ᐅ Landscape gardening disaster or does it really have to be that expensive?
Created on: 5 Sep 2018 16:31
C
Caidori
Hello,
unfortunately, we are still looking for a company to help us with our garden and to pave our terraces and paths, or to cover the driveway with gravel.
We had actually thought (perhaps naively) that our planned budget of 20,000 for the garden and carport would be sufficient, but based on the quotes we have received so far...
For reference: we requested paving of 110 sqm (1,184 sq ft) including the crushed stone base underneath, and filling 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) of driveway with a layer of gravel where crushed stone is already present. For the paving, we initially asked only for standard 10x20 cm (4x8 inches) concrete blocks.
Not only do you have to chase companies to even get an appointment or, after the appointment, to receive a quote. No, the first two quotes would have made us reach for a drink: one was 28,000 and the other 25,000 – are they crazy???
I know they are all very busy, but this is just not acceptable anymore.
We are still waiting on the last three companies, but if this continues, I’m not optimistic. Honestly, I just find this outrageous.
Have your experiences been similar, or have we just been unlucky?
unfortunately, we are still looking for a company to help us with our garden and to pave our terraces and paths, or to cover the driveway with gravel.
We had actually thought (perhaps naively) that our planned budget of 20,000 for the garden and carport would be sufficient, but based on the quotes we have received so far...
For reference: we requested paving of 110 sqm (1,184 sq ft) including the crushed stone base underneath, and filling 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) of driveway with a layer of gravel where crushed stone is already present. For the paving, we initially asked only for standard 10x20 cm (4x8 inches) concrete blocks.
Not only do you have to chase companies to even get an appointment or, after the appointment, to receive a quote. No, the first two quotes would have made us reach for a drink: one was 28,000 and the other 25,000 – are they crazy???
I know they are all very busy, but this is just not acceptable anymore.
We are still waiting on the last three companies, but if this continues, I’m not optimistic. Honestly, I just find this outrageous.
Have your experiences been similar, or have we just been unlucky?
This might sound a bit strange, but it’s just my experience. My neighbor placed an order for the outdoor landscaping two years ago. Nothing extravagant, completely reasonable. After the date was postponed repeatedly, the company finally scheduled the work for November. His exact words from a year ago when he asked when they would finally come:
“I understand that you want this done now, but we just can’t keep up. I would gladly give you the contact details of my competitors, but I know they’re all fully booked as well. If you find someone else, just let me know, no problem.”
With the prices being charged right now, you should count yourself lucky. You almost have to kiss the guys’ feet or generously round up the amount just to hopefully get them to come soon. Currently, everyone is fully booked, there’s no workforce left on the market, and companies pick the most profitable construction sites and sometimes start five projects at once to calm down their clients. If you ask for a discount in this trade at the moment, the boss looks at you puzzled: “Discount? What’s that? We don’t do that. Just get in touch when you want to place the order. Thanks, goodbye!”
They wanted €60,000 (about $65,000) from us, which shocked me, and the next one quoted €68,000 (about $74,000). I inquired mostly out of laziness, but I already knew I wouldn’t hire anyone. We have all the necessary machinery in the family, so I just did it myself. Unfortunately, not everyone is in such a fortunate position, so I do feel some sympathy for those who can only afford or are allowed to pay these high prices. After all, nobody wants to carry pallets endlessly into the house.
“I understand that you want this done now, but we just can’t keep up. I would gladly give you the contact details of my competitors, but I know they’re all fully booked as well. If you find someone else, just let me know, no problem.”
With the prices being charged right now, you should count yourself lucky. You almost have to kiss the guys’ feet or generously round up the amount just to hopefully get them to come soon. Currently, everyone is fully booked, there’s no workforce left on the market, and companies pick the most profitable construction sites and sometimes start five projects at once to calm down their clients. If you ask for a discount in this trade at the moment, the boss looks at you puzzled: “Discount? What’s that? We don’t do that. Just get in touch when you want to place the order. Thanks, goodbye!”
They wanted €60,000 (about $65,000) from us, which shocked me, and the next one quoted €68,000 (about $74,000). I inquired mostly out of laziness, but I already knew I wouldn’t hire anyone. We have all the necessary machinery in the family, so I just did it myself. Unfortunately, not everyone is in such a fortunate position, so I do feel some sympathy for those who can only afford or are allowed to pay these high prices. After all, nobody wants to carry pallets endlessly into the house.
You shouldn’t try to save money on the paving stones themselves. The labor and all the other related costs are so high that it hardly makes a difference whether you choose a standard concrete stone or something of higher quality. In other words, whether it’s 25,000 or 28,000 doesn’t really matter.
Landscape contractors were also completely overpriced in our area.
We moved in December and planned to have the exterior landscaping done this spring.
The tender was around January.
The first contractor didn’t even submit a bid, the second said they would be happy to provide an offer but couldn’t start work until spring next year.
The third submitted a bid of 55,000 euros.
Also still in the running was our main contractor, who had already completed the shell construction, plastering, site development, and the concrete carport. Their bid was 21,000 euros. In the end, with a few additional cost reports, it came to about 23,500 euros.
So I can only recommend that you also inquire with construction companies that handle landscaping, ideally the company that built your house.
We moved in December and planned to have the exterior landscaping done this spring.
The tender was around January.
The first contractor didn’t even submit a bid, the second said they would be happy to provide an offer but couldn’t start work until spring next year.
The third submitted a bid of 55,000 euros.
Also still in the running was our main contractor, who had already completed the shell construction, plastering, site development, and the concrete carport. Their bid was 21,000 euros. In the end, with a few additional cost reports, it came to about 23,500 euros.
So I can only recommend that you also inquire with construction companies that handle landscaping, ideally the company that built your house.
Alex124 schrieb:
With the prices quoted, you should consider yourself lucky. You have to practically kiss the workers’ feet or generously round up the amount to hopefully get them to show up soon. Right now, everyone is fully booked, there is no available staff on the market, they choose the most profitable sites and sometimes start five projects in parallel just to keep customers calm. If you currently ask for a discount on this trade, the boss will look at you confused, saying, “Discount? What’s that? We don’t do that. Just get in touch when you want to place the order. Thanks, goodbye!”
We are also from Hesse (25 km (15.5 miles) from Frankfurt), and the local landscaping company contacted our architect to ask if they could submit an offer. So far, I haven’t had to “kiss anyone’s feet” for any trade, and we have negotiated discounts or cash discounts with every trade. It might just be luck. I can’t say much about the price yet, as we are not that far along. But the landscaping guys are currently working next door and are said to be very good.
Well, it seems the real reason is that everyone is just too busy – it will be interesting once the construction boom ends and not everyone has more work than they can handle, but there’s nothing to do about it now.
We will wait for the last two quotes, and if nothing changes there, we will probably have to do it ourselves.
It would have been nice if someone had done it for us.
But we don’t see why we should pay around $20,000 in labor when the material costs about $6,000.
(We already requested the necessary materials ourselves at the start of the company search because we originally planned to do it ourselves.)
As I said, the $20,000 we budgeted should be enough for everything, including the 15m (50 feet) rainwater drainage channel, filling with topsoil, and the few plants that need replacing. If no company does it, then we’ll have to do it ourselves. I’m not going to spend the money planned for the carport and terrace roof on this if it only covers the bare essentials outside.
It’s also a downside to having a very large property – the money has to cover everything.
Still, thanks for your opinions.
We will wait for the last two quotes, and if nothing changes there, we will probably have to do it ourselves.
It would have been nice if someone had done it for us.
But we don’t see why we should pay around $20,000 in labor when the material costs about $6,000.
(We already requested the necessary materials ourselves at the start of the company search because we originally planned to do it ourselves.)
As I said, the $20,000 we budgeted should be enough for everything, including the 15m (50 feet) rainwater drainage channel, filling with topsoil, and the few plants that need replacing. If no company does it, then we’ll have to do it ourselves. I’m not going to spend the money planned for the carport and terrace roof on this if it only covers the bare essentials outside.
It’s also a downside to having a very large property – the money has to cover everything.
Still, thanks for your opinions.
S
Steffen806 Sep 2018 10:51Landscape gardeners who have time are definitely not good… stay away!
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