Flat fee vs. hourly for a bathroom remodel in Phoenix back in 2017.

I had this client who wanted a full bathroom gut and redo. I had to choose between giving them a flat fee quote or billing by the hour. I went with the flat fee because I thought it would be simpler for them, no surprises right? But halfway through, I hit plumbing issues behind the wall that took two extra days. I ended up eating the cost on those days because I stuck to my flat price. The client was happy and paid on time, but I lost about $400 in labor I could have billed. Would you guys take the hit on unknowns to keep a client happy or do you push for hourly when the scope is fuzzy?

2 comments

2 Comments

davidshah4d ago

Did you read that JLC article about protecting yourself from site condition surprises?

the_robin4d ago

Just read it between digging my truck out of the mud on a job site last week. Guess I shoulda read it sooner.

-1