% tell you costs with much accuracy because there are a lot of unknowns until they start working on it. 

 

So basically unless there is plenty of competition, I hesitate to haggle too much because I want them to do the job and finish the job and not feel the need to wig out to make more money elsewhere. 

[TranquilMind]

In my experience, some contractors size you up before giving you a quote. A very well-advertised company that does roofing and siding (always has ads on the local Christian radio station) came to our house site to give us an estimate on siding. He walked INSIDE my house. He had no need to. We invested in building material (ICF) and in our windows (after living in more than one house where the windows wouldn't close, much less lock!) and invested in low maintenance siding (not vinyl) and based on the coin we put out on those things, he gave us an outrageous quote. 

 

I won't even go into our ordeals w/ the plumber whom I caught stealing building materials or the sub-contractor we sued (and we won!).  :mad:

 

The man whom we did hire to do our siding never entered our house. (Imagine!) 

 

I was talking to two architects (married couple, sweet friends of ours) who had the same experience. They got quotes for a deck that ranged from $6K - $45K. They finally took to calling w/ the measurements and material they wanted to use and getting quotes sight unseen. 

 

Craziness. I sure hope your experiences are better.

 

He entered your house!!  That would have been it right there.  Sorry you had so many issues! Contractors sure are a crap-shoot and even good ones can go bad when money problems arise. 

 

I'm stunned at a deck for $45,000!  What????  Unless it was the size and complexity of a small country, that is ridiculous. 

[FaithManor]

Depends on the area. Around here it would be rude to ask them to drop their price. You get three or four free estimates, and then you either go with the one that is in your price range, or find a way to do the work yourself, or don't have it done. It really isn't negotiable. For one thing, they are just estimates, and since the state law requires that the job then come in within a certain percentage of the original quote, it doesn't allow for much wiggle room if they tear into your wall, or your plumbing, or your whatever and there are more problems than what they could see before they started. Not all states have any regulations on estimates so there may be more room for negotiation because the bill can be more padded for unexpected problems, then billed out lower if the job was a breeze, no complications.

[theelfqueen]

We have negotiated some with contractors -- almost always with painters, a little with local window guy who did our sliding glass door. Never with our heating company... Usually it works... we tend to do home improvement work in the 'wrong' season -- when those contractors need work more. Depends on the work (is it mostly labor or significantly parts/materials), etc.

 

Edited April 27, 2016 by theelfqueen

[MyLittleBears]

I think the key is to get two, maybe three quotes if possible.It will give you a ballpark idea of the going rate and room to negotiate. A good friend is a contractor and he says go with the one that give you the middle range. The high price may be someone trying to take advantage, low price is someone just trying to get the job. The middle is probably legit. I would also ask for references.

[Spryte]

In my experience, some contractors size you up before giving you a quote. A very well-advertised company that does roofing and siding (always has ads on the local Christian radio station) came to our house site to give us an estimate on siding. He walked INSIDE my house. He had no need to. We invested in building material (ICF) and in our windows (after living in more than one house where the windows wouldn't close, much less lock!) and invested in low maintenance siding (not vinyl) and based on the coin we put out on those things, he gave us an outrageous quote.

 

I won't even go into our ordeals w/ the plumber whom I caught stealing building materials or the sub-contractor we sued (and we won!). :mad:

 

The man whom we did hire to do our siding never entered our house. (Imagine!)

 

I was talking to two architects (married couple, sweet friends of ours) who had the same experience. They got quotes for a deck that ranged from $6K - $45K. They finally took to calling w/ the measurements and material they wanted to use and getting quotes sight unseen.

 

Craziness. I sure hope your experiences are better.

Aaack!

 

Want to compare notes on contractors? We've just moved slightly south of you, I think, if you're still in VA.

 

We are having quite the experience with contractors. It's crazy!

[Angie in VA]

He entered your house!!  That would have been it right there.  Sorry you had so many issues! Contractors sure are a crap-shoot and even good ones can go bad when money problems arise. 

 

I'm stunned at a deck for $45,000!  What????  Unless it was the size and complexity of a small country, that is ridiculous. 

 

 

Yep, he entered the house, It wasn't finished, but still.

 

No, my friends' deck was completed by another contractor for just $6K. Nothing fancy. *SMH*

[BarbecueMom]

He entered your house!! That would have been it right there. Sorry you had so many issues! Contractors sure are a crap-shoot and even good ones can go bad when money problems arise.

 

I'm stunned at a deck for $45,000! What???? Unless it was the size and complexity of a small country, that is ridiculous.

We have a (too) large deck that is at least half above 8' in height, which we fixed and got up to code ourselves for about $4000. The estimate to completely rebuild from a contractor we trust was $8500 (which we'll have to do in a few years anyway, but at least the deck is safe and usable now).

 

A friend recommended a company she used, who sent out a salesman to do an estimate... $33,000. And the guy spent the whole time showing us pictures of previous decks they had built that had fallen apart, or promising he wouldn't rip us off because he was a Christian. I think he was hankering for a dinner invitation too. Ugh.

[G5052]

In our area they don't do large-scale negotiating, like they say $10,000 and you say $8,000. They'll hold firm and tell you "take it or leave it."

 

What you can sometimes negotiate on is a reduction for certain things like doing the clean-up yourself or buying some of the materials. The contracts here are sometimes several pages of items that they're going to do, so it's possible to chop off a few things.

 

We recently got quotes for a multi-day job that were within $500 of each other, but looking at the details, there was one that really stood out. Their approach was far superior, and when we signed the contract, everything is very laid out and clear. That's something to watch too. We got a quote from another guy with excellent references, but he does nothing on paper and doesn't use email. That made us a little nervous, and ultimately the company we signed with did a great job.

[TechWife]

I've never heard of anyone around here negotiating repair prices. If a job isn't within the homeowners budget, the conversation consists of whether or not different, less expensive materials could be used or if there is some work the homeowner can do on their own to help decrease the cost. 

[TranquilMind]

We have a (too) large deck that is at least half above 8' in height, which we fixed and got up to code ourselves for about $4000. The estimate to completely rebuild from a contractor we trust was $8500 (which we'll have to do in a few years anyway, but at least the deck is safe and usable now).

 

A friend recommended a company she used, who sent out a salesman to do an estimate... $33,000. And the guy spent the whole time showing us pictures of previous decks they had built that had fallen apart, or promising he wouldn't rip us off because he was a Christian. I think he was hankering for a dinner invitation too. Ugh.

 

Oh my goodness.  I've been renovating for many years.  I would have had trouble not laughing in that guy's face and politely showing him the door.

 

And anyone that pulls the Christian card on me is immediately suspect, I'm sorry to say.  I've been really ripped off by them in various capacities and lied to in my face.  This is so foreign to me that I fell for it a couple of times.  

 

The real Christians (and various good people) just live it and do the right thing, and don't have to convince you with a sales job that they really are good people. 

 

Edited April 27, 2016 by TranquilMind

[TranquilMind]

Yep, he entered the house, It wasn't finished, but still.

 

No, my friends' deck was completed by another contractor for just $6K. Nothing fancy. *SMH*

 

There are a LOT of scamming contractors looking for a mark.  You really do have to do your due diligence. 

[MotherGoose]

Everything is negotiable ;)

[BarbecueMom]

Oh my goodness. I've been renovating for many years. I would have had trouble not laughing in that guy's face and politely showing him the door.

 

And anyone that pulls the Christian card on me is immediately suspect, I'm sorry to say. I've been really ripped off by them in various capacities and lied to in my face. This is so foreign to me that I fell for it a couple of times.

 

The real Christians (and various good people) just live it and do the right thing, and don't have to convince you with a sales job that they really are good people.

 

I forgot the best part. He showed us the very expensive custom deck they built at a local mega church pastor's ritzy house in the ritzy part of town (aka not where I live). And went on and on about how God blessed the guy with this outdoor living space.

 

If my kids hadn't started screaming for food and scared him off, I would have thrown him out.

[Angie in VA]

Aaack!

 

Want to compare notes on contractors? We've just moved slightly south of you, I think, if you're still in VA.

 

We are having quite the experience with contractors. It's crazy!

 

 

I forgot to respond to the comparing notes part. Send me a PM. ;)

[Angie in VA]

There are a LOT of scamming contractors looking for a mark.  You really do have to do your due diligence. 

 

 

Yep.

 

When I mentioned to my architect friends who sought quotes for the deck what the well-known siding guy did, the wife asked me if it were So and So Roofing. I said, yes. She said she hears his ads on the Christian radio station all the time. He didn't get a dime of our money!

[rjand6more]

My husband is a self employed painter.  He works hard to give customers fair prices and has a good reputation and lots of references.  He does not haggle.  The painters we know that haggle also skimp on materials and workmanship.  If a customer asks, he may offer to throw something in if they do all the work proposed.  If they say they got a cheaper bid, he suggests they compare apples to apples.  Often, he is doing a step that other painters don't bid for(or will require additional payment later!!).  He will never lower his price.

 

I give the same courtesy to other contractors we hire.  We never ask them to negotiate.  And we never hire the cheapest bid.