photo credit: centralasian

The best way to get a better price from a contractor is to let him know that you want to work with him.  Ask him if the price you received is the best he can give.  Ask if there are ideas he has to be able to be more efficient or use other materials or fixtures to save costs.  Ask these questions in a friendly way so that you aren’t creating an adversarial relationship.  You want your contractor to feel like you’re treating him as an ally or partner to find a workable solution for your project.

Another way to approach the negotiation is to give your contractor your budget.  If you’ve found your contractor by way of referral, you might want to do this up front.  The conversation then centers around the scope of the work and how you can get the best value for the money.

My wife, Brenda, and I saw this first hand in our faux painting business.  The clients who called and gave us their budget got more for their money than those who just had us give them a bid proposal.  Brenda could take a working budget and match it to the finish that gave the best result.  Sometimes she could adapt her technique to give a similar look in 1 layer instead of 2.

And speaking from a contractor’s perspective, a client that starts a conversation and treats us as a partner is easier to work with than those who start off with confrontation and making demands.  The good clients will get extra services and things done for free.

Remember to ask for references and follow up.  But once you find a contractor you want to work with, give him a budget and let your negotiations be a friendly conversation.