Pulling permits? (costs, money, job)

[Shabotnik]

Originally Posted by imagardener

Just one job can't be done due to expense. I wanted to put an exterior rear door in place of a window but the cost of door is extreme for what is an older house. Budget $1500 and bids are $2400 or more. Slider would be $4000+.

I was called to repair the sliding door on a rental. The door was so bad I refused to work on it or take any money for the service call; I adjusted it the best I could for free. I quoted the owner 3K for a new hurricane slider and to my amazement, he accepted.

This was in the city of Sarasota. I applied for and received my permit and got my spanking because I signed my contract before talking to inspection. They made me cut the block walls, epoxy overlapping #5 rebar from the lintel to the footing and fill the cavity with concrete all before the new door could be installed. This was in the living room, so everything had to be dust proofed and closed up every night.

It passed on first inspection and I had a 10-minute adjustment callback about a year later. I probably made $8.00 an hour on that job, but the tenant's three-year-old son nearly made it all worth while. He was highly entertaining; "supervising" with no pants on with his hands on his hips. His mother was mortified, but I still smile thinking about it.

If you can get a hurricane door installed by a licensed contractor for $4,000.00 in Sarasota, jump on it. That guy's losing his pants too.

[imagardener]

The breakdown on the $2400 door cost was $800-900 labor (he said) and the rest was door cost. The labor I felt was reasonable because it would be everything you listed, filling blocks with rebar and concrete, etc. It was the markup on the door that blew me away and I asked if this was the least expensive door since the home is over 50 years old (in great shape physically).

Oh yeah the killer was that the quote did NOT INCLUDE inside trim. The salesman suggested I talk to the door crew who would do it on their own time and charge me extra.

When I find a contractor who has a decent priced door to offer and labor of $800 it will be done.

[sware2cod]

Originally Posted by imagardener

When I find a contractor who has a decent priced door to offer and labor of $800 it will be done.

Buy the door directly , then pay for labor. This is what most builders do.

Kimal is where you get doors (one of several places where builders get doors and doors and lumber and trusses and many other things). They deliver. They have many doors to choose from and they have a showroom. They also sell lumber/trim. So they can deliver everything you need.

Kimal Lumber and Hardware

[Shabotnik]

Originally Posted by imagardener

The breakdown on the $2400 door cost was $800-900 labor (he said) and the rest was door cost. The labor I felt was reasonable because it would be everything you listed, filling blocks with rebar and concrete, etc. It was the markup on the door that blew me away and I asked if this was the least expensive door since the home is over 50 years old (in great shape physically).

Oh yeah the killer was that the quote did NOT INCLUDE inside trim. The salesman suggested I talk to the door crew who would do it on their own time and charge me extra.

When I find a contractor who has a decent priced door to offer and labor of $800 it will be done.

I never allow customers to dictate as to what they think is a fair price for my services. My markup, overhead, profit, and supplier discounts are none of my customer's business.

[imagardener]

Customers always "dictate" what they will pay for anything. They either buy it or they don't.
You get to set your price and they get to choose.
"Dictate" comes from the Latin root "to say".

[Shabotnik]

Originally Posted by imagardener

Customers always "dictate" what they will pay for anything. They either buy it or they don't.
You get to set your price and they get to choose.
"Dictate" comes from the Latin root "to say".

Fair enough. If I can't convince you that I know more about the cost of doing business than you do, I don't deserve your business.

[Cardiff by the Sea]

Originally Posted by Shabotnik

Fair enough. If I can't convince you that I know more about the cost of doing business than you do, I don't deserve your business.

Different contractors have different costs of doing business.

We have two different plumbers we use. One is much more expensive because he has a trained plumber as an employee who does the work. That plumber has to pay his guy and make a profit on top of that. The other plumber does the work himself and has a $10-$15 an hour untrained assistant who fetches, carries, and digs. Their cost structures are just different.

Many years ago I decided I would never use a large plumbing company that had a dispatcher. The service was worse and it cost more.

Not saying your price is unreasonable. There just may be qualified people who can do the job for less for whatever reason.

[Shabotnik]

Originally Posted by Cardiff by the Sea

Different contractors have different costs of doing business.

Not saying your price is unreasonable. There just may be qualified people who can do the job for less for whatever reason.

I respectfully disagree. With the possible exception of volume buying discounts, almost all contractor's costs are the same. Some of us know our costs and some of us know what it takes to "buy" a job.

Virtually all my work is redoing work that was done improperly by others. This improper work is rarely done by high bidder. As long as customers continue to shop on price over value, I'll be busy.

[imagardener]

With the possible exception of volume buying discounts, almost all contractor's costs are the same.

There are many other elements that must be added to a contractor's cost other than cost of material(s).
I was self-employed so am very familiar with all the overhead involved that most consumers are not aware of. And in some cases one business's overhead may be substantially less than another's. The ones that get their prices right stay in business much longer than the ones that don't.

It is rare that we ever take the low quote on a job unless we know the contractor but a very high quote is equally suspect since it could mean they don't really want the job.

I see a funny sign at the barber's I pass by: "Cheap haircuts repaired here" which echoes your comment. But I've gotten a bad haircut at an expensive salon too. There's just no telling what the outcome will be until it's over.

[Shabotnik]

Originally Posted by imagardener

There's just no telling what the outcome will be until it's over.

Sure there is. Hire based on reputation, not price.