working with builders

20 years ago

Hi everyone,

I usually post in the Professional Gardener forum, but thought this forum could be helpful to my question! I'm owner of a small design/build company (about as mom & pop as they get) and my typical jobs are small residential with some commercial and some non-profit projects. I met with a potential new client yesterday who is in the process of having a large Medit./French Country million-plus house built. I'm currently working with their builder to landscape a spec house down the street; very ritzy neighborhood. anyway, the budget is $45,000 for landscaping. they are paying me a hefty design fee, but wondered if i was open to working with the builders' crews to install the design.

I said i was, and i think it's a workable deal, but want to know if anyone of you have dealt with a situation like this, and what the pitfalls might be. I would be doing design and "supervision" of the crew during installation so it's done according to my design. I don't know what the builders pay their crew, so i guess i'd have to have several mtgs with them to determine if my design can be implemented within the budget. Other questions: what would the contract look like? How do I charge for the "supervisory" role that i would be taking on? My usual "materials X 3" estimating process won't work because i'm not providing the labor.

this is a much larger job than i am used to handling, but i'm getting my feet wet at the spec house down the street, so i think i can do it. I just want to be smart and do it well and make some money on this thing. Help?

thanks!! Jenny

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Comments (5)

laag
20 years ago
Jenny,

This is a tough one to assess because you are in a balancing act between how much you are managing the job, how much responsibility you have for the job, and how much you are getting paid for the job.

The builder wants to make the money on the job, but needs you to make sure it comes out right. Paying you to "manage" the job really switches the burden of responsibility on to you. You have to clear up what you are responsible for in your contract.

I would suggest that you minimize your exposure by agreeing to supply the plants and "guidance" on the installation of the work. Let the builder supply the labor and other material and make his money there. The builder must guaranty everything except the nursery stock. Give a marked up price for the plant materials and a price to guide the labor for x amount of days for $y and a price for each day beyond that x amount of days.

That will give you more than wages, minimize your exposure, and keep you from being stuck there for an endless amount of time without getting more compensation. It will also ensure that the job gets done in the time frame that you define.

The builder will make money on his laborers and the markup of other materials. The homeowner will know your price. Everyone should be happy when it is agreed to.

It is always a good idea to define an end to your contract with a rate given for extended service. It tends to make people make decisions faster and motivates others to follow your time frame. The homeowner will push the builder to finish before he has to pay you beyond the contract.

Make sure to have a written and signed contract.
txjenny
Original Author
20 years ago
That's a good idea to have a specified number of days that i will supervise the crew. it's a long drive out there (45 min. without traffic), and i now know from experience that new builds never get built on time. there are always delays, and i don't want to get caught up in that and pay the price. thanks for the advice! also, having the builder get all the other materials other than plants is a good idea too.
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jake
20 years ago
Why would you want to take a group of construction laborers and have them plant any landscape you design ??

Most likely you will be spending more time teaching them how to properly plant the plant material and then watching that they don't short change your instructions.

I designed a small neighborhood park w/ plenty of volunteer help to plant and over all many of the perennials failed due to lack of knowledge and experience regarding proper planting techniques.

These people were not paid for their services but if they were then I would have been demanding money back or have them pay for and replant their failures.

Make sure these construction workers have done landscape work in the past to save you grief in the future.

Jake
txjenny
Original Author
20 years ago
jake, i've done landscape jobs with volunteers before, too, and it tries my patience every time (and i'm pretty patient). the last one i did was landscaping the entrance to a fairly pricey neighborhood where their future signage would go. they had a chintzy budget, wanted me to come down on my design fee, took forever to sign the contract, and on the day of installation a couple women from the Board questioned my competency in decision-making several times. the rest of the people were great, the project looked great, and i did get paid, but i learned a lot from that job.

one thing that saved me was my habit of always having a copy of the contract with me at the jobsite, not at home on the computer. when one of the women from the Board questioned the small size of the plants going in, i was able to take out the contract and say, "The size of the plants was driven by your budget, and was spelled out in this contract precisely." End of story.

I'm gonna proceed with caution on this new job with the builder and i'll let you know how it goes. I'll be a crazy woman with the contract (more than usual), and we'll see. thanks for your input!

Jenny
jake
20 years ago
Isn't it interesting how people think we can do miracles for little or nothing ?? You get what you pay for.

Good luck and I hope you have success with the new project. Keep us posted on the entertaining endeavors that you have until the project is complete.

Jake