Square footage price?

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77naws

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Hey guys,

I work in the Indianapolis area. I have not yet wired a whole house although I have completed several commercial buildings. I can honestly say I am not an estimator or at least not a good one. I have gotten by so far on these "bigger jobs" but am of late getting more volume. So i recently have an oportunity to bid a house and was wondering if you could shed some light on "square footage price" and about what price is, say high or low. Also about how long it would take to rough in and finish out using a 2000 sq. ft. house as an example.

Also while we are on the subject if you could suggest any educational tools or cumputer programs that you have had good luck with it would be much appreciated.

Thanks
 
To many variables to use square foot pricing.
  1. device style regular vs decora
  2. how many 3 ways
  3. can light vs fixtures
  4. bath fan builder grade vs quiet fans
  5. cieling fans how many
  6. cieling height
  7. cable TV,phone,internet
  8. appliances gas or electric
the list goes on............

If bidding by square foot you will loose your shirt & pants if this is your first

venture in residental
 
I get this alot and I usually tell the customer to let me take a look at the blue prints and I will give them a total price and they can divide it by the sq ft. Most of the plans I get have absolutely no electrical plans and I usually end up designing it for them and then pricing. I dont price by the sq ft but the ones I have completed have ranged from $3.20 to $4.50. Theres just no way to price by the sq ft. at least not for me.
 
I wired up a shower with lighting last summer. It was over $50/ft? by the time we finished.
 
You're not selling square feet .... you're selling electric work.

If you want, perhaps you can price a basic 'house package,' with adders for various changes. After all, the wiring required for a tiny house isn't that much less than for a large one; the main difference seems to be additional appliances. Just be damn clear as to the methods, and what's included.

Now ... I'm just daydreaming here .... you MIGHT develop a system that parallels the service calculation method. That would have SOME allowance for square footage changes, but would be greatly influenced by the appliances installed.

However, when folks ask for a 'square foot price,' it seems they want a simple number, where a 2000 sq. ft. house would cost exactly twice what a 1000 sq. ft. house does. That's simply unrealistic. It's the same amount of work to install a small service as a large one, and a big kitchen will likely get the same two counter circuits as a small one.

"Rules of thumb" are great for YOUR use, but can cause only trouble in the customers' hands.

Finally, there's the fine point that job sites differ. So do customers. Tossing out a price is like duck hunting at night; you might make a lot of noise, but you probably won't like what you hit.
 
Does anyone read the past 1000 posts on this subject?

No insult meant to the OP, but this has been discussed ad nauseam. :rant:

Most experienced electrical contractors wouldn't touch a square foot bid. As mentioned, there are just too many variables. It's like "ballpark" quotes: once the customer has that number in their mind, it's very difficult to convince them it will cost more. Get a set of prints, and bid it correctly.
 
electricguy61 said:
Most experienced electrical contractors wouldn't touch a square foot bid.

i think you really meant to say most experienced EC's (who don't do it day in day out) would be scared to bid that way...the OP is talkin' a 2000 sq ft house...i have been competing against firms that wire 2000 to 3000 units similar to the OP's per year...the builder and the EC are both on the same sq ft page and each knows square foot pricing inside and out...and they use it...thus i figured i better learn it also... i have one account who offers over 200 variations of very similar units...lucky for me he does not ask for 200 quotes...

THE PRECEEDING WAS A FULLY SPONSORED AD BY THE "NATIONAL ASSN OF SQAURE FOOT PRICERS"
Click to expand...
 
I suppose one could make the case for work uniforms that consisted of togas and Birkenstocks- IF the circumstances were 'just so.' That's the situation with 'square foot pricing.'

For whom, and for what purpose, are critical factors. Data developed for one use will be misleading when applied elsewhere.

If you're doing hundreds of houses, all based on the usual handful of basic plans, you have enough data to make an 'average' to apply across the board to minor changes. Don't forget that you're also dealing with a known contractor, and known site conditions.

Yet. even with that data base, you are in no position to answer a blind inquiry of "how much to wire a 2345 sq. ft. house?" That question tells you nothing about the house, where it is, when it will be built, the credit and reliability of the others on the job, or what the expectations are. Indeed, you are no better able to answer that question, than you would be to answer just "how much to wire (any) house."

Of all the factors that influence the cost of a job, the square footage is by far the least relevant. It's no more sensible than pricing cars by counting cupholders.

As pointed out, there have been countless threads on this topic. By now, either you get it, or you never will.
For those new to the business, we say: forget it.
For those who swear it works for them: Good luck. Just don't expect us to drink the kool-ade.
For those seeking to second-guess the quote they got from a real contractor .... nice try.
For the academics and bookkeepers: you're following a false trail.
For the naive or innocent: Things cost what they cost. Get used to it.
 
renosteinke said:
I suppose one could make the case for work uniforms that consisted of togas and Birkenstocks- IF the circumstances were 'just so.' That's the situation with 'square foot pricing.'

For whom, and for what purpose, are critical factors. Data developed for one use will be misleading when applied elsewhere.

If you're doing hundreds of houses, all based on the usual handful of basic plans, you have enough data to make an 'average' to apply across the board to minor changes. Don't forget that you're also dealing with a known contractor, and known site conditions.

Yet. even with that data base, you are in no position to answer a blind inquiry of "how much to wire a 2345 sq. ft. house?" That question tells you nothing about the house, where it is, when it will be built, the credit and reliability of the others on the job, or what the expectations are. Indeed, you are no better able to answer that question, than you would be to answer just "how much to wire (any) house."

Of all the factors that influence the cost of a job, the square footage is by far the least relevant. It's no more sensible than pricing cars by counting cupholders.

As pointed out, there have been countless threads on this topic. By now, either you get it, or you never will.
For those new to the business, we say: forget it.
For those who swear it works for them: Good luck. Just don't expect us to drink the kool-ade.
For those seeking to second-guess the quote they got from a real contractor .... nice try.
For the academics and bookkeepers: you're following a false trail.
For the naive or innocent: Things cost what they cost. Get used to it.
Click to expand...

:thumbsup:
 
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