Obtaining Quotations

Scope of work specifications

Make use of supplier knowledge - most reputable building suppliers have qualified representatives that are more than willing to assist any prospective home owner with expected material costs for projects which, with a comprehensive drawing, will greatly assist you in benchmarking your costs. Prior to meeting with your contractors on site, ensure that you have a copy of the required drawings, proposed starting date and any other relevant information that may be required - the more information you can share the better. Some reputable contractors also have consultants that can offer assistance in this regard.

On site meeting of Contractors and Client

Once you have established the credibility of the contractors you wish to engage, arrange an onsite meeting whereby all the contractors will be present at the same time for a walk through of the project and hold a question and answer session whereby all grey areas can be addressed. This will not only allow you the upper hand in the negotiations, but will also ensure favourable pricing; after all, competitiveness will ensure the best service and also eliminate the sloppy contractor.

Request for quotations

This is a very important part of the planning phase of your project and to ensure conformity in the tender process, you should break the project up into several areas: Preliminaries, Demolitions, Excavations, Wet Works, Electrical, Plumbing, Roofing, Painting, Flooring, Fixtures and Fittings, additional or other, payment terms and timeline. This will allow you to compare apples with apples. Many contractors are fond of giving one page quotations which are as good as till slips, in other words are meaningless as nothing is specified creating huge grey areas. Remember, the more written information, the less hassle at the end of the contract when it becomes a “he said, she said” situation.

Analysing the quotation provided

Once all the quotation have been presented, they should be analysed by comparing the costs, fine print, standard conditions of sale and payment terms. It is not necessarily the lowest priced contractor that is the best to choose, but the one that provides the most detail in his tender document that normally is the best contractor. However, personal feel is also a good guide to choosing the contractor - after all you will need to work with him for the next few weeks or months.

Short listing Contractors

After short listing your contractor/s, one needs to establish the credibility of the contractor prior to appointing him to continue with the project.