{"id":1681,"date":"2015-03-04T16:47:18","date_gmt":"2015-03-04T23:47:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/?p=1681"},"modified":"2015-03-20T21:08:17","modified_gmt":"2015-03-21T04:08:17","slug":"breaking-down-our-estimates-project-cost-and-line-items","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/breaking-down-our-estimates-project-cost-and-line-items\/","title":{"rendered":"Breaking down our estimates- project cost and line items"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Creating a good estimate is a time consuming process. We consult on scores of projects every year, issue a lot of free estimates, and try to create a proposal that is complete and also responsive to client and project.<\/p>\n<p>Our estimates are line item based, we think of them as similar to a menu at a restaurant. We outline the scope in terms of a wide array of options and detailing, and then refine the estimate depending on budget and client needs. We find line item estimates work better than lump sum estimates, especially at an initial phase.\u00a0 They take into account elements like a patio that may have a range of potential\u00a0sizes depending on design, say 400-750 sq.ft., and a range of potential materials- like\u00a0concrete, pavers, or flagstone. Line item estimates also allow for prioritization and the division of work into phases as needed.<\/p>\n<p>Here is an example of an a recent estimate in San Anselmo that shows the type of granular detail involved:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"  aligncenter wp-image-1682 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/Estimate_totals-356x450.jpg\" alt=\"Estimate_totals\" width=\"356\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/Estimate_totals-356x450.jpg 356w, https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/Estimate_totals.jpg 539w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 356px) 100vw, 356px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>An estimate like this one takes a lot of time to put together with such fine level detail. There are 5 work divisons and 26 individual elements.\u00a0 However, when\u00a0we are starting out without any design documents,\u00a0it serves as a great project roadmap to further develop\u00a0the project.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/Estimate_totals.jpg\" rel=\"lightbox[1681]\">\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Creating a good estimate is a time consuming process. We consult on scores of projects every year, issue a lot of free estimates, and try to create a proposal that is complete and also responsive to client and project. Our estimates are line item based, we think of them as similar to a menu at &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/breaking-down-our-estimates-project-cost-and-line-items\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Breaking down our estimates- project cost and line items<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1681"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1681"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1681\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1697,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1681\/revisions\/1697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oclandscape.com\/ocblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}