I have two quotes for the same room renovation and they are close enough in total price that I cannot simply pick the cheaper one.
Quote A is basically a single total with about five lines of description: prep, flooring, paint, trim, cleanup. Quote B separates labor, main materials, disposal, protection of adjacent rooms, minor wall repair and a few explicit exclusions. It also says what happens if more damaged subfloor is found after the old flooring comes up.
The detailed quote is slightly more expensive, but I am more comfortable with it because I can see what is actually included. The cheaper quote may be perfectly fine; I just cannot tell whether things like paint materials, trim repair and hauling debris are included or assumed to be extra.
I do not expect a contractor to predict every hidden problem in an older house. I mainly want both bids describing roughly the same job before I compare the totals.
My plan is to send both contractors the same short scope and ask them to confirm:
- who supplies finish materials,
- what prep/repair is included,
- cleanup and disposal,
- whether permits are relevant,
- how change orders are priced,
- payment schedule.
I am not trying to turn a small renovation into a legal document. I just want fewer surprises.
For people who have compared very differently formatted quotes, what else was worth getting clarified before choosing?
I also plan to ask about start timing and how long the room will actually be unusable. One quote says “about a week” and the other says nothing. That matters because this is not an empty property; we will be living around the work.
4 replies
You’re doing the right thing by forcing both bids to describe the same job. The biggest trap is comparing a detailed quote to a vague one an...
You’re doing the right thing by forcing both bids to describe the same job. The biggest trap is comparing a detailed quote to a vague one and assuming the vague one is cheaper instead of just less clear.
Ask them to spell out exclusions too. That’s where a lot of “same price” quotes stop being the same project.
I’d definitely ask about dust protection and cleanup in lived-in space. That can be the difference between a normal week and a week where everything in the next room tastes like drywall.
Also, start timing matters more than people expect. “About a week” sounds simple until you realize nobody said whether that means one crew d...
If one quote mentions damaged subfloor and the other doesn’t, I’d ask whether they’re planning on handling that as an allowance or just cros...