Estimating, contracts and getting paid
Articles for builders and estimators, written the way we write everything else here: plainly, with the numbers in them, and without pretending the hard parts are easy.
Most of what goes wrong on a residential job goes wrong in the numbers: an allowance set too low at contract stage, a waste factor nobody has measured since 2019, prelims that were never costed because no supplier quotes them, or a stage schedule that has the builder funding lock-up out of their own pocket.
These articles are about those numbers — what they mean, where they come from, and how to get them from the jobs you have already built rather than from a rule of thumb. They are written for builders and estimators working on Australian residential jobs, so the rules, the stages and the prices are the ones you actually deal with.
If you are looking for how a particular part of SmarteBuild works, thehelp centre covers that instead.
The five preliminary costs builders most often leave out
Prelims are the costs you carry before anyone turns up on site. They are the easiest part of an estimate to forget, and they come straight off your margin.
Construction cost estimating methods, and when to use each
A square-metre rate and a detailed bill answer different questions. Knowing which one you are holding is the difference between a quick price and a priced job.
PC and PS items: what the difference actually costs you
A prime cost item covers supply only. A provisional sum covers supply and installation. Getting the two mixed up is how a builder ends up paying the tiler.
Building contract payment stages explained
Deposit, base, frame, lock-up, fixing, practical completion — what each stage means, what it is usually worth, and why the percentages decide your cash flow.
How to work out the waste factor on a residential job
Waste factors are guessed far more often than they are measured. Here is how to get yours from your own jobs, and where it belongs in the estimate.
See it on your own job
Thirty days, the whole product, no credit card. Bring a real job and price it.