Yes, you’re wrong. All that you are due is product information and bottom line costs. The exact makeup of materials and labor is proprietary information for any business. The only number that’s important is the bottom line number, and the scope of work included for that number. I.E. it includes floor pro via SLC up to 5 bags, and includes the required threshold reduced and T molds at every transition..

No contractor wants an amateur cherry picking out part of the job that is essential because they think it costs too much. Nor do they want you shopping for seconds of his material online. The only way to guarantee a quality result is if all of that is under his control.

Well...what's reasonable in the way of information from a bid depends entirely and solely on the type of contract which will be used for the work.

General contractos and soub sound contractors each prepare bids a little differently. For a lump sum contract, for example, the only information you are due is the bottom line price and a description of the work.

On on the other had, if your contract is time and materials cost, then all you get is the hourly rates for the needed trades, perhaps an estimate of the cost of work and a description of the work

Finally if your contract is cost of the work plus a fee, you may expect an estimate of the cost of work, the fee amount and the scope of work.

I’m confused as to what additional info you are seeking. The document in the photo appears to specify the tile, grout, pattern, and overages for specific additions (ie special grout, tiling to the ceiling)?

That looks pretty comprehensive to me. It names the product, the grout being used etc. Like many, he is not doing this based on price per square foot and to me, that is a good thing. It's for the total job and it does not appear out of line.

looks very cheap, says nothing about waterproofing, floor substrate prep and nothing about tile industry standards that will be met and followed. That leaves you wide open for bare minimums across the board and at those prices id be expecting that.

Shift focus from grout colors and joint size to insisting on a detailed scope replete with methods matetials and standards. I.E.

"All tile work will meet TCNA, ANSI, and all mfg installation instructions"

Most quality tile contractors do not price by the square foot at all. They price by the job total, accounting for the time needed to perform all of the tasks that your particular job might need. A more difficult or larger job takes more time, so is more expensive. This looks to be missing any waterproofing system, which probably explains the modest price for that much work.

From what I can infer, the proposal is only for the additional costs reflected by the clients' selections versus what the builder has included in their contract price. The cost of an appropriate waterproofing system, etc. would have been in the base case proposal.

It appears to me to be a perfectly adequate proposal.

Looks as detailed as needed, for variances from standard. Waterproofing specs are likely already provided elsewhere.

It is fine. If you want to finalize your tile selection and you should - ask your custom builder to list it on your contract. I would request to add "All tile work will meet TCNA, ANSI, and all mfg installation instructions"

' TCNA, ANSI, ' .......OK.....I'm dumb....what is this? I've done a fare amount of tile in our house but have no idea what this is.

' I've received quotes from each and for most, I get photos of each choice, with a model number and name, then the cost and the total builder credit for that entire trade. '

I have NEVER heard of that before! I've studied GC's for decades and THAT'S the job OF the GC to quote! That GC is putting s/he's job (time) on the subs!

Hard to disagree....................

I don't think you are wrong. Of course you are amateur, just like 99.999% of the customers, otherwise why do we need to hire professionals in trades?

It is your house and your money. You have to know WHAT you are buying and be able to verify if contractors get paid to perform. Labor rate, contractor's mark up..etc. are irrelevant to the finished products once you accept the total cost.

I will be facing the same process once I am ready to receive bids from contractors in my upcoming remodeling for the house new to me.

I am preparing a list of WHAT I would like to have in each of the finished product, and come up with criteria to verify them in no ambiguity term. It is a lot of work, but will be worth it.

@bry911,

As you know, 50% of students are in the bottom half of their class!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really appreciate all these great responses! This is really helpful. It's so different from the other bids, which is why I asked the question here. I'm not trying to go shopping to other places. Our builder has a long-term relationship with this flooring company and I trust our builder. It's just SO DIFFERENT from the other bids. The others all have SKUs.

The reason it's significantly cheaper is because we are getting a credit for the "ILO" the builder-grade tile and carpet (hardwood is standard).

The flooring company owner called me today and is going to provide me with more specifics about the additional labor costs and a breakdown per square foot. I'm feeling really good about everything and, again, appreciate the information.

bry.......OBVIOUSLY you have NO clue what a GC 'actually' does! Or what is SUPPOSED TO DO!!!!!!

bry.......OBVIOUSLY you have NO clue what a GC 'actually' does! Or what is SUPPOSED TO DO!!!!!!

Obviously you have no clue what punctuation actually does, or what it's supposed to do.

In all seriousness, you can't actually believe you know anything about G.C.s, and we certainly don't believe you know anything about G.C.s. So what purpose does that exaggeration serve?

However, since you asked so nicely and all, let me help you. Take your research up to the second response to this thread and learn something. The extent to which a G.C. makes decisions versus gathers information is in the contract. However, in a cost plus contract (the most common contractual element) subcontractor pricing is required by law to be passed on in detail to the owners. Bids should also be passed on before approval, but I am not sure which states mandate versus just recommend that.

I sub contracted my house and was totally worth it. I saved thousands and picked out the best materials. Do research it's not difficult unless you're rich and do not want to bother and money isnt an option.

@timmyteague Subcontracting myself is not an option. Money has nothing to do with it. 1) My spouse and I both have very demanding careers. We both work over 50 hours a week. We don’t have time to do it. 2) We are relocating to a different state. The home we are building is over 6 hours away from where we live. Again, no time or knowledge of the area to do this all myself. I’ve been flying in for 1 day at a time when I can get away. 3) We need to be in the house by the end of the year. Again, no time to do it all myself.

It’s not helpful to assume that money is the only factor in almost any decision.