Fence estimate: what a fence estimator counts beyond linear feet, and the ground nobody can see
- Work order total
- $863.16
- Labour
- $510
- Parts, marked up
- $288
Every figure on this page is computed from the inputs entered, by the method stated below it. Jobcardo publishes no tax rate, no wage figure and no trade standard: the rate, the markup and the tax on the parts line are yours, and the defaults are a worked example to replace with your own figures.
A fence estimate is linear feet plus the things that are not linear: the posts at corners and ends, the gates with their hardware, the demolition and disposal of what is there now, and the ground, which decides whether a post hole takes ten minutes or an hour. Estimates built from a price per foot are right on flat, clear, straight runs and wrong on everything else, which is most of the jobs anybody actually quotes.
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Measure the run, then count what is not run
Linear feet is the starting number; corners, ends, level changes and gates are counted separately because each carries extra posts, extra hardware and disproportionate labour. A gate is frequently the most expensive four feet of a fence.
Price the ground, or carry an allowance for it
Rock, roots, made ground, services and a slope all change the post work, and none is visible at the quote. Either dig a test hole or state an allowance with a rate beyond it; absorbing the difference is how a profitable-looking fence job ends flat.
Include removal, disposal and making good
Taking down the old fence, disposing of it, and reinstating the ground are real hours and real fees, and they are the lines most often left off. So is the neighbour's side, which should be named in or out of scope before the first post comes out.
Fence estimate: common questions
Why do fence quotes vary so much? Mostly post depth, post material and what happens to the old fence. Two quotes that look far apart are usually quoting different depths and different disposal, and neither has said so.
Should the estimate mention the boundary? Yes. State that the line is as indicated by the customer and that boundary disputes are not your responsibility. It costs one sentence and prevents the most expensive argument in fencing.
How should gates be priced? Separately, with the hardware named. A gate is posts, framing, hardware and adjustment, and a per-foot rate that swallows it is a rate that loses money on every job with two gates.
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