How We Price a Remodel: A Look Inside Our Design-Build Pricing Process in the Cedar Valley
"Just give me a number."
We hear some version of that in almost every first conversation, and it totally makes sense! You're trying to figure out if a project is even possible before you invest real time in it. The problem is that a real number, one you can actually build a house or a kitchen around, doesn't exist yet. Not because we're being cagey. Because nobody has decided enough yet for that number to be true.
Most contractors handle this one of two ways. Some won't talk about price at all until you've signed something. Others will throw out a low number in the first conversation just to keep you engaged, then walk it back later once "the real scope" comes into focus. Both leave you guessing.
We do it differently. Pricing at Big Woods Construction isn't one number delivered at the end. It's a process that gets more accurate at every stage, so you're never surprised and never in the dark about why the number is what it is.
TL;DR: How Big Woods Construction Prices a Project
We price projects in four stages, each one built on more real information than the last. A free in-home consultation gives you a rough ballpark so we know we're in the same universe. If that works, a paid design agreement funds the actual design work and produces a project agreement with a defined budget range based on real pricing. Once you move into design selections, that range narrows as decisions get made. When everything is finalized, you get a fixed-price construction contract. No stage skips ahead of what's actually known yet.
Stage One: The In-Home Consultation Gives You an Honest Ballpark
Every project starts with a conversation in your home, not a sales pitch over the phone. We walk your space, hear what you're trying to solve, and talk through what you're picturing.
By the end of that conversation, we can usually give you a rough ballpark. This number is a fairly realistic range based on what we're seeing and what similar projects have run in the Cedar Valley. The purpose of this number is simple: it tells you whether we're in the same universe before either of us invests any more time. If the ballpark is way outside what you had in mind, that's useful information too. It's a lot cheaper to find that out in an hour-long conversation than three weeks into a design process.
Stage Two: The Design Agreement Turns Ideas Into Real Pricing
If the ballpark works for you, the next step is a paid design agreement. This is where people sometimes get confused about what they're actually paying for, so let's be direct about it.
You're paying for our time to do the design work and put together your initial project agreement. That means bid and permit drawings, a defined scope of work, and pricing based on that scope, not a guess. This is the stage where "I think I want a bigger kitchen" becomes an actual layout with actual cabinet, appliance, and structural decisions attached to it. This step exists because accurate pricing requires a real design to price against. Skipping it doesn't get you a faster number. It gets you a less honest one.
Stage Three: The Project Agreement Gives You a Real Budget Range
Once the design work is done, you get a project agreement. This is the first document that includes a defined budget range for your project, and it's worth understanding exactly what that range represents.
The number isn't padded and it isn't a guess dressed up to look precise. It's built on real pricing for the scope we've already defined together. The range exists because some things genuinely aren't decided yet like finishes and fixtures. These are the specific details that come later in the design selections process and can make a difference in the final price. Until those are locked in, an honest number has to be a range, not a single figure.
This is the stage where you're deciding whether to move forward into construction planning. You're doing that with a real budget in hand.
Stage Four: Design Selections Narrow the Range
With the project agreement signed, you move into design selections. This is where the range from stage three starts closing in on a final number.
Every selection you make, including cabinet style, tile, plumbing fixtures, and lighting gives us hard numbers to work with. The more decisions that get finalized, the tighter the range gets, because we're no longer pricing "a kitchen remodel." We're pricing your kitchen remodel, with your choices, at today's material costs.
This is also where a good process saves you money and stress later. Locking in selections before construction starts means fewer decisions competing for your attention once the work is underway, and fewer surprises tied to a choice that got made too late.
Stage Five: The Final Construction Contract Is a Fixed Number
Once every selection is finalized, we put together the final construction contract. This is the number you build with, based upon our construction set and actual material prices.
Is there anything that can change the final construction contract?
Yes, as much as we'd like to say that the final construction contract number is the absolute final word, the reality is the construction can definitely be a moving target. While we do thorough due diligence, the truth is that no one has x-ray vision to see behind walls, to see what conflicts might exist with existing plumbing or electrical runs, or what type of damage, rot or mold might exist in an older home. We typically add a 10% contingency to our projects that account for unforseen changes that do arise during construction.
Why We Price a Remodel This Way
We could give you one number in the first meeting. It would be faster, and it would probably be wrong, either too low because we hadn't accounted for something, or padded high enough to cover everything we couldn't yet predict. Neither version actually serves you.
A progressive pricing process takes more time up front, but it means every number you're given is grounded in something real: a rough ballpark based on experience, a project agreement based on actual drawings, and a final contract based on actual selections. Each stage earns the accuracy of the next one.
Frequently Asked Questions About Our Pricing Process
Why can't you just give me a firm price at the first meeting?
Because a firm price requires a finished design, and nothing has been designed yet at the first meeting. What you get instead is an honest ballpark based on the scope you're describing and what similar projects have cost. It's accurate enough to tell you whether to move forward, but it isn't a number we'd ask you to build with.
What am I actually paying for in the design agreement?
You're paying for our time to develop bid drawings and put together your project agreement. This includes the design work itself and the pricing that comes from having a real, defined scope instead of a rough idea.
Why does the project agreement give a range instead of one number?
Because at that stage, the structural and layout decisions are mostly defined, but finishes, fixtures, and detailed scope typically aren't. The range reflects real pricing for what's known and leaves room for what's still being decided.
When do I get a final price?
Once your design selections are complete. At that point every material, fixture, and finish is decided. That's when we put together your final construction contract.
Does this process take longer than getting a quick estimate from another contractor?
The design and selections process does take real time, because real design and real decisions take time. What it saves you is the far more expensive alternative: a number that changes repeatedly once construction has already started.
The Bottom Line
Pricing clarity doesn't come from a contractor who's willing to guess fast. It comes from a process that gets more accurate at every single stage, so the number you finally sign is one you can actually trust. That's the whole reason we build our pricing this way, and it's the reason our clients aren't blindsided six weeks into construction.
Ready to Get Your Ballpark?
If you're at the very beginning of a project and want an honest starting point, a free in-home consultation is the first step. We'll talk through what you're picturing and give you a real sense of where it lands before you invest another minute in the process.
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