Craftsman books contractortools review install#

The final component is the 'labor rate,' the cost per hour for the trade that performs the task. They also contain a 'craft code,' which indicates who will be doing the work - carpenter, mason, or whoever.

Craftsman books contractortools review install#

Most books include a 'productivity factor' - how much time it takes Joe to install one unit of a given item. As with material costs, you need to understand what is and isn't included in the labor rates in the book. If you use numbers directly from a cost book, don't forget to apply the area modification factor. He modifies the published numbers by comparing them with numbers for a similar task for which he knows his cost. The author sometimes uses a cost book (such as Craftsman's National Repair & Remodeling Estimator, shown here) to bid a task for which he has no historical job-cost data. That's okay for some items, but what happens when prices change between updates? Plywood and OSB went through the roof in 2003, but the 2003 books were published in late 2002. For example, does the cost of a prehung door take into account nails, casings, and shims? What's included in an assembly such as an 8-inch masonry wall? Some price books explain the assumptions others leave it up to you to determine the details.Ĭost books are updated yearly, and material prices are based on costs at the time of publication. Sometimes it's difficult to determine exactly which materials the price includes, especially with 'assemblies,' groups of items that show up as a single entry in the book. Material cost is typically shown together with the unit of measure for the item.

The multiplier allows you to adjust the dollar amounts in the book to fit the cost of building in your area.Įach book includes a list of items like material cost, labor productivity in hours, labor cost in dollars, equipment cost, and profit and overhead. The introductions of these books often contain a little blurb along the lines of 'We contact dealers, manufacturers, distributors, and contractors around the country to compile national average costs for the items listed.' Because the costs are national averages, there's usually a table in the back of the book that provides multipliers for most major cities. The question is, what's the right way to use them? Where the Numbers Come From They obviously serve some purpose, or they wouldn't be published year after year. There are many cost books available, updated yearly, by RS Means, Craftsman, BNI, Saylor's, HomeTech, and others. As moderator of the estimating forum at, I'm often asked if cost books are a reliable way to get cost figures to use for estimating.