Construction Costings
Our Construction Costings provide you with the most accurate and detailed breakdown of all the construction elements required to complete your building project, whether it be a new build, addition or alteration.
When submitting a bid for works or arranging finance, complete accuracy is essential to maintain profitability and ensure that borrowings are sufficient to complete the project.
What are Construction Costings?
When you are ready to lodge for Building Consent, there is sufficient information available for us to complete Construction Costings. We offer two different Construction Costings options:
- Construction Costing with Provisional Sum allowances for Sub-Trade – we quantify the construction works according to the experience and historic knowledge we have relating to trade costs.
- Construction Costing with Quoted Sub-Trade Works – sub-contractor work is put out to tender to be priced by the appropriate sub-trade and an accurate costing is created.
Where feasible, we recommend obtaining actual quotes from approved sub-contractors, rather than allowing a provisional sum allowance. All quotes are scrutinised to ensure they have allowed for all the works required while remaining competitive.
At Accurate Costings, we determine the best contractors to use in the pricing phase which then makes it quick and easy for you to engage them during the tender acceptance phase of your development.
Our Construction Costings Services are also utilised by many building contractors when undertaking a tender costing exercise. We can offer building contractors procurement advice and assistance with sub-contractor recommendations to ensure they have developed a contract value which encompasses the full scope of works.
What is included in a Construction Costing?
As Quantity Surveyors, we provide full Construction Costings that will:
- Calculate as accurately as possible the anticipated cost of the project.
- Provide easy-to-follow spreadsheets tailored to your requirements.
- Provide labour and material breakdowns within our costings spreadsheet.
- Provide a sub-trade works package to ensure all quotes are comparable.
- Obtain and scrutinise sub-trade and material quotes, clearly identifying which quote was used in our costings.
- Completion of a tender letter ensuring all notes to your price are captured.
Procurement Advice
Sometimes you are not confident in awarding contracts and require our experience in validating who the best sub-contractors and suppliers are for your project.
We can assist by scrutinising all quotes to ensure you are getting the best value, not what appears to be the lowest price. We will help ensure any supplier or contractor working on your building project is the best and most cost-effective for the job.
Tender Analysis
When it comes to residential building, one of the most common mistakes we see is the awarding of a project to a contractor based purely on cost. It pays to remember; lowest cost does not always equate to the best contractor.
A Tender Analysis involves working through the bid of each tender and evaluating any exclusions, qualifications, or clarifications and assessing their cost implications. This will involve determining item-by-item variances between the budget and the tender, and examining if any significant variations may be the result of a scope of work error.
Identifying these discrepancies before awarding the contract is beneficial in preventing costly post-contract changes. It is best if parties to the contract are on the same page before the contract is signed, rather than exposing both parties to the risks of assumptions once the project has commenced.
Variations
Over the course of a building project, there will undoubtedly be changes made from the original design which will result in variations to the construction contract. Management of these variations is critical to the financial success of the building project.
Accurate Costings can assist with identifying and tracking variations as they occur. We can calculate the value of any variation and advise on the cost implications they will have on the overall project value. Each variation is treated individually and is carried forward into a general summary to provide an overall total net value of all additions or omissions to the contract value.
By evaluating each variation, it enables both the builder and homeowner the opportunity to make informed decisions and to fully evaluate the variation in terms of cost and build programme implications.
Progress Claims
The successful building contractor will prepare monthly or fortnightly progress claims for all works completed in that period. Often deposits are requested in the claim to secure materials and sub-contractors.
As a homeowner you may not feel confident in assessing if the claim submitted is correct requiring independent assessment and approval. Accurate Costings can receive all progress claims on your behalf, work through all items included, and verify that these are in line with the progress on site. Where deposits are requested, we ensure the correct paperwork is completed protecting your investments. Once we have validated the claim, we will issue you with a payment certificate for the verified amount that is to be paid to your builder.
Builders, if we have completed construction costings for the project and you do not have the resources to complete your monthly progress claims, we can help. Reach out to us for more information if this is a service you which to utilise.
Drawdown Reports
A drawdown report is often required by your lending institution prior to any funds being released. Accurate Costings will ensure that the funds being requested are in line with the works that have been completed to date. A trade summary breakdown is updated at drawdown to identify the percentage of works completed and what works are remaining. This is certified by either a site visit or photographic evidence.
As Quantity Surveyors, we prepare accurate Drawdown Reports that will give you and your lender the confidence that the correct funds are allocated to each step of the project.
Lending and Bank Prefunding Reports
When planning a residential construction project, a bank loan of some nature is usually required. To consider and approve such a loan, your bank will request a Prefunding Report which gives accurate details relating to the development costs.
A real advantage gained when a Quantity Surveyor prepares an accurate Prefunding Report for your bank is that it can give the bank confidence in the quality of your project and the accuracy of the financial cost.
