Originally Posted By: kbliss
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Was wondering if anyone knew where I could get a cost estimate guide?
Kurt Bliss
Was wondering if anyone knew where I could get a cost estimate guide?
Kurt Bliss
Originally Posted By: dbush
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Kurt,
Ebay had the best prices followed by amazon.com. I picked up one on ebay that included a cd.
--
Dave Bush
MAB Member
"LIFE'S TOUGH, WEAR A HELMET"
Originally Posted By: jremas
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RS Means has about the most thorough guides split up into several books for residential, commercia and remodeling. The FHA recommends following their guidlines. I would also keep tabs on prices through local contractors.
–
Jeff Remas
REMAS Inspections, Inc.
Northeastern PA & the Poconos
www.NEPAinspector.com
570-362-1598
Originally Posted By: Steve Yared
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Speaking of estimating. How do most of you handle estimates? Do you attach a price to every item that needs repair? Major items only? Just the stuff the client asks about?
Thanks,
Steve Yared
www.thehomeexaminer.com
Originally Posted By: wcampbell
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Steve, IMO, If you start giving an estamate on repairs to a client and their actual bill or bid comes in over that amount, then they might be coming after YOU for the balance. It is our job to let them know that an item needs attention. It is not our job to tell them how much it will cost.
Because of this “sue-em” world we live in
, I won’t even recomend a contractor for work, I’ll give the client a list and let them make their own choice.–
This Ole House-Home Inspections
William A. Campbell TREC # 6372
Serving the Texas Coastal Bend
(361) 727-0602 (home)
(361) 727-0055 (office)
(361) 229-4103 (cell)
Originally Posted By: jremas
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I will need to clarify something.
I gave the information about RS Means because the question was asked, and I am aware of the recommendation from the FHA.
However, this has nothing to do with performing home inspections. I do not give out prices for repairs. I clearly refer the client to a qualified, licensed contractor of a certain specialty for further evaluation and cost estimating. I will not take on that liability. In the rare case that I give them a ball park verbal on a simple fix item, it does come with a disclaimer to get a contractor to evaluate and bid. Just My Opinion.
Hope this helps.
--
Jeff Remas
REMAS Inspections, Inc.
Northeastern PA & the Poconos
www.NEPAinspector.com
570-362-1598
Originally Posted By: rray
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I tell my Client to call around and get three cost estimates but also pay attention to how someone treats you on the phone. Our service industry in Southern California s***ks. I also tell them to check out the Better Business Bureau web site because their members typically are more interested in service.
We get a wide range of prices for the same job. For example, a Realtor recently requested three structural engineers for a house we inspected that she was buying. Bids for the exact same job came in at $10,000, $17,000, and $57,000. $10K and $17K were reasonable considering the locations of those two companies and the location of the work. The $57K bid was from "friends" of the Realtor, which was telling me one of two things: (1) they didn't want to do the work, or (2) they were the type of "friends" that you want to introduce your enemy to.
--
Home inspections. . . .
One home at a time.
Originally Posted By: roconnor
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I agree that providing cost estimates is not part of a home inspection. I also wouldn’t make specific contractor recommendations, even though I know some very good ones.
But as a client service I have a separate schedule of common home repair unit costs I prepared that I can give out, along with some other homeowner information. The schedule gives approximate unit cost price ranges just so the client can get a rough idea of what repairs will cost. It has a disclaimer that they are rough figures for planning only, and that the client should get quotes from licensed contractor's if they want accurate figures.
I know some inspectors do this, and some larger companies even post these schedules on their web sites in client only areas. Some pre-printed inspection forms even have some basic cost schedules on the back side of some sheets, but these are generally very low for my area.
Anyone know of any specific problems or legal issues with providing rough unit cost guides, as long as you have the disclaimers and point this out to your clients.
Originally Posted By: rray
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| Eagle wrote: |
| Anyone know of any specific problems or legal issues with providing rough unit cost guides, as long as you have the disclaimers and point this out to your clients. |
Yeah, contract law, case law, and legislative law. Don't go there without having your real estate attorney check for your state.
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Home inspections. . . .
One home at a time.
Originally Posted By: roconnor
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The approximate unit cost guide I have was reviewed by an attorney, so the disclaimer ended up being a paragraph long in bold letters on the first page.
I am not an attorney, but the main points seem to be the values are only approximate and not an absolute low or high, you are not providing an estimate, and you are deferring to licensed contractors for actual costs.
I was more interested in any specific examples people had of actual problems or legal issues with providing cost guides that have appropriate disclaimer wording. Have home inspectors been held liable where actual costs were significantly greater, even though only a guide was provided and not used or applied correctly? Where can I read about these cases?
Originally Posted By: Steve Yared
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Thanks for the replies, I was just wondering what the common practice is out there. I give out very rough ranges for an estimate and suggest they get contractor estimates for accuracy, and I don’t put the estimates in writing.
I've seen the cd-rom programs and books detailing cost estimating and I wondered if HI's really used them. It seemed like you could spend as much time using those to estimate as it would take to do an inspection.
Good to see all the opinions here and help.
Steve Yared
www.thehomeexaminer.com
Originally Posted By: roconnor
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Steve … you have to be careful that you are not providing your client an estimate. That is also why I think only contractors should be consulting Means cost data. However, I think providing rough cost ranges along with other homeowner maintenance/safety information (separate from an inspection report) is a good client service.
In my opinion only a rough range of repair costs can be provided with the appropriate disclaimers, and it should be separate from the inspection report. A client can then use that if they like to get their own ball-park figure for planning purposes, and for major items it red flags that they really do need to get contractor quotes.
The following links have a few examples of approximate home repair costs schedules:
http://www.homeinspection.net/costofrepairs.htm
http://www.homeinspectorlocator.com/resources/Costtorepair.htm
However, I don't necessarily agree with the cost range examples (some are low for my area) or the disclaimer wording ... and as Russel pointed out you really should have an attorney check out anything you prepare or consider using.