Remodel Bids: Pricing What's Behind the Walls

New construction has its unknowns, mostly under the ground. A remodel has them everywhere. Nobody knows what's inside a wall until it's open: old wiring, rot around a window, a beam that isn't where the drawings say, plumbing that was never to code. A remodel bid has to price a house nobody can fully see yet.

That doesn't make remodel bids unreliable. It makes the way they handle the unknowns the most important thing to read.

How bids handle what can't be seen

Assumptions. "Assumes existing framing is sound." "Assumes no asbestos." An assumption is a price with a condition attached. If the condition turns out false, the cost isn't in the bid. Assumptions are reasonable. You just need to know which ones you're relying on.

Allowances for unknown work. Some bids carry an allowance for things like "rot repair" or "electrical upgrades as needed." That's a placeholder with a number on it. It helps, as long as you know what happens when the real cost lands above or below it.

Unit prices. For work whose quantity can't be known, a good bid sets a price per unit in advance: per linear foot of rotted sill plate replaced, per sheet of subfloor, per circuit rewired. That way the cost of a surprise is agreed before anyone's under pressure.

Contingency. A sum held for unknowns. On a remodel, it's not padding. The questions are who controls it, what it can be used for, and whether you see each use. Fixed price, GMP, or cost plus covers contingency in more detail.

A remodel bid that says nothing about unknowns isn't more certain. It just hasn't told you where the risk is.

Demolition scope

Demolition is where the unknowns come out, and its own scope is worth reading closely. What's being removed? Down to the studs or just the finishes? Who hauls it away? Is hazardous material testing included before demolition starts, and if something's found, how is removal handled? Older homes may have materials that require testing and licensed removal. If the bid doesn't mention it, ask.

Matching what's already there

Remodels connect new work to old. That's often harder than building fresh. Flooring that runs into an existing room, trim that has to match a profile nobody makes anymore, paint that has to blend with ten-year-old paint, a roofline tied into existing shingles. The bid should say whether new work is meant to match existing finishes, and where the transitions are.

"Match existing" sounds simple and isn't. If it matters to you, ask what happens if an exact match can't be found.

Living in the house

If you're staying in the house during the work, that changes the job. Dust protection, a working kitchen or bathroom, daily cleanup, work hours, and access all cost something. If you're moving out, the schedule matters more, because every extra week is another week of rent somewhere else. Either way, the bid should say what it assumes.

What a complete remodel bid says

• Exactly what's being demolished and what stays
• Every assumption about existing conditions, in writing
• How hidden conditions are handled once they're found: unit prices, allowances, or change orders, and at what markup
• Hazardous material testing, and what happens if something turns up
• Where new work meets existing, and what "match" means
• Whether you're living in the house, and what protection and cleanup are included
• Permits, and any upgrades the permit may require to existing systems

That last one catches people. Opening up a wall can mean bringing nearby wiring or smoke detection up to current requirements. Ask what the builder expects the permit to trigger.

Questions worth asking

• What have you assumed about conditions behind the walls, floors, and ceilings?
• When you find something unexpected, how will it be priced, and how will I be told before the work is done?
• Are there unit prices for the most likely surprises?
• Is hazardous material testing included before demolition?
• Where does new work meet existing, and what if a match can't be found?
• What could the permit require beyond the work I asked for?