Analysis of a Bid

[Jason Merchey]

My contractor gave an estimate for the turn-around of a serious fixer-upper, and I was wondering how his time-table compares to the average? He said he wanted to take a little more time to be able to pull together cost-saving measures such as, say, buying double the amount of flooring for a discount and using it on two houses he is doing, or maybe waiting for a great appliance sale, etc. It is a 980 square foot SFD on brick piers, stick built in 1890, with a major renovation on what currently exists (like, $100 a foot) and a good-size addition (500 feet at $110 a foot), including landscaping, paver walkway, small fence, etc. 1.5 stories, 2 bath, granite and hardwood. He is making 10% profit. He is well-regarded and full insured and all that. He quoted 5-7 months. I'm trying to figure out, based on these specs, with the caveat about saving money, how you feel about the price, the time to complete, etc? I feel the price is good without being a steal, and the time frame is medium. This question started because he was a little slow to ramp up, and though I get that ramping up takes time, I was wondering if perhaps the "cost-saving measures" he is instituting is possibly a cover for being involved in quite a few projects and that would actually explain the unimpressive speed. I know that contractors try to have as many projects going as they can handle, and I wonder how that phenomenon affects this timeline, and perhaps, cost. It's in a Southeastern city that is fairly popular and has quite a lot of tourism, Boeing, etc.