Think we are going to use a particular builder but should we also get other quotes in anyway?

[ilikeyoursleeves]

We are planning on getting our house extended and we have met a builder who built SIL's extension and who DH also went to school with. He seems fine and will hopefully be trustworthy and we know where he lives etc so should be safe to go with.

DH says we should just book him but I think we should get a few more quotes. DH has just gone off on one saying that I'd be totally wasting other builders time getting them to quote when we 90% intend on going with the builder we have in mind. But should we not compare quotes anyway?

What do you think?

get quotes and then tell guy you like what others have said to help with bargaining on cost of work.

whatever you do get a written contract

If you think the price is OK, then I'd go with this builder. You are really lucky to have seen a substantial piece of his work - your SIL's extension - I wouldn't get anyone else in unless I thought the builder was charging too much.

We had out loft done I really wanted a builder I'd worked with to do it as I knew his work and trusted him. However I got other quotes and one came in about 8, 000 less. I didn't know the other builder and got his name through word of mouth. I wasn't too sure what to do cos it was such a huge difference.

In the end I told the 'trusted' builder that I'd got a much cheaper quote and he offered to split the difference. I went with the 'trusted' builder - ok it was £4000 more but it felt safer and I saved £4000.
Get another quote from a good builder - it could save you money

In our experience it is so difficult to:

a) find a builder/other tradesman who can be arsed to come out here,
b) who having said he'll come actually turns up at the agreed time,
and c) actually delivers said quote when he says he will, without chasing

that if we find one that does all three, and can write intelligible English, we tend to go with them. Yes we might pay a bit more than needed, but reliability and trustworthiness is the key thing IMO.

Go with the one you have if you knw he's good. If a builder is significantly cheaper there will be a reason for it - he won't do a good job. Building costs a lot in labour. DH was a builder for years and pricing a job was such a pita! If you offered an honest sensible price some cowboy would come and undercut... and then do a crap job and the the client would come out with the 'all builders are so awful' line. They aren't. But quite often the cheap ones are. Sorry.