Estimate T&M

[360Youth]

He lowered his price, I wonder why, did he use cheap materials, did he do all the work right.

True, but there are the ones that appreciate it. We have dealt with them. For some, you can never lower it enough. As I said, I do not advocate.

 

[wolfman56]

T&M My Experience

T&M My Experience

I used to only do T&M I thought it was the most fair way of charging.
These days I stay away from T&M because:
For starters you have guaranteed yourself of no real profit potential.
The homeowner (and even some GCs) rarley have a realistic idea of what it will cost.
Remodel projects ALWAYS cost more than they anticipated, causing the homeowner to get real touchy about every move you make, phone calls, bathroom , coffee, lunch, etc. Even how long you take to wire something!
I had one T&M job I quit the first day because I ran to get parts and went through the Burger King drive up on that run, the homeowner quizzed me on how long I was at the drive up. I knew it would get worse the more she went over budget.
When your deep into the project and they are way over budget it's is all your fault! (So they think!) Even more so if they had been told a "ball park" amount, and you've exceeded it. You must be taking advantage of them! The next thing is they want a complete detail of every move you made and every wirenut used. One guy wanted us to start punching a time clock!!
In the end they want to negotiate your payment.

Not to exceed is not for me......why would I risk loosing $$$ and at the same time assure myself of NO PROFIT potential.

Just my experiences
Rick

 

[satcom]

I used to only do T&M I thought it was the most fair way of charging.
These days I stay away from T&M because:
For starters you have guaranteed yourself of no real profit potential.
The homeowner (and even some GCs) rarley have a realistic idea of what it will cost.
Remodel projects ALWAYS cost more than they anticipated, causing the homeowner to get real touchy about every move you make, phone calls, bathroom , coffee, lunch, etc. Even how long you take to wire something!
I had one T&M job I quit the first day because I ran to get parts and went through the Burger King drive up on that run, the homeowner quizzed me on how long I was at the drive up. I knew it would get worse the more she went over budget.
When your deep into the project and they are way over budget it's is all your fault! (So they think!) Even more so if they had been told a "ball park" amount, and you've exceeded it. You must be taking advantage of them! The next thing is they want a complete detail of every move you made and every wirenut used. One guy wanted us to start punching a time clock!!
In the end they want to negotiate your payment.

Not to exceed is not for me......why would I risk loosing $$$ and at the same time assure myself of NO PROFIT potential.

Just my experiences
Rick

yup that's about it, it can take years for some to see the problems, some never do.

 

[wireman71]

But the bottomline is making money. If the customer pisses you off to bad just tell them you're finished on the job and bill them. As long as you're making money on T&M why not do it. Just high ball your estimates when they ask and why in gods name would you give a not to exceed price on T&M..

 

[electricmanscott]

I didn't read all the posts so forgive me if this is now off track. In regards to the original.....This is simple. You figure out what you think the job will cost and tell them. Also mention that it is just a rough idea based on your experience and what you need to charge to keep your business running and there are variables which could make it go up or down a bit. (We know it will never go down :wink: )
If this is not good enough you tell them if they want a firm quote take the estimate and double it and that is the price.

 

[1793]

I do appreciate all of the input from everyone. Looking at a job and pricing is the hardest aspect of my work. So far I've not made any huge mistakes and I have good rapport with my customers.

I do still welcome input on matters like this, so keep the posts coming.

 

[electricmanscott]

Mistakes will be made but hopefully you learn from them and be better for it. Sometimes you win sometimes you loose. As long as you are winning more than losing you'll be ok.