Quote:
Originally Posted by Caged Great
I am kind of aware of that considering it was my father's profession for over 25 years and mine for almost 8
I am working with my father, who was instructing me on the correct procedures on how to do things that I hadn't prior, like landscaping with proper drainage, or plumbing etc, and him being a pro at it with decades of experience, and working with me, I'd assume that it would be considered pro work, not amateur hour. Also, when you're getting "quoted" a price and the guys quoting it are laughing at what they are charging, that tells me it's a little ridiculous. The example I shared with the moulding was for a square room with 12 total cuts (all ends) (it was actually a 13 X 20 room with 9 ft ceilings and was quoted $25 a foot to install without materials. )
Yep, and electrical work is the only one that I'd personally pay for, and even then I'd assist with running the cable. I'm not saying that everyone is a crook and ripping people off, it's just unfortunately more common than not in my experience. Some times it's a few hundred bucks, sometimes it's a lot more. There are great guys that do quality work and charge appropriately. Those are the types that I try to suggest to clients if they ask for it.
It's a frustrating industry at times because there are no standards like in other industries. I believe that you should go to "builder's school" and have to actually pass before being able to begin working, just like a normal degree, instead of "you have hands, here's a tool get to work"
It would also help to get rid of the "bad" that is prevalent.
The main reason why I don't do contracting myself, and I could, is that I find it boring and monotonous, and I'd rather do anything else. At least the decorating has challenges and is fun.
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What's stopping you from getting multiple quotes and references, and building strong relationships with trades and suppliers?
If you got every single guy in the city who does crown to quote your crown moulding job you'd have a pretty extreme range, all with a variety of factors behind those quotes. Maybe he didn't want the small job unless it was going to be pay well to be worth his time. There's got to be a minimum charge just for taking on a job. Projects require maintenance aside of the actual labour. Travel across town, picking up materials, site meetings, phone calls, billing, accounting, and disruption to other active jobs to fit your job in. A high maintenance client can get your quote creeping up too. Then there's a need to recoup some value from each job to cover large capital investment in a vehicle and tools, etc.
Price isn't always everything anyways. Service, timing and quality workmanship/product is. Which is what makes long relationships most important so you can provide clients with some amount of assurance.