What's The Contractors' Margin

[makeit 0]

Anyone knows the contractors' margin of profit. Do you bargain after you have shortlisted your contractors?

How much can you bargain down? Pls share your experience.

My wife said one should not bargain with the contractor because you will get short-charged and the contractor might cut-conners after the price is reduced. Is this true?

I had my new 5-rm hdb flat renovated 5 years back for about 12k - simple standard package.

I am moving to a private apt, size 99 sm, the size of a 4-rm hdb flat. I need to redo the whole kitchen. Basic work like replace wall/floor tiles, replace old sink and stove support, remove and replace kitchen cabinet.

I got 4 quotes. Only one contractor quoted me close to 10k. All the rest are closer to 12k - 14k.

I guessed the most would be 8k just to redo the kitchen. I was surprised with the high quotes.

And the contractors seem to be very busy. Is the reno market very hot now? Has the price gone up so much in the pass few years?

Appreciate your comment.

[waileong 0]

Check my blog.

[raincole 0]

All prices have gone up.... if you are staying in Singapore....

[latitude 0]

i did not bargain with my ID from the begining. scared they cut corners or engaged inexperienced workers to do the job. but along the way I ask them to do small little things here and there - FOC. i would consider that as a discount.

[makeit 0]

could someone give me the price of homo tiles, wall tiles, and labour cost. i can do a quick cal of reno cost for a kitchen and determine the margin a contractor make.

just a gut feeling. for a 10k work, the cost is 4k. if i raise the cost to 5k, the profit is still 50%. this is the cost after he has subcontracted out his work to some malaysian workers / cabinet makers.

imagine a contractor with a front office to support, he can survive with one deal a month.

i have narrowed down to 2 contractors. both cost ~10k. one i hv seen his work, very busy guy and quite sure he will not run away after taking the deposit. quite likely i will give the job to him. for the next one, i haven't seen his work but he is hdb registered. to make it worthwhile to swith, i will ask for 2k off.

wish me luck.

[GnM 0]

could someone give me the price of homo tiles, wall tiles, and labour cost. i can do a quick cal of reno cost for a kitchen and determine the margin a contractor make.

just a gut feeling. for a 10k work, the cost is 4k. if i raise the cost to 5k, the profit is still 50%. this is the cost after he has subcontracted out his work to some malaysian workers / cabinet makers.

imagine a contractor with a front office to support, he can survive with one deal a month.

i have narrowed down to 2 contractors. both cost ~10k. one i hv seen his work, very busy guy and quite sure he will not run away after taking the deposit. quite likely i will give the job to him. for the next one, i haven't seen his work but he is hdb registered. to make it worthwhile to swith, i will ask for 2k off.

wish me luck.

the cost of tiles will largely depend on what range you choose.

For kitchen, the usual sizes are about 300x300. And for a pretty reasonable good range of tiles, the price psf is about $2.50 - $3.20.

Usually the labor cost vs material cost is about 1:1.5

you can check out the article Floors... how to decide? for a better write up.

[makeit 0]

This is how it goes. I spoke to the second contractor, told him that I have a quote for 9k, would he do it for 8k.

It turned out that he has a boss. So, he needs to take a cut too - commission.

His counter offer is 8.9k. I declined his offer. He lowered his quote to 8.5k. again I said no go. He offered to talk to his boss again. I said forget it. I sensed that even if his boss offered to do it for 8k, I don't feel comfortable.

[GnM 0]

This is how it goes. I spoke to the second contractor, told him that I have a quote for 9k, would he do it for 8k.

It turned out that he has a boss. So, he needs to take a cut too - commission.

His counter offer is 8.9k. I declined his offer. He lowered his quote to 8.5k. again I said no go. He offered to talk to his boss again. I said forget it. I sensed that even if his boss offered to do it for 8k, I don't feel comfortable.

if he offered you 8k then you would have to ask him what kind of material he is giving to you.

There are lots of material in the market that can be used to make a piece of furniture. The problem is, different material will affect the durability of the furniture it is made into.

For example, one of the cost cutting ways is to use a cheaper grade of ply wood in stead of the solid ply wood to do your cabinets. Chip board for doors instead of solid ply. Cheaper brands, thinner versions of laminates to cover the cabinets.... etc etc... the list is long.

So it is not impossible to do the same project for a lower cost. Just ensure that the material used are the better ones and that it is all listed in the contract/quotation given to you for signing.