Cost of rewiring 950 sf home

[Alejandro Patino]

Hello, I am currently in the prices of closing on a fixer upper in the St.Louis,MO area.The home is approximately 2 story 950 sf and currently has knob and tube wiring  throughout.I spoke to a electrician who said he would charge me 11k for replacing all the electrical.I’ve never dealt with something like this before, is this a normal cost?.I plan on getting other bids from some more electricians.I’m simple trying to get an idea of what the cost should be.Thanks.

[Andy Sabisch]

Your quote is EXTREMELY high regardless of where in the country you are doing a rewire.  The one question I had that does impact the price is what is the condition of the interior and is there access to the attic area on the second floor.  Obviously f you are opening walls the cost should be minimal as it would be just supplies (which have gone up of late) and the time to run the wires / connect the outlets, lights and switches.  If you are not redoing walls, someone that has done this before can work around it.  We did a number of 1800 homes in the Detroit area with knob-and-tube wiring and we were able to find electricians that were able to do it without tearing holes in the walls (except one which is a whole different story and lesson learned).  All of the homes we did were in the 1800 ft2+ range and none (even a 2900 ft2 two story Victorian) cost more than 6K.  Often when you get a high quote like that I reflect back to an old friend of mine who was a contractor in the Atlanta area who told me if he did not want the job he would throw out a high bid hoping they would find someone else but if not, he simply made twice what he usually woudl and took the job.  Until you are comfortable with what area prices are for services such as a rewire, repipe (another thing you may need to look at if there are galvanized pipes, re-reoof, etc., always get at least two estimates and you will quickly see who wants to work with you and who does not.

But as far as your quote goes and the size of the house, I'd come to you and do it for that price and be done in a few days at most.  Shop around, you are being quoted way more than you should be paying.