Pay an estimating fee or pay the price?
Most builders have experienced the moment.
Halfway through a job, the numbers stop adding up.
The materials cost more than expected.
The labour takes longer than planned.
Something small that didn’t seem important at the quoting stage turns out to cost thousands.
And suddenly the builder realises something uncomfortable.
The job that looked profitable on paper is now eating into their margin.
Sometimes it wipes the profit out completely. Sometimes the builder ends up funding part of the build just to get the project finished.
It’s not unusual.
According to a KPMG survey, 69% of UK construction projects exceed their budgets by more than 10%.
In small residential projects – the figures are just as sobering. Industry insight suggests around 68% of projects go over budget, with the average overrun around £23,000.
Put another way: fewer than one in three projects actually finish within 10% of their original budget.
That’s a sobering statistic.
Because when a project goes over budget, the shortfall doesn’t magically disappear.
Very often, it lands on the builder.
The hidden danger of getting the estimate wrong
When a job is priced too low, the problem usually starts long before work begins.
It starts at the estimating stage.
Builders are busy people.
Quoting often happens late at night or squeezed between site visits.
Plans might not be poured over.
The latest material prices weren’t checked with the Builders Merchants.
Under those conditions, it’s easy for things to slip through the net:
- Materials missing from the quote
- Quantities slightly wrong
- Labour underestimated
- Waste and contingencies forgotten
- Overheads not properly included
- Wear and tear on tools and equipment ignored.
None of these mistakes look dramatic at first.
But across a whole project they add up quickly.
And once the contract is signed, it’s extremely difficult to recover that money.
The client expects the job to be completed for the agreed price. Quite rightly so.
Which means the builder ends up absorbing the difference.
Sometimes that means working months for little or no profit.
Sometimes it means dipping into the profit from other jobs just to finish the project.
And in the worst cases, it can push a building company into serious financial trouble.
A small investment that protects your margin
This is why experienced builders take estimating seriously.
Because the estimate isn’t just paperwork.
It’s the financial foundation of the entire project.
When the numbers are right at the outset:
- The plans are examined forensically
- Materials are properly accounted for
- Labour is realistically calculated
- Overheads are included
- A profit margin is set.
That’s also why many builders choose to outsource their estimating.
At first glance, paying for a professional estimate might seem like an extra cost.
But compared to the potential cost of underpricing a job – thousands of pounds in lost profit, delays, or difficult conversations with clients – it’s a very small price to pay.
A properly prepared estimate gives you clarity before you commit.
And it gives you the confidence to submit a professional quotation knowing the numbers stack up.
Talk to the HBXL Estimating Service about protecting your margin
The builders who are enjoying profitability are the ones who make sure their estimates are thorough, accurate and professionally prepared.
Because once work begins, it’s usually too late to fix the numbers.
Call us on 0117 916 7894 to chat through your job, or upload your plans to the website or email them to estimatingservice@hbxl.co.uk and we can take it from there.