Budgeting for a construction project nowadays seems like an impossible task. There are constant changes in supply, material costs seem to keep rising, and projects themselves seem to be getting more and more complex.

However, it is possible to stick to your budget throughout the process – it just requires a consistent focus on the details. 

Here are a few crucial components to staying under budget on your construction projects.

Re-Analyze Your Bid Before Starting Work
If you’re hired on a construction project, that means the client believes in your ability to get the job done – and part of that job means being honest with yourself about the budget after you win the job.

It’s crucial that you go through your budget after to make sure your proposed costs haven’t changed since your client reviewed the bid and report back any changes. 

Sometimes years can go by between a client accepting your bid and you actually starting the work – so going back to reassess your budget when you’ve finally got the green light is critical to delivering.

Clients often expect budgets to change once the actual work begins and real world issues like material cost changes begin to arise. It’s your job to make sure they have an accurate picture of what it’s going to cost before you start. It saves you both pain later on.

Always Budget Conservatively
The old saying “under-promise and over-deliver” could not be more true when it comes to budgeting. When you’re reviewing your initial bid and updating your budget to reflect any changes, always supply the client with the most conservative budget you can.

By doing this, you set their expectations of what it will cost at the very most. Then, when you deliver the project under this conservative construction budget, you look like a hero to your client and your client is happy they saved money. Win-win.

Communicate Quickly and Constantly
As the project moves along, there will inevitably be changes in budget. A material may cost more than you initially planned or a piece of the plan may be more difficult to execute. It is critical that you communicate any of these changes to your client as soon as possible.

Nobody wants to be surprised by the price of something. Communicating these changes in budget with your customer, ensures that you avoid the client feeling ambushed at any point down the line. 

Document Everything
Always stay on top of any changes in budget, make sure that you have communicated these changes in writing, and always get them to sign off on these changes. This way both you and client have a paper trail either of you can point back to in the case of a dispute.

By documenting every change in budget and confirming it with the client, you’re protecting yourself from any issue the client may have with cost. It also protects you from any legal action as you have essentially created a series of contracts with them with each agreement.

Budgeting is an essential skill of an expert contractor. Learn everything you need to know about budgeting – and much more – by enrolling at CSLS today!