Construction Expense Explained
With the cost of everything seemingly on the rise constantly, one question that pops up frequently is: “Why is construction so expensive?”
When workers show up at your home, it’s not uncommon to think that you’re just paying for their time and effort working on your project. After all, that’s usually all you see: they show up, material is delivered, and things get done. But beneath the surface of any construction company, there’s a world of inner workings that allow your project to move forward and enable the business to operate and support its employees. No matter how small the company, even a one-man operation has a lot going on under the hood.
Every step of a project is handled by someone and takes time; as we all know, time is money, and construction is extremely time-intensive. From the first phone call to the final quality check, many employees will be involved, spending hours on tasks such as material coordination, planning, scheduling, safety training, equipment transport, permit submission, and collaboration to find the best way to complete the work. All of the work happening behind the scenes is part of a company’s “overhead” cost. Along with things like business insurance, vehicles, and equipment. Typically, the more time and attention a company can give and the faster you can receive service, the higher the overhead cost. When you deal with a small company, such as an owner-operator, you may get a lower price because overhead is minimal: there’s only one employee, one truck, and one set of hands to work with. But keep in mind that when you need to call, meet, have something fixed, or get work done quickly, there’s still only one person available. Better service typically coincides with higher prices because there are more people available to do what you need done, when you need it.
Another thing to consider is what a company is providing for its employees. Businesses that provide above-average wages, retirement packages, health insurance, Dental and Vision insurance, training and certifications, etc., support their employees and strengthen their workforce, rather than putting pressure on employees to do more with less. Tradespeople making a living wage cost more, provide better service, and offer a better product.
One last thing to consider with the price of a project is the fact that, typically, anything you pay to have built is supposed to last a very long time. You might spend the same amount of money on a tile shower as on a cheap new car, but the tile shower is built to last much longer than a vehicle, with low or no maintenance and a tendency to increase the value of your home rather than decline in value every day. Building things that last and add value is costly, and for a reason; you get what you pay for.
Instead of asking “why is this one so expensive,” sometimes we should ask “why is that one cheaper?”