How to compare contractor bids for an apartment renovation

Why bids are hard to compare

When each contractor writes their own scope, the totals measure different jobs. The usual gaps:

• Missing items. One bid covers the bathrooms and leaves out the water heaters.
• Different quantities. One contractor counted every unit of a floor plan, another priced only the ones they saw.
• Different materials. Laminate in one bid, a stone countertop in the other.
• Exclusions in small print: permits, haul-away, patching after plumbing work.
• One total with no breakdown, so you cannot see what is inside it.

A low total is often a short scope, not a better price. Comparing like for like means every bid prices the same list.

Step 1: write one scope before anyone prices

The scope is the list of work, not the price. Build it from your walk: every fix you confirmed, plus the improvements you chose, with a quantity and a unit for each line (square feet, linear feet or each). Group it the way a crew works on site:

• Per floor plan: the work in one unit, and how many units of that plan need it. The contractor prices one unit and the count multiplies it.
• Per building: exterior, roof, stairs and balconies.
• Per common area and site area: laundry, clubhouse, parking, landscaping, fencing, lighting.

Keep bones apart from cosmetics. If the budget gets tight you can cut a cosmetic line without touching a repair. The unit walk checklist covers what to record on the walk so the scope is complete.

Step 2: whole property or per trade

Send the whole scope to a general contractor who will run every trade, or split it so a roofer prices only roofing, a plumber only plumbing, a flooring crew only flooring. Many buyers do both and compare. Splitting by trade often shows where one general contractor is high, and it lets you give each trade to a different company.

Whichever you pick, a contractor should see only their part and should never see your estimate or the other bids. A bidder who knows your number tends to land on it.

Step 3: send the same package to every bidder

• The scope list with quantities and units, grouped as above.
• Photos of each area, so they can see the condition without a site visit for every item. Leave out photos that show residents, their belongings or papers.
• The place: the state or city is enough for a first price; give the street address when you are ready.
• A way to answer line by line, a box for items they cannot quote, and room for notes on what is included and the timing.
• A deadline.

Ask several contractors per trade, so you see a spread and not a single opinion.

Step 4: put the bids side by side

Make a grid: scope lines down the side, one column per contractor, and your own estimate in its own column. Then even out the differences before you read the totals:

• A line a contractor did not price gets your estimate in their column, so every total covers the same work. Note how many lines were filled that way.
• A single total gets spread over the lines it covers in proportion to your estimate, so you can still read it by line, but judge it as one number.
• Mark the low and the high price on each line. A line where one contractor is far below the rest often means a misunderstanding about the scope; call and ask.
• Read every note. Exclusions and substitutions change what a price buys.

Step 5: check the bids against your estimate

Your own estimate, priced from a cost table, is the yardstick. It shows whether the whole set of bids is high or low for your market and which lines are out of line. A bid far above it may carry a premium for a busy season or a small job; one far below may have missed something. Neither is wrong on its face, but each is a question to ask before you sign. The method for building the estimate is in How to estimate renovation cost per unit.

Keep your allowance for surprises on top of a bid. A bid prices what the contractor can see, and walls still hide things.

Step 6: choose, trade by trade if you want

Price is one input. Also weigh what is included, the timing, how clearly the contractor answered, and whether they can start when you close. You can take one company's roofing price and another's flooring. Once you choose, put the chosen prices into your budget and your deal model in place of the estimate, so your offer and your lender's scope use the real numbers.

How DoorWalk does it

On the Bids screen you share the property with contractors: everything, or some trades, with the photos you pick. Each contractor gets a private link that expires in 14 days and that you can turn off at any time. They need no account. They see the scope by area, floor plan lines priced per unit, and they price each item or send one total, mark items they cannot quote and add notes. Your estimate is never sent to them. Photos are shared only after DoorWalk has checked that they show no people or papers.

Bids show side by side with the cost table estimate. A line a contractor did not price counts at the estimate in their total, so the totals compare the same work, and you choose a bid for a trade or keep the estimate. Costs and the deal then use your choice, with the 10% for surprises still on top. DoorWalk sends no messages itself: you share the link from your phone. The free plan covers 1 open contractor invite at a time.