If I have a detailed design and secure multiple bids, will all bids be the same?

May 30th, 2009 by Matthew Leonard

When someone decides to build a new home, many times they interview architects to find one that is a good fit for what style and level of details they desire and is a good personality match.

Through months of work with the architect, the design has been painstakingly worked out and many visits to flooring, counter top, cabinet, lighting fixture companies to make selections to complete the design.

Armed with dozens of pages of excruciating detail on every aspect of the home, plans are sent out to multiple builders to secure the best price and since there is so much detail, all bids will be identical, or will they?

Unfortunately more often then not, the bids come in with as many variations as there are bidders.  Prices can vary due to many reasons, different labor skill levels and rates, substitutions for like materials, different approaches to solving problems.  Homes are so complex that there will ultimately be a number of hidden unexpected challenges that  happen, no matter how detailed the plans are and some builders take a more conservative approach and others may not have the experience to anticipate these problems.  They may have to deal with these with change orders as the project progresses.

Often times the architect is working to give the customer what they want and neither the customer nor the architect have a good grasp of actual building costs and the project can and usually creeps out of budget.  The best way to keep this from happening is to investigate builders while your researching architects and work with both during the designing phase.  A good builder will work with the architect and you to give you what you want but also knows how and when to pull back on the reigns when things start to affect the overall budget.

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 30th, 2009 at 2:57 am and is filed under Save Money, Structure, Uncategorized.