How to read a contractor estimate?

Your proposal's in your hands. Here's how to read it.

The fear with any bid is the number behind the number — the real price that shows up after demo, once you're committed. So read ours like an inspector. It's built for that.

Every line in there traces to something real — a sub's quote, a material price. Ask about any line and you'll get the real answer.

The price sits on top — the whole thing, first page, not buried on page six. A total you have to hunt for is a total somebody's ashamed of. Under it, the scope — everything included, written out. If it isn't written down, it doesn't exist. Then look for the word "allowance." That's money set aside for a choice you haven't made yet — tile, fixtures. Each one is marked, and an allowance is yours to move — pick something cheaper and the difference comes back to you. The other thing that can move a number is something nobody could see when we bid it, and that always becomes a written change order you approve before any work happens. Last, the exclusions — what the price doesn't cover — get their own section. A proposal with no exclusions listed doesn't mean everything's included. It means nobody's told you yet. One more date to notice: the day this price holds through, printed near the total. That's thirty days out, and it's there because my material and sub quotes expire — not to rush you. Come back after it and I'll re-price it honestly.

So: skeptical hat on, pen out. Write down everything that makes you pause, then call me and read me the list. That conversation is the best part of my week.