Established decorator/refurbisher wants to go structural.

[alanart]

Hi, I am a director of an established decorating and refurb company who wishes to gear up for structural work. We have been asked to give a ball park price for creating an opening between two rooms in a basement. The house is a 4 story mid victorian terrace (tall stuccoed type). The floor is concrete. Can anyone advise what this is likely to cost and range of work that might be involved. I know that I cannot price sensibly without structural calcs and drawings but getting jobs is often about giving sensible ball parks and indicating to a client what might cause the same work to vary. I have been given ball parks by builders I know between £6000 and £20000. Why such a difference?

 

[HERTS P&D]

Are you the customer?

Andy

 

[^woody^]

If you have not got a clue then you need to sub it out and add your 10% management costs

 

[alanart]

The thing is in order to get these jobs you do need to have a grasp of the value of the work in order to inspire confidence in the client and also to make sure that there is a margin to be made there.

 

[joe-90]

Stick to decorating mate. Do something you understand - or you'll come unstuck.

 

[RonnyRaygun]

Are you planning to actually do the work or, as Woody suggested, sub it out to a builder and add a management fee?

Depending on what is sitting on that basement wall, it could be a difficult job with some very careful propping involved. Not one I'd want to take on myself as a first attempt

 

[Nige F]

Indeed Ronnie , 4 flippin stories that have been jiggered by the Luftwaffe - NO WAY . Now if it was a bungalow in the sticks .. I can`t slag the OP for wanting to expand his business - London is going basement living mad @ the moment - so I`m told. As to the builders prices - the lower they are the shorter time the builders have been building - dare I say in this country