Evening all, got a quote for a lot of work on the back of the house. Various stuff like taking a lot of load bearing stuff out to clag some girders in and make it all a bit wider extensionwise. Next door want the same and we’ll use the same chap.

This is all new to me… has he come back to me with full whack plus 10 and how do i check? Presumably get another quote from another chap? Whats the best way to challenge a quote? Appreciate the work involved so dont want a cowboy in etc. but just wondered if anyone had any tips?

get 3 quotes, in the end the quote should reflect the conditions on the ground as it were.

Ask for a few more quotes and customers names and addreses for work he has done, also when all quotes are in think do i want to share my house with him till work is done , sometimes youll get a feeling you cant work with that person and us as tradesmen feel the same.

How new is his van?

54 plate but he apparently employs 20ish people, been recommended by a fellow rider but think my work is huge in comparison so not sure if hes quoting high. Guess getting other quotes makes sense.

Whats the year of his van got to do with it?

Get a trial subscription to Which? That should give you access to Which Local where folk rate various trades and businesses.

Dunno what the vans got to do with it

I’m guessing the Van thing is the newer better the van is the more you need to add to the quote to pay for it, like the way people judge how much people earn/rip off by what car they drive.

It was meant tongue in cheek, several quotes is the answer. But pin them down on what level it’s finished to.

quotes is one thing detail is another.. we get beat day in day out on quotes until i point out the 350 quid boiler there fitting and the 1200 quid 10yr warranty all the bells and whistles that i was asked to quote for..

Ditto. I supply/fit kitchens. Measure up, give a fair price for very good quality gear and then hear the’ve gone to B&poo etc and bought flat pack tosh.
Get a few quotes and pick who you feel comfortable.

Same as Russ here, kitchens bathrooms and tiling with the emphasis on quality rather than just chuck something in.

Get told I’m too expensive but with no substance as they’re not comparing apples with apples. Some peoples idea of the right price is just a number they’ve thought up that they can afford. I must be about right as I’m booked solid until July!

Get a detailed idea of what you’re after together and get 3 quotes back. Employing a builder then making it up as you go along is a recipe for chargeable extras.

Case in point, last job I worked on builder A quoted £110k, builder B quoted £68k. Customer went B, turns out paint not included, plaster not included, extra steel needed, extra roof work needed etc etc. final bill was nearer £110k.

From a colleagues recent, year long bitter experience, get a couple more quotes from builders with experience of doing jobs this size.

And make sure that the one you choose to do your £50k extension/refurb is not also working on a £1 million plus Grand Design at the same time, cos guess which one will be left to go to ratshit. 😕

^^^but Builder B got the job didn’t he^^^

Apparently so, and then got in a load of subbies with no experience of pretty much anything to bail himself out…..

Sound like you’ll need to meet a load of regs and possibly planning, so forget the builders, get some plans and structural drawings done. Get it all approved and then find a builder.

And tell us your location.

Hth
Marko

Look for detail in the quote as well. We had a new roof + a complete rebuild of two very large dorma windows.

One bloke sent his quote in and out was proper back of the fag packet stuff-‘remove old roof, put new roof on. £3000).

The other had an estimated bill of materials x no slates @ £y, x thousand copper nails @ £y etc. He also gave an estimate of time. His quote was £5500 but we went with him and he did an excellent job.

Yes more expensive but his whole approach have us more confidence in him.

Agree with Marko.

Pay an architect to do some basic drawings to get you through planning. The guy my Mum used was cheap (a few hundred quid) and prepared hand drawn plans and helped out with the planning process. He then used a structural engineer friend to design and specify the 3 main steels used where load bearing walls were affected and we had a sound basis upon which to choose a builder. All of this meant that planning permission was painless and Building control were happy on site (apart from the builder closing works in before inspection!

After this is where it went a bit wrong.

I’m ok with the process of appointing a contractor (it’s part of my job). The work was on behalf of my Mum though and despite best efforts to bring in 3 quotes she was taken with the first company (after being let down by two other builders who didn’t keep their appointments).

They were a main contractor in their own right and whilst they did domestic work this was at the smaller end of their scale. We agreed the price and scope of works and put in place a contract for domestic works.

When works started on site things went awry, labour was sporadic, quality average and in fairness there were a small number of changes. In the end it took a lot of effort and withholding of significant money before we got the job finished and it really took the shine off what should have been a straightforward build.

A few things I’d suggest looking at in addition to the architect involvement would be;

1. Use a contract. For 20 quid you can buy a contract form here http://www.jctltd.co.uk/category/home-owner-contracts
I would strongly recommend using someone who has experience in this to help you complete it. On first glance it is a fill in the blanks format but to get the best out of it it’s better that you understand what it is you’re filling in.There’s bound to be someone you or a friend knows who can offer some face to face advice.

2. Decide how much you want the builder to do. Everything up to final decorations or basic structure, electrics and plumbing? Referring back to my experience if we had chosen our own plasterer, electrician and plumber we’d have been rid of a shonky builder much sooner and managing these trades isn’t the hardest thing in the world to do.

3. Be clear on your scope of works. Make sure you compare like for like as people say above. Specification of major parts such as boilers, cabinets, high value fittings etc

4. Don’t change things. Get your scope clear from the start and don’t ask the builder to change things after he has started unless you absolutely must.

There will be all sorts of other things to consider but it’s important to consider them. Reading my comments back it all seems daunting but from personal experience I know how a seemingly straightforward sub £30,000 job can end up being far from straightforward.