12/04/2025
BIDS:
Based on T&M (time & material). If I think it's going to take 4 hours, I'm Bidding for 7 hours to accommodate for the unknown difficulties that often arise. Many jobs don't go as planned.
Discounted Bids are for multiple days of work, or for 20+ outlets. I do not give my lower outlet Bid for a small handful of new outlets. For bigger projects, I do discount my labor rate.
T&M:
95% of the time, is cheaper than my Bids. But some folk need a known budget. So no problem if wanting a Bid. I still have to accommodate for the "unknowns" on a hard Bid.
I cannot Bid a bunch of miscellaneous items & troubleshooting; like many extensive home inspection reports. These types of jobs must be T&M at least to knock out the easier items, then I can Bid or Guesstimate anything remaining.
Guesstimates:
I'll give you a high & low price to give you an idea of what T&M may cost. You must choose either a Bid or T&M.
My hourly rate only leaves me a little per hour after labor cost to cover ALL my business & personal expenses.
Like unbillable time for my crew; for unpaid job assessments, free bids, driving between jobs, downtime, warranty work I can't bill for, & the occasional PR Service Call I don't charge for... that's all just additional labor cost to me.
As a 4 man crew, we get a lot done in a shorter time, than hiring some random company sending you 2 inexperienced guys taking 3 times longer for shoddy work and less production, while the Master sits behind an office desk.
So even though my hourly rates may be a little higher than some, as a Master on every job, my bill ends up cheaper because we finish faster, plus you get more for your buck, and an excellent quality installation.
And all my local inspectors love our work... making inspections go smoothly.
