Negotiating with Landscape Contractor?

Lavender Room
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I’m planning on having some work done on my house by a custom landscape contractor. I’ve received a quote and done enough comparison shopping to know that it’s in line with local going rate for this type of work. The contract has been drawn up and the estimate provides a line item for each portion of the project. No overhead or ‘soft’ fees are on the contract, so that means the profit and overhead are built into the line items.

For this type of work, is it normal to negotiate? The project consists of a pergola, custom gate, concrete work, a flagstone walkway and an outdoor kitchen. It includes lighting, appliances and running a gas line. I don’t know which items are most likely to have fat built in but the concrete costs seem pretty high. I’m not interested in squeezing every penny out of the contractor, but I don’t want to leave a ton on the table either. Ideas?

Also, the payment is broken down as shown below. I’m going to ask to push some of the middle payment to the end. I want at least 10% for completion.
Start Construction: 40%
Concrete Form: 40%
Masonry: 15%
Completion: 5%

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I’m having some work done this Spring, too. I got quotes from 3 different contractors, one of whom quoted himself right out of consideration. For the others, they were ballpark-y, and were just a blanket quote - no line itemization. Of course, I’m only doing landscaping, so it may be different.

I’d get hard quotes from a couple more guys - around here, anyway, there are a ton of contractors, and competition is fierce. Also, what’s it worth to you? If you’ve done the research, and it’s in line, then squeezing could just dis-engage the guy to the point where he cuts corners…

Around here, if you pay cash to some guys you save the taxes - 15% savings…

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Feel free to try negotiations, but then I’m sure he’ll feel free to cut some corners to make that money back at your project’s expenses.
If his fee is in line with other quotes you have been getting, and he is reputable, why sour the relationship for a few bucks?

As a contractor, when I quote a job it is a hard price. If people have a problem with it, I politely tell them that I spent a lot of time carefully making sure I was charging appropriately, and that if they would prefer to hire someone cheaper they are more then welcome to. Personally, it pisses me off when people baulk at a quote and start negotiations. Yeah, no of course, I’ll cut my wage by 5% for you. That’s why I got in to business in the first place…

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A couple of questions. Did you get any other quotes?
You mentioned it is in line with what you thought it would cost. Why try to cut his price?
You also mentioned his concrete price seems fat. What is that based on? Unit prices are out the window when quantities get small.

In commercial construction it is common for 10% to be held back until after the work is done. We call it retainage.

What are the payment terms? Pay upon invoice, net 10, etc? If it is net something, perhaps he will give you a 1-2% discount for prompt pay.

I own a commercial construction company. I do not haggle on prices. For me it is a sign of trouble ahead.

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instead of negotiating price, i’d negotiate payments terms and have more than 5% to pay him at completion. maybe 25% so you are holding the final leverage to make sure it is done right.

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This is exactly the type of input I was looking for. Thanks.

You mentioned it is in line with what you thought it would cost. Why try to cut his price?

Having never hired this type of contractor before, I don’t know what the industry norms are. If contractors provide an inflated initial quote expecting negotiation, then I don’t want to leave that unaddressed. But it sounds like you’re saying you provide an fairly accurate estimate up front, in which case I’m not interested in haggling.

You also mentioned his concrete price seems fat. What is that based on? Unit prices are out the window when quantities get small.

It’s based on my complete ignorance. The concrete costs make up 35% of the total cost of the project, yet I thought it seemed like a small (400sq ft) piece of the total scope; appliances, granite, electrical, masonry, trenching, a lot of custom woodwork, etc… That being said, the concrete is free form, and we’re having it stamped and stained.

In commercial construction it is common for 10% to be held back until after the work is done. We call it retainage.

In my industry (oil & gas) I’ve seen 7-10%. The 5% quoted is too low for my comfort.

What are the payment terms? Pay upon invoice, net 10, etc? If it is net something, perhaps he will give you a 1-2% discount for prompt pay.

The contract is pretty high level on payment terms. There’s a total price, which is broken into 5 separate payments: 1. Commencement of design 2. Start of construction 3. Concrete form 4. Masonry 5. Completion. The only item in that group that has specifcs is the completion payment, which specifies an acceptance certificate provided by the builder and signed by the owner.

I own a commercial construction company. I do not haggle on prices. For me it is a sign of trouble ahead.

I’m not a fan of haggling. I do it for cars because I know that cars are priced with a lot of room to come down. I’m not foolish enough to leave that much money on the table. Otherwise, I’m much happier knowing the costs and paying what’s invoiced based on the work that’s done.

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instead of negotiating price, i’d negotiate payments terms and have more than 5% to pay him at completion. maybe 25% so you are holding the final leverage to make sure it is done right.

I’d be shocked if he accepted 25%, but I think 10% is reasonable.

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Feel free to try negotiations, but then I’m sure he’ll feel free to cut some corners to make that money back at your project’s expenses.
If his fee is in line with other quotes you have been getting, and he is reputable, why sour the relationship for a few bucks?

As a contractor, when I quote a job it is a hard price. If people have a problem with it, I politely tell them that I spent a lot of time carefully making sure I was charging appropriately, and that if they would prefer to hire someone cheaper they are more then welcome to. Personally, it pisses me off when people baulk at a quote and start negotiations. Yeah, no of course, I’ll cut my wage by 5% for you. That’s why I got in to business in the first place…

Some folks just don’t know better. Every industry is different. Hell, in some places vendors get insulted if you don’t negotiate!

I have a few comparison prices and I have no problem with the quote. This company is one whose work I’ve seen other places and have been very impressed with. Through the several planning meetings and site walk throughs I’ve developed a good report with the guy and I’d like to keep that. Hence asking the question here before raising the subject with him!