I'm doing a bump-out addition on my house, about 8 feet off the side. I also wanted to add a small composite deck off the back of it--8x8. I have one estimate I like the most. Came in around the middle of the pack (just a smidge above what my research suggested it would cost), has done projects exactly like this in my area, have heard no bad news at all about this smallish family contractor, and they also seem down to earth and straightforward.

What has me uncertain is the deck portion of the estimate. They're saying $11K for the composite deck. It would be a new deck, needing footings, railing, and 3 steps down to a level yard. No trees or landscaping in their way. Level lot. I expected I might be paying $5-6K. This is double that amount, and it's only 64SF. Two friends who recently put in decks think they're overbidding because they might not want this piece of the job because it's not a big fancy deck. Is that likely? Or is this amount in the realm of possibility? That's $175 PSF, which is hard to conceive of. I'm afraid I'll say, Just do the bump-out. Then I'll look for deck guys and they'll quote it even higher than this contractor. Thoughts? Central NJ.