Getting people to quote

[WingsofRain]

Does anyone have any tips for getting tradesmen to quote for work?

I need to get some work done on our roof and some repairs to our harling plus I’ve been trying to get a window cleaner. At the start of next year I’ll be needing decorators to do the whole house.

My problem is that so far I’ve only managed to get two people to look at the roof at all, one gave a truly ridiculous quote and the other hasn’t come back with a price at all.

Nobody will even come to look at the windows at all, despite asking on local Facebook groups for recommendations.

I need to get the house ready to sell but obviously I can’t do that if I can’t get any repairs done.

The only tradespeople I have been able to get to come were an (indoors) cleaning company who did an awful job and charged a fortune. I genuinely don’t know what to do next.

It’s absolutely infuriating, I needed some work done on my bathroom and I’ve had the same, I have no idea how these people make any money.

I had two come out, quote then ghost me entirely when I tried to book them in.

That’s depressing but I’m glad it isn’t just me.
One of the window cleaners refused to even come to quote because we are on an unmade road. It’s a perfectly usable road, we manage to drive on it every day. 🤷‍♀️

Roofers are like the wild west- if you can get them to even look in the first place, tge quotes are all over the place and there are a ton of chancers.

All I can suggest is asking around...

Patience and perseverance! Our builder only does admin at a set time during the week as he's out on jobs the rest of the time. Also depending on the level of work, it can take time to collate prices etc. I sympathise as I've had the same in the past.

Also I think if the job is fairly small and they're working on a quote for something much bigger then you're going to get bumped down the list. Ask everywhere, on Facebook groups, your profile, school WhatsApp, hobby WhatsApp etc etc. drive around and look for signs up where work is happening. I've been known just to go and chat to someone who is working and ask. Fingers crossed for you.

Taskrabbit for smaller jobs and Checkatrade for larger.

Neighbourhood Facebook etc groups are good when the recommended tradesperson is a member and lives in the area. They have reputations to uphold!

All of these people are recommended through local Facebook groups (except the cleaners, but I learned my lesson with that!) apart from one of the roofers who was recommended by a neighbour and who we chatted to when they were working for her.

I’m mystified by the whole thing, on the one hand you see people here saying how irresponsible it is to neglect your house and on the other hand I can’t even get anyone to look at the holes in the roof.

You could ask on your local FB page for recommendations. You’ll get a dozen contact you but I’d only go for ones that

1. Have a reputation / official business page
2. Photos of their work / reviews
3. Availability and Cost

I won’t necessarily go for cheapest as this can lead to expense. Also, if they have immediate availability then chances are that they are not ‘reputable’ as their work demand is low… that said, they could fit it in on the weekend… especially if a smaller job. All points to consider.

Definitely get a few quotes first..

I'm very polite over about 3 weeks (then I give up). I chase weekly only. I honestly think that if a tradesperson has loads of work on, they won't go to the one who won't stop chasing every day, because they assume they'll be the one who is PITA when they're on the job. I often get a reply after the 3rd time and it usually ends up with work being done. I then pay them on the day they send me the invoice (which then means they'll be more likely to come back too).

If you figure out the mystery of working with tradesmen then please let me know.

The hardest part of any building job is wrangling independent tradesmen, even professionals DESPISE it often either opting to work mostly alone or set up companies with full time paid employees.

You say “truly ridiculous” but how much was that? And what needed to be done?

Three sections of facia boards need to be replaced, basically wooden planks with some shaping at the ends. Ideally painted, but he didn’t make it clear if that was included or not.
Cost just shy of £1000 which is nearly a full month’s salary for me.

That's actually well below average price by the sounds of it. Sounds like a deal.

Facia board is approx. £100 per meter (it can be £70+ alone for the timer without fitting, wood costs a LOT now especially treated building wood). So that cost only covers about 14 meters without labor factored in.

Average cost to replace Facia on a semi detached house is £1500+.

I was having difficulties finding a window cleaner I’d asked a neighbour for the number of their one and messaged him- he said he was too busy
and so when I saw someone cleaning a different neighbour’s windows I went over and asked him, he told me the price there and then and said he would message me when he was due to visit - so far so good 🤞🏻

If they aren't getting back to you after coming to quote it is probably because they think the job is more trouble that it is worth.

Some tips for dealing with traders :

i) Do not start any job description or discussion with "it's a small job" or "it's easy". That will give them the impression you are looking for the lowest price possible and are trying to minimise the amount of work involved and that you will not be interested in the actual price. Let them decide how much work is involved and how much they need to quote.

ii) If the job is relatively small, try to save up several small jobs for them to do together. Traders spend a lot of time travelling from job to job, so if they can do more jobs in one place that is more profit for them. They are not going to want to visit to do a 1 hour job when they can do a full days work everywhere else.

iii) Recognise that they have a skill and are in demand. Your recollections of how much a job cost 10 years ago have little or no bearing on what prices should be in todays market at todays salary. If the trader costs as much as you get paid, thats because they are in demand and have a skill.

iv) Just as there are awkward awful traders there are also awkward awful customers. Traders because they deal with lots of customers have an inbuilt "nose" for people that are likely to cause them trouble, be unnecessarily picky or change their mind multiple times. Traders like all of us are looking for well paid jobs that are not much hassle and if they smell hassle then they will not even bother quoting in the first place.

Finally the best thing of all is to learn to do as much stuff as you can yourself.

It might be months salary for you but that doesn't make it ridiculous, and maybe roofers are sick of spending all their time giving free quotes and no time to do actual jobs

And no I have no personal connections to trades but people seem to want something for nothing thse days , there are rip off merchants but also it costs to get a proper job

It's not always easy getting trades people in. To be honest, I always ask more people to quote than the number of quotes I'd like for comparison. When our roof needed doing, we asked for four quotes - all actually came out but we had to wait six weeks for the last two (who did tell us initially we'd have to wait as they were busy). One didn't quote, another I wasn't sure about, and the choice was definitely down to the last two.

It's worth asking neighbours, friends, work colleagues who they've used in the past. Also, keeping on eye on local trades vans, so you know they're at least willing to work in the area.

"Also, keeping on eye on local trades vans, so you know they're at least willing to work in the area."

Top tip that one. I always note down the numbers of the vans on my neighbours drives.

Also, if they are doing outside work like drive laying you can see their work. At a pinch you can knock on someones door and ask them for a recommendation, but don't be surprised if a lot of people find that intrusive.

Working at height regulation, vat, running a van, insurances, probably too guys, materials, disposing of the old stuff.
it’s probably about right, and he has to take an evening out to come and look at it in the first place at circa £0.4 a mile in the van.

🤷‍♂️ that’s about what it’s going to cost.

How can you say that’s what it cost when you have no idea of the scope of the job the op needs doing . 3 pieces of fascia could mean anything from 3 small foot long pieces or 5 metre lengths , there’s no size of the material needed or no idea of how difficult access is ? It could be on a bungalow where all it needs is a step ladder or it could be 3 storey and really difficult to get at without serious scaffolding?

It’s going to be a days work for two guys. Simple as that. Once they’ve done it, there won’t be any time to do anything else. And all the overheads, vans, insurance, everything has to be accounted for.
Plus it’s a pain in the arse job because it’s too small.

See I still don’t see how you can know it’s a days job for 2 people when you have no information on the job ……. Simple as that .

I have found similar to the point where I now ask DH to deal with them. I'm not sure if it's coincidence but he has a lot better luck in getting responses, so assuming many of these tradesmen are misogynistic. I've even experienced him receiving all documents for work I have ordered and paid for!!

I think a lot of tradesman see a woman as not having a clue about building work and think of them as easy targets , some women are knowledgeable about diy/ renovations but I think a lot of them can get taken for a ride.

But the supplies come in standard 5m lengths.

Doesn't matter if you only want 3 foot they still have to buy all 5 meters of it. Facia isn't usually done by the 'foot' so they then cut it so the remaining is now just scrap not really usable for other jobs they book.

If OP needed scaffolding it would be WAY higher cost, you are looking to pay close to £1k in scaffold alone so its pretty safe to say she doesn't need that.

If the job is so easy and cheap then OP could just do it herself (and to be honest doing DIY yourself where you can reduces a lot of stress from heard tradesmen who are iconic for not showing up and generally being nightmares).

I have complete sympathy for the fact that working with tradesmen is a bloody awful experience but the fact is that cost is correct and not ridiculous at all. Its about the bare minimum the job can be done for to be financially viable to the builder and taking into account the cost of supplies.

Upvc comes in 5 meter lengths that is correct but the op said it needs paining , so I’ll take a wild guess that the fascia she needs is timber ? Unless she’s painting upvc ? Which I very much doubt.

you have lots of “ifs”. But the reality of it is you are just guessing. Who said the job was. Easy?