Our fees and typical fees of subcontractors

There are a few ways to invoice a client, and I'll explain our method and how much you can typically expect from various subcontractors. I do this in an attempt to have clients understand what it takes to begin a project.

How we bill you, our client

Construction Management
&
​Project Management

$125/hr

General
​Construction

Cost Plus

Subcontractors

Fixed Bid Plus

Architect

Time & Materials

---

Most construction managers will charge anywhere from 15% to 25% of the total project costs. This makes my hourly rate extremely reasonable and helps keep both myself and my clients happy with my involvement in the project. 

To give you an idea of what this means to you for invoicing. For the pre-construction phase on a major renovation project size of 1,500 SF  project - my typical involvement will be about 5 to 10 hours a week depending on how involved the Owner would like me to be with the design phase to insure the project will be more efficient during the construction phase (100% recommended for big, new construction or complex projects). Pre-construction would include time for getting permits, bids, correspondence with project professionals and Owner, plan review, and anything else that will be needed before physical work begins.

For the same project example and during construction phase, it will be about the same number of hours based upon a straight forward major renovation. If there is a good GC, my hours will be very minimal. If TB&R is the GC these hours will be very minimal or incorporated into the project costs.

The square footage, up to a certain point, plays very little into how many CM hours are needed. I would say anything up to about 5,000 SF takes about the same number of hours on our part. It's really the complexity that changes the number of hours, not the square footage.

There have been WAY too many stories I've heard from friends and clients about getting a bid, or hiring a contractor and getting screwed. Or worse, see crappy work unfinished and obviously being performed by people with no pride and integrity.

I HIGHLY recommend a CM for any size project to make sure you're not being ripped off, bad quality to cost, potentially damaging work, or  being left with incomplete work.

There's two main methods of bidding from a GC, and that's Cost Plus or Fixed Price bids/proposal/estimate.

Most GC's in the PNW will give a fix priced bid, and if there is anything that happens outside of the scope of work originally agreed upon a "Change Order" is created and approved by the Owner before work continues. Example:

Owner wants a full bathroom remodel, but decides they want to make major changes to the original plan during construction - like full tile in the shower rather than a solid one piece tub surround. The labor and cost of materials is greatly more for tile than a simple drop-in tub surround. Also, depending on the progress of the project, it could effect other work needed to be done to accommodate this new direction. So a Change Order would have to be created by the GC and signed by the Owner that verifies the extra costs in changing directions from the original plan.

The above process can really slow down the schedule, and can become overwhelming to the Owner. This is construction, and the one thing you can always count on is something happening not to plan. GC's always try to plan for the unexpected, but the unexpected still happens. The major downside to this method is that the client has NO IDEA what the GC is actually profiting. ​This method can lead to GC's quality of work also being really deteriorated. One example would be not wanting to communicate to the Owner something needing a change order, and in order to make up the lost costs on their part - they forego quality in another. This happens a lot. 

​Transcend Building & Renovations does Cost Plus because I really care about providing quality services and never want an unhappy client. This method insures the Owner gets a product they truly love. This means TB&R takes the total costs of the project and adds a fee of 10% to 25% of the project costs. This percentage depends on the complexity of the project. This also makes what I gross profit COMPLETELY  transparent to the Owner - not the case with Fixed Price which can hide a huge mark-up of well over 50% or 100% plus!

This doesn't mean I buy and hire the most expensive materials and subcontractors! I'm a property owner and landlord and I 100% understand the importance of a budget. I find the balance of quality workmanship and costs for all my projects. You can trust that I will Always have Your best interests at the very heart of everything I do. This is the very definition of what a good CM and GC should be doing. Unfortunately, this is Not the case a lot in this industry.

I communicate and get feedback from the Owner every step of the way to make sure TB&R is moving the directions the Owner wishes. I also give various options and cost differences for every step. I will give an estimate for the project cost, so the Owner has an idea of costs; however, invoicing will be based on actual costs incurred - this includes if it costs less than my estimate. 

 TB&R has subcontractors we have worked with and some we will find anew for your project. We negotiate and work with subcontractors to find the best fair price for the scope of work performed. Most will give a project cost as an estimate, rather than time & materials. We charge you their costs plus a small fee (5% to 10%) for paying subcontractors up front out of pocket, and for any loose ends we may need to account for.

I think there may be a lot of misconception about how much skilled labor costs and how important experience and skill come into play with ALL scopes of work, so I wanted to throw out a few hourly wages that the contractor/employer has to pay with their included "labor burden"(L&I worker's compensation, payroll taxes, health insurance, safety gear, PTO and benefits). *** All contractors have to pay some percentage of these who are licensed and bonded. 

Average typical hourly wages of various Skilled Labor PLUS labor burden (can be 50% to 150%)
​
Laborer (most basic worker)$50/hr
Carpenter                                $75/hr
Painter                                      $75/hr
Drywaller                                 $80/hr
Electrician                             $145/hr
Plumber                                 $125/hr

Example costs of scopes of work (please be aware this is a rough estimate to give you a rough idea of what various work costs with current material prices in 2021, and we need to adjust bids to each individual project conditions):

Drywall - NEW 1,000 SF house (hang, tape, corner bead, mud, sand, touch up, Level 4 smooth wall finish.~ $9,800 (Not a quote)

Plumbing - NEW Rough-ins Remodel 1,000 SF (remove old lines, install new sewer line, new pex hot and cold lines (from new on demand hot water to: tub, vanity, toilet, kitchen sink, fridge, washer, exterior spigots), Rough-ins don't include fixture hook ups just what's mostly inside the walls to stub outs for fixtures. ~ $8,900 (Not a quote)

Architects bid by Time & Materials, Cost Plus or Fixed Price.