It depends upon how much time he's spent qualifying you as a prospect.

Thanks for responding Joseph. Do you mean how much he wants the work? I have given 2 builders a complete set of plans that were ready to submit for permit. It has been several weeks and I have heard nothing. I do live in a busy area for building.

Can anyone give me what a reasonable time frame is for a bid? Thanks

We are located in San Diego, CA and are also in a very busy area for building. We commit to getting our clients a written proposal within 10 days of meeting with them (provided we have agreed we are a good fit for their project and they believe we would be a good fit to work with).

IF you’re realistic about current pricing, 10-20 days. If you think it’s still 1990 when $100 a square could buy a custom house, then you may not get responses at all.

Hi Sophie, I only asked for a bid on plans and also provided a list that was specific to desired finishes. I didn’t require or ask them to come in at a certain price per square foot. Would you still say 10-20 days?

Hi robincmon, quick quetion.....Did you meet with the contractor or just shoot over plans and a scope of work?

If it has been a few weeks and you have not heard back at all, it could be that they are concerned you are not ready to buy and/or are not a good fit for them as a client.

When you ask for a "bid" it gives the perception to a contractor that you are interested only in the price and not the quality of work or in the relationship to be had with the contractor. Most contractors who respond well to a request for a bid are smaller GCs who consist of the GC himself and a few laborers. Typically they do not have a company with people behind him to prepare the bids so he has to do that in the evenings and weekends when not working on the tools.

If you are looking for a more established company then they have employees to assist with estimates and proposals and can generally turn over a quote quicker - but they expect to spend some time building a relationship with you as well which means meeting to discuss the plans and scope - not just sending over a bid via email.

Does that help?

I did meet with both contractors in person and they took a printed set of plans with them after an hour long meeting. One is a smaller GC and the other has a person who does bids for him. I am wondering at this point if I should email or call about when they think they will be done?

Also, I submitted for a permit with the county as that takes a while where I live so hopefully they know I am serious.

4 weeks for the larger company and 3 for the smaller GC

They want a relationship and you want a one night stand. At a bargain.

No, they aren't going to be calling.

All I am trying to do here is get some info and advice. I have asked politely so please refrain from insults. Thank you

The contractor pulls the permits. Not the homeowner. The permit holder is the responsible party and who meets with the inspector. You do not want that to be you.

They may be very busy. Or they may have read vibes of expectations outside current reality. Or, they may get enough businesses from referrals and not have any room on their schedules for a couple of years. You may not be a good fit for the rules of builds that they’d if they mostly build 5M and up and you have a 260K project . Or vice versa.

Describe your project more fully, and how you decided to choose these builders to consider.

I was referred to both builders by someone they know. I reviewed one persons work on hiswebsite and he does everything from kitchen remodels to building houses from the ground up.. The other I asked about the work he had done. He also does a range. Gave a full description of my project over the phone to them and asked if they were interested. Both responded yes. One contractor said he would be available in June during our face to face meeting.

The project is a substantial addition (1440 sq ft). It is not out of the norm here for a homeowner to submit the permit and my designer went with me to submit. Once I have decided on the contractor I can give the county their name. The county also has the name of my designer and structural engineer on the plans.

Thanks for the info. I really appreciate it. Let me know if I can provide more details.

An addition like that begs the question why this isn’t a teardown. Which may be what they are thinking. Why spend 800K or do on doing an addition to an older home that could be rebuilt wholly for virtually the same amount. For better results. And they may be reluctant ro take on such a project that will likely have future buyers remorse all over it.

Our current house is in great shape. Only it is too small 1300 sq feet.

I guess at this point I have one question.

Should I inquire with the builders about the bid or move on to someone else?

Thanks for the advice. I am actually a pretty laid back and understanding person. In fact sometimes I think I am too nice and get walked on.

Thank you Flo. I will call them and ask when I can expect a completed bid.

Thanks for the vote of confidence Flo. I neede that tonight.

I’m a girl. My partner had a name that can go either way too. We just go with th flow.

I always try to get an agreement as to expectations up front, and then confirm with a quick email.

"What is your process?"

Blah blah blah...

"When will you know if my project fits with your schedule and commitments?

Etc etc.

"Ok. I will make a note to give you a call two weeks from today and we can talk about next steps."

Now I have gone back two weeks later and they are like "who are you again?"

That gets them crossed off the list. Forever.

Thank you everyone for your input. I really appreciate it.

At 3-4 weeks you should have received some information by now or at least some follow up questions. I would absolutely reach out to them to find out if a) they are still interested, b) what their availability is to start if you hire them, c) a date you can expect to receive and review their quote. I would also begin looking at alternate contractors, just in case.

A major remodel like you are considering is a commitment and a short term relationship. You are “dating” right now and the contractor, if interested, is in the courting phase. At this point the contractor may be too busy playing the field or may not think you are a good match. If you call and find out they aren’t interested—- ask why. It might give you some good insight on how to proceed. (i.e. your budgets or timelines aren’t reasonable - in the eyes of the contractor - he is too busy with other work, which is quite possible right now, or the project is beyond his capabilities).

Contractors love to talk shop so if you ask questions you will likely get good feedback.

Good luck!

I agree with others, contact them to ask when the bid will be ready. FWIW, during my screening interviews I asked them how long the bid process took (most said 3-4 weeks) and when I handed out my bid packages I asked for a date when they'd have the bid. (Some homeowners set a deadline; I know things are busy so I let them set the date.) I sense you don't want to be pushy. You are allowed to ask these things. You are the boss here and you are hiring someone for a job. You're not being pushy. At this point, yes, follow up. Have you called their references? If not, during that phone call you could ask then to send a list of references ASAP too. FWIW, my architect recommends getting bids before subbing for permits (he'd sub them). That way, if the bids come in high, you can tweak the plans before subbing for permits. Good luck! Let us know how it turns out. ;)

robincmon:

I try to use metaphor in my responses. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. My apologies.

So I have emailed both contractors asking when I can expect numbers. I have also talked with another guy who will meet me this weekend and timeline matches mine. I will remember to ask him how long he will take to get numbers put together if all seems good after the face to face. Thank you everyone for your advice.