Sounds ridiculous. Get a couple more.

Be very careful who you hire. Read around here.

Snookums2, thank you very much. I will be careful, and I will read more here. Actually, we can do most of this ourselves, but I was willing to spend money to have it done. I've never had anyone do house repairs or remodeling before, so I was completely stunned with this estimate.

macmomma:

Some one doesn't want to work for you. I'd take a good look at why.

I wouldn't have been surprised by $6-7000, but $13,000 does seem very high.

Trebruchet, I don't understand. No one said they didn't want to work for me. I have all my materials picked, I do not change my mind on my selections, I pay promptly. Like sjhockeyfan, I expected about $6000-7000.

Have you or anyone else ask how you would remove the DW, if there is one, were it to fail and need to be replaced?

Hong Kong dollars, I presumed.

Don't worry about it. Been doing this for many decades and still get absurd quotes pitched by people who think I'm even stupider than I apparently look.

snoonyb, I don't understand your question. We have a dishwasher that we replaced this past summer. We pulled out the old one from under the counter and slid the new one in.

I think snooby is referring to a higher floor level which makes dw navigation difficult.

Darn right, he thinks you are stupid. This is probably a week's labor for one guy, some use an assistant.

Where you are located makes a big difference, including whether you are near a big city, which increases prices.

"No one said they didn't want to work for me."

Sure they did. They just used numbers, not words.

macmomma

"installing a click-together floating floor in the kitchen (no removal of previous flooring),"

When you decrease the dimension from the floor to the cabinet spreader, the piece of wood just above the DW, and depending upon the amount of adjustment remaining in the DW leveling legs, you may not have sufficient height to allow the DW to be easily removed, and subsequently requiring you to search for a replacement, which will fit.

The process is called thinking things through.

I doubt there is anything wrong with you. There is something wrong with that contractor. Like he is a crook for instance. Now if he didn't want the job, or something makes it more difficult than usual so a bit more costly, a normal person would just say so, not play games. So run from this guy and don't give it another thought.

"we can do most of this ourselves, ". And we just found the reason that the contractor doesn't want the job.

Oh, thanks, snoonyb. That helps me understand. Actually, we have about a half-inch gap above and below the dishwasher now, so I think we have some wiggle room. The flooring we have now is Marmoleum over cement, so is very thin.

Ahh, Trebruchet. I see what you are saying. Maybe that's true. I'll think about it. Maybe there are some things that I need to reflect on as a consumer. I sure don't want to be difficult, but I might be.

Thanks for the information and insight, snookums2. Hollysprings, I appreciate your observation and candor. I think it says a lot about you. I think I might have expressed myself poorly. I was trying to convey that the job is not complex, not that my husband and I are any kind of experts. The remodeler actually said it was a simple job. That's what I meant, and if that is so threatening to a contractor that they want to jerk me around with prices, then I'm not sure they are of the character I want working in my house.

The jobs you listed are so varied, many companies would need several crews or individual workers. Floor tile guys usually do not do countertops/backsplashes, for instance.

Contractors/companies sometimes give an outrageous bid just to semi politely put off the customer----or, get the job because the bid is so high. Many companies do not like using customer supplied materials either. Because of warranty/installation differences/problems.

As far as DIY, the click flooring will require a saw of some sort(usually a Miter saw) and a sabre(jig)saw, tape measure and utility knife. You can buy top of the line miter saws for $300(also as low as $70), really good saber(jig)saw for $100 or less.

If you can buy the countertop made to fit, DIY installation is fairly simple. Otherwise, the tools necessary can be more expensive than having it installed.

Tile can be DIY easily. Just depends on the type of tile. The forums at John Bridge specialize in flooring. Might need a wet saw($70-$2000) and application tools($5-$10).

Backsplash might need the wet saw or just a utility knife and tile nippers.

Pro installation here (Kansas City) for all that would be more in the $3,000 to $4000 range for just labor.

keep getting bids.

best of luck.

Is the laundry room palace sized? Is the backsplash composed of 1/8" tile that has to individually be hand set in a pattern? Does the laminate counter need to be fabricated from sheets to spec, and you're waiting on some special order print from Wilsonart?

What I'm saying is, the details matter. We don't have enough details to say if that is a "reasonable" quote or not. Most likely, it's not. But without those important details, even contractors cannot give you an accurate bid. So, develop a list of the tasks, products, and all of those pesky design details. Use that to get more bids. That way, everyone is bidding the exact same job.

"Click floor, laminate counter, simple backsplash. "

I don't think we are talking about the taj mahal here. Handymac's guestimate would seem about right to expect. Certainly not anywhere near $13,000.

"Click floor, laminate counter, simple backsplash. "

I don't think we are talking about the taj mahal here. Handymac's guestimate would seem about right to expect. Certainly not anywhere near $13,000.

Handymac, although we are technically "supplying" the materials, we are working through the contractors' distributors, and simply having the materials on site for them rather than making them transport--that was per their request. I actually do have a detailed list of materials and jobs, including square footage--I just didn't put it in the initial post. Thanks, live wire oak, and Snookums2--actually, the backsplash tile is quite expensive, but it's a simple 4x16 tile laid in a subway pattern and is 52 sq ft. Laminate counter will have to be fabricated, but only one section is not standard sized, 121 sq feet. It is Wilsonart. Taking out existing sink and faucet and replacing them if they aren't damaged. We won't even have to unhook the refrigerator because it can be rolled around the corner. Will have to move washer and dryer to tile underneath. We would take out and reinstall shoe molding over new floor. Area for floating floor iw 225 sq ft, area for tile floor in laundry room about 64 sq ft--pretty much an 8x8 square. I am getting another estimate tomorrow, and I have followed the advice above to submit the estimate to bolster.com.

Bolster is just a spammer

Who is bolster?

Snookums2--uh oh about bolster. I should have known.

sjhockeyfan, bolster.com was recommended in this thread as an independent reviewer of remodeling estimates.

And what were the other bids you got for this job???

You're not being unreasonable.
You're just wanting to get your moneys worth.
Prices vary from region to region.
Shop around.
But whenever I'm questioned about price I always ask the client. How much does a gallon of milk cost you?
Guess what. It costs me the same price.

unless you're using exotic tile and tiling a massive area, that's RIDICULOUS. Are they paying for the tile? If not, then buy it yourself because they'll mark the price up. Installing a laminate counter shouldn't cost most than a couple hundred bucks. The flooring in the kitchen what is it? To install, just a couple hundred to a few hundred dollars depending on how large the room is. Tiling is not hard; also same as kitchen... few hundred bucks. You're being taken. Maybe you should get a couple more quotes. Also a handyman rather than a general contractor might be the way to go. You don't need a class A contractor for those things. Whereever you buy the laminate should be able to do it. Lowes will install it if you buy from them.

Maybe he just wants to see if you will swallow the bait. I have a lot of friends who jump at the first quote and never shop around. They tell me "I liked the guy". Ha ha.

FYI, I just got a quote for windows to be installed. I was shocked at the number and posted on the window forum about it where they suggested something was wrong. I emailed the guy a few questions, and lo and behold - he made a mistake - and the number dropped from 28,000 to 16,400.

I would go back, and say: Excuse me, but I don't think we're on the same page....