When do you do estimates?

[Barry M 73]

I can see this being a problem already. I'm starting PT in residential, I know a lot of full timers do their estimates in the evenings or on Saturdays. My full time job keeps me from doing anything in the evenings. I never know what time I'm getting off, it's different from day to day, and then I have a 1 1/4 hour drive home. So the only time I will have to PW is every bit of day light on the weekends. I'm having trouble figuring out when to do estimates. The last thing I want is to tell someone I'll be there and then can't get off of work or something. I'm just trying to keep it simple, please help.

[tropical wave 22]

Barry, you don't know when your getting off from the full time job, but since you probably know when your going to work, maybe you can do them in the morning before work...... if I understand right, your full time job is an evening thing?

I rotate shifts monthly, so when I work nights, I estimate/PW mornings.... when Im on days, Im usually off by 3pm, can estimate/PW late afternoons until it gets dark.................

[RyanH 14]

I've done estimates in the mornings and afternoons when nobody is home. Just get an idea of what the customer wants over the phone, let them know that you'll be coming by, what you will be checking and go do your measure up. Often I would tell the customer that my rates are based upon measureable dimensions (perimeter of house, number of floors, number of windows, type of siding, "special treatment" areas like flower beds, etc.) so that they will have an idea of what to expect. Others may disagree, and probably for good reason, but I've also found it helpful to get them to ballpark the size of the job and I give them a range of prices. For example, one conversation I had went something like this:

" I want my house cleaned."

"Ok, what type of siding? Vinyl, brick, wood, etc.?"

"Vinyl."

"How many floors and square feet?"

"About 3000 square feet two floors."

"Any idea on the perimeter of the house?"

"No, not really."

"Ok, that's not a big deal. If it's 3000 square feet then that's about a 1500 square foot foot-print. Most houses are built in a 2:1 or 3:1 width to depth ratio around this area, so that would make your perimeter between 160 and 180 linear feet. On a two story home the cost is between $2 and $2.50 depending upon what you want done. Have you noticed any accumulated grime, dirt, or spiderwebs on your window sills?"

"Some spiderwebs, yes. Really haven't noticed if there's any dirt around the windows or not."

"Ok, if there is I can take care of all of that. Part of the service includes scrubbing all windows and surrounding trim to remove the dirt and dead bugs. How about gutters? Have you noticed any streaks or severe dark discoloration on them."

"Well, they do look dirty but I haven't noticed if there are any streaks."

"That's okay..I can check that when I come out. If there are I have a cleaner that will remove them and make the gutters look like-new. How about any thing I should be aware of, like flowers or fences, animals, nosy neighbors, anyone sleeping in the house that I would scare by walking around the house?"

"No, no...none of that (if there's laughter, that's GREAT). You're fine to check it out."

"Well, I'll come by and check everything out tomorrow morning and leave my estimate on your door. Based upon what you've told me and the approximated measurements, the total should fall somewhere between $350 and $450 for the entire process and that does include brightening your gutters, cleaning your windows and making sure everything looks, smells, and is clean, unless there is anything strange that may require extra steps."

"Okay. sounds good."

"Did you want me to measure anything else while I'm there? I can leave you an estimate for the driveway or your roof if you feel that you may want those cleaned in the near future."

"Yes, you can leave an estimate. I would like to have that done a little later."

"Great. Well, I'll come by tomorrow and call you tomorrow evening. Thank you for calling. "

It isn't always that eloquant on over-the-phone quotes. You may have to defend why you are $200 more than the last guy. Maybe not. If you are sure enough about how you present it things usually go pretty well. But be sure to not pidgeon yourself into a hole. There are many opportunities for inaccuracies here and they all begin with the area they tell you on their home. You'd be amazed at how many people greatly underestimate the size of their home. They will usually tell you the appraised area and leave out any garages, add-ons, etc. that can easily add more than 40 feet to the perimeter and really affect the final price.

Sorry to be so long winded.

[Barry M 73]

That's okay Ryan I like your looooooong winded posts......zzzzzzzzz. Just kidding dude. I really do enjoy them, the more info I get the better, thank you. Sorry for the confusion Michael, I work days. I leave at 5:30am and by the time I get home its 5 or 6 that night. Sometimes later I never know. So my evenings are pretty much gone. So morning are not an option either. I just might have to stop washing at 3 or 4 on Saturdays and go do estimates. But with only weekends to wash that would really suck. Any other suggestions?

[RyanH 14]

Go buy a rechargable 1,000,000 cp flash light and do your estimates at night. I picked one up for about $10-$15 awhile back. You don't need daylight to see stuff with that kind of wattage!

[Washaway 64]

Barry, never take on more work than you can handle. The quickest way to ruin your name is by being unreliable.