Why Contractor Quotes Aren't Always Equal

All Contractor Quotes Are Not Created Equal

A few months ago, we were hired to restore a 150-year-old brick building that was being converted into a dental office.

Our scope included repairing the historic masonry, correcting the moisture issues causing rising damp, and applying a dustproof treatment to the exposed brick since cleanliness would be important in a medical facility.

We were proud of the finished product.

Unfortunately, after we completed our work, another trade sprayed paint instead of rolling it as recommended. Overspray covered the exposed brick throughout the building. The attempted cleanup involved pressure washing inside the building and scrubbing the walls with wire brushes. In the process, the paint was removed, but so were portions of the dustproof treatment, mortar joints, and even the faces of some of the brick. The walls were also saturated with water.

At that point, another company soda blasted the walls to prepare them for repair. While it provided a cleaner surface to work from, it also exposed how much damage had actually occurred. The building now required another extensive restoration.

We prepared a detailed four-page proposal outlining exactly what would be required to restore the masonry to a consistent historical appearance.

A few days later, I received an email from the general contractor that said:

"The two other bricklayers were about one-third of your price for the same scope. Can you get closer to their pricing?"

The answer was simple.

No.

Because they were not the same scope.

One proposal consisted of a few handwritten lines. Another simply listed replacing brick and repairing mortar joints. Neither proposal identified the type of mortar to be used, the extent of the repointing, color correction, replacement of the removed DryRod, application of a dustproof treatment, or many of the other restoration items included in our proposal.

This isn't a criticism of the other contractors. They may very well have intended to perform quality work. The point is that their written scopes described a different level of work. Contractor quotes are not created equal.

Here's the lesson for property owners.

Don't compare proposals by price.

Compare them by scope.

Ask yourself:

• What materials are being used?

• How much of the wall is actually being repaired?

• What is specifically included?

• What is specifically excluded?

• Will the finished appearance be uniform?

• What assumptions am I making that aren't actually written down?

The cheapest proposal isn't automatically the least expensive, and the highest proposal isn't automatically overpriced.

Make sure you're comparing apples to apples.

And for my fellow contractors...

Your proposal is more than a price.

It's a communication tool.

Write your scope clearly enough that your client understands exactly what they're buying. A detailed proposal protects your customer just as much as it protects you.

You're not just selling labor.

You're selling your knowledge, experience, and the confidence that comes from knowing exactly what the finished product will be.