Estimating

• Business: When You're Asked to Estimate From Incomplete Drawings (Subscriber content)

  Estimating from incomplete drawings

   

• Business: Healing Your Inner Underestimator (Subscriber content)

  Healing your inner underestimator

   

• How To Charge For Overhead (Subscriber content)

  Forget material markups: This method, successfully practiced for 20 years by an Iowa remodeler, assigns overhead and profit expense to billed time on the job.

   
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  Tracking Your Time

  A time card can improve the accuracy of your estimates, cut worker’s comp costs, and increase your profit. A custom builder shares his system.

   

• Strictly Business: Making Your Bid Stand Out (Subscriber content)

  Making your bid stand out

   

• Calculating Labor Costs

  The hard cost of labor includes taxes, insurance, employee benefits, vehicle expenses, and more. Failing to account for these expenses will take a large chunk out of your bottom line, as this remodeling contractor illustrates.

   

• On the Job With Integrated Construction Software (Subscriber content)

  Are powerful, multifunction construction software packages worth the cost and the time they take to learn? We look at five builders who took the leap and were willing to share their stories.

   

• Strictly Business: Fast, Painless Estimating for Small Remodelers (Subscriber content)

  Simple estimating system for small remodelers

   

• Charging For Estimates

  Twelve builders offer solid reasons for bucking the tradition of giving free estimates and tell how they get paid for the upfront work.

   
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  Cleaning Up After the Storm

  In the aftermath of Hurricane Fran, this North Carolina builder gained experience in insurance work — and helped his community rebuild.

   

• Computer Solutions: Master Builder Solo (Subscriber content)

  Review of Master Builder Solo

   

• Q&A: Estimating Software for Pole Buildings

  Q: I recently had the opportunity to bid on a pole building. Do any software companies sell estimating software for post-frame construction?

   
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  Making the Switch to Steel

  Lumber price swings and declining quality convinced this California production builder to try framing with steel. Now, seven years later, he’s not looking back.

   

• Kitchen & Bath: Quick Cabinet Quotes (Subscriber content)

  A simple system for quick cabinet estimates

   

• Computer Solutions: Streamlined Spreadsheet Estimating (Subscriber content)

  Quick Bid 2000 review

   

• Strictly Business: Charging for Estimates (Subscriber content)

  Charging for estimates not an end in itself

   
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  Bidding Errors To Avoid

  Taking shortcuts when preparing contracts, job specs, and estimates could cost you your profit margin. A seasoned contractor tells how to avoid typical pitfalls.

   

• Strictly Business: Simple Job-Costing (Subscriber content)

  A simple approach to job-costing

   

• Strictly Business: Clients and Their Budgets (Subscriber content)

  Nailing down the budget with prospective clients

   

• Computer Solutions: Visual Estimating (Subscriber content)

  A visual estimating program