Getting extremely frustrated with contractor quotes

[Bryan Gambina]

Hello all,

I am new to Bigger Pockets, but I've been involved in a rehab for over 3 years now. I'm in a 1,800 sqft SFH rancher. I gutted half my home and put an addition on, and as I tore everything apart, it became evident that everything needed to be done, soup to nuts. Anyway, at the time, my thinking was there was no way for me to afford having a contractor do all this so I decided to continue doing everything myself. Fast fwd three and a half years and I'm trying to finish this and started reaching out to local contractors. The quotes I am getting are double, triple, quadruple, and even ten times what the average ranges are, even when referencing J Scott's book "The Book On Estimating Rehab Costs." Looking at me, there's no way I have "I'm rich" tattooed across my forehead, so I'm trying to figure out a) what am I doing wrong ? b) where are these contractors that give reasonable estimates ?

Here are some examples:

Siding (home and detached garage) = $40,000

Framing a 20' long load bearing wall = $5,000

Installing forced air HVAC system = $16,000

Concrete repair = $12,000

New Driveway = $110,000

Landscaping and hardscaping = $500,000 (yes you read that right)

I get multiple estimates and they all seem to fall in that idiotically high range.  On top of that, these contractors refuse to do cost breakdowns of the estimate so I can see where the prices are coming from.

Any help or even a finger point in the right direction is greatly appreciated!

Sincerely,

Bryan Gambina