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interesting landscape project-Help?

1K views 22 replies 15 participants last post by  jtharvey 
#1 ·
Alrite I have landscaped for years. I met with some clients today who have presented me with something i have never dealt with. They actually told me the budget...60k the caveat is its a two phase job.
Phase 1- demolish out buildings,fences and most of the existing plant material. Layout,dig "footers" for ~150' of bluestone walkways and install walkway , a water small water feature, rebuild a simple 100' of picket fence, irrgate,and sod maybe 15 pallets of centipede sod.----and "design "the plant layout...

the winning bid is
phase 2-the bid that can do all of the above AND have the most money left over for the most plants...hence the quotes over "design"

have any of you dealt with this type of bidding? I am used to the mysterious magic number homeowers have and you try to get the closests without going over without losing your butt. and I have handled projects with budgets this size before so its not the number thats odds me its the methodology ...any ideas? caveats? thanks tater
 
#2 ·
Well...... you could price out everything with the 1 gallon or smaller plants... LOL That will give you the most plants with the least amount of money.

You can throw your bid out there and see if they bite. Best bet is to stick with the bidding you are comfortable. If the homeowner doesn't like your methods, it's probably best that you don't move forward with them.

I've dealt with a lot of issues with designers throwing out the wrong bids because they tried to "satisfy" the customers and their crazy ideas. In almost every case, we lost money, so it hasn't been worth it. So be careful.
 
#13 ·
Bid high,..and if they hire you,...it'll be worth it..
Only if you do not need the work, otherwise make sure your bid is as accurate as possible. That makes the difference between you and the next guy. ;)
 
#4 ·
its just the low price on phase 1 to get to phase 2 that gets me...
they arent unrealistic about what things cost. the house cost 750k and they are putting 750k to restore it.osha got them for a ton for some safety violations so of course landscape bites the bullet . just looking to hear what I'm not seeing
 
#5 ·
Tank you always seem to be there for me...thanks
 
#10 ·
I dont design landscape.....but

Id give them a bid that was what I thought would go best with the house on thier budget.....and give reasoning why bigger more expensive trees and plants go here and there....

and like Tank said....I def. would bid slightly high to cover yourself.
sounds like it could be one of those not so smotth jobs....

Then Id tell them that I could come up with another bid using all 1 gallon plants...but that that would be kinda silly IMO....

In other words Id just give them a normal bid..... I guess....:confused:

I still dont even quite understand the details on exactly what they are looking for with that bidding process there?...:poke:

A job is a job.....If you want it divided into phases...thats fine.
The price of each phase is $XXX and this is a list of exactly what each phase includes.......
But I dont like the sound of "winning the first bid to get the 2nd"
Sounds like a way for you to get screwed.
 
#11 ·
I

I still dont even quite understand the details on exactly what they are looking for with that bidding process there?...:poke:

A job is a job.....If you want it divided into phases...thats fine.
The price of each phase is and this is a list of exactly what each phase includes.......
But I dont like the sound of "winning the first bid to get the 2nd"
Sounds like a way for you to get screwed.
I was just curious if this sounded odd to others. I have never dealt a process like this...but there are many things I havent dealt with
 
#12 ·
I've seen a few jobs "sold" like that and 90% of them never got phase 2; even under contract. Your phase 1 bid should have absolutely nothing to do with phase 2.
 
#15 ·
dont have to get it I got tons of other options. This job might get me print and the last one like that got me magazine press brought tons of other work so it would be nice but ive had a day to work with it...i think I know what to do...especially with tanks help...tater
 
#16 ·
Bid the job the way you think it needs to go to do it right. If they aren't willing to go for it you don't want to do the job any way. It would just come back to haunt you.
 
#17 ·
Well in my experience you could try and save some money in the first bid or job by saving and utilizing what materials are already there(as in if you have to put in the bid disposal of anything). I dont know if you work with or at a specific greenhouse but if this homeowner is wanting you to do seasonal planting(as if they want annual beds) or if they just want you for a one time thing. If the homeowner wants you to replant annuals every year then talk to your greenhouse and see if they will give you special deals if you ensure a certain amount of flats bought by you every season. And then maybe you could get better discounts on your nursery items. Not sure if you already get dicounts from your greenhouse. And another thing we would do regarding we owned our own greehouse and nursery, is say the customer wanted a row of boxwoods with 20 plants. We would sell the 10 3 gal pots and 10 5 gal pots which saves money but most of the time te plants will look the same height once planted. And If the eople are the type to want to see what the plants n nursery stock your bidding out to them before they say do it, then take them or ask that they see the quality of plant they would be getting with your bid. Ive seen it many times wher the lowest bidder gets the deal but in the long run the customer isnt satisfied because of the quality of plants. Hopefully I helped out!
 
#18 ·
Homeowners are retarted some times, us landscape contractors will never understand them.One guy we do work for has more $$$ than god, he bought a beautiful old very large farm house(4000sq.ft.+) and 65 acres for a couple million.Didnt like the house,tore it down rotated it like 10 degrees and rebuilt the same exact house inside and out.Ohh yeah did i mention a complete copper roof!!! Sorry for my rant!!
 
#19 ·
Yup.....I helped my father build a beautiful 4 million dollar home for a chemist from Bristol Meyers,.....most of the interior walls were rounded,...it had 144 windows,...all cedar siding,...gorgeous.

We came back to take more pictures for his portfolio,...he had it painted red, green, two shades of blue, and dark gray.....


My father was pissed...LOL

THE MORON PAINTED THE CEDAR SHAKE!!!!!
 
#20 ·
...any ideas? caveats? thanks tater
Marigolds. Lots, and lots of marigolds.

Actually I think that is a neat way to do a job and get bids. 'course, That's about 1000 times more than what I could budget for it, but still an interesting.
Keep in mind, this is coming from the guy that 'landscapes' with an old farm tractor, plow, disc, and grader blade.
 
#22 ·
since some of you are contractors ..what does low bid look like to you? from a piece of paper and 2 hours of conversation....When does it look like 1. low overhead? 2. not knowing what they are doing and cant finish the job? I have checked and double checked and cant get this thing over 47k.
 
#23 ·
When you submit your bid to them, simply explain that you have been able to build, run, and maintain a successful company and as a result your overhead is very low, which allows you to pass those savings on to the customer. As long as the bid itemizes the materials and labor, it should be clear to the person receiving the bid that your labor costs are lower and you're not skimming off the top of the materials.
 
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