With home improvements they say you should get three quotes for the work to be undertaken. When it comes to buying a garden office we agree, we might even stretch it to four!
Why get more than one quote
Its a good idea to get more than one quote as it allows you to see if you are getting a good deal. Various quotes should highlight areas where you could save money. And, most importantly allows you to make an informed buying decision.
Getting quotes is time consuming
Asking for quotes from three or four suppliers will be time consuming, but it is time well spent. The process normally starts with a site visit which will be arranged at a time convenient to you. These take around an hour.
Depending on how the supplier works you may be given a price for your garden office there and then. Other suppliers will go away armed with the information from the visit and draw up a quotation and send it to you.
As we say conducting this process with multiple suppliers is time consuming, but you will learn a lot during the process. You will also get a clear view of what it will be like working with each supplier – this is important as they will be implementing your garden office vision.
Decide what sort of quotes you want
There are two schools of thought when it comes to getting quotes for garden offices. One school says that you should get quotes from companies that all offer a similar service and style of building. For example if you are looking for a 3m x 3m cube style garden office and you are happy with the flexibility that modular garden office design offers, you should approach three or four suppliers who offer this style of building.
Approaching getting quotes this way will give you a range of prices for comparable buildings. Different building systems will be used by each supplier. Some will be in-house engineered systems, others will be the same as used in modern housebuilding such as SIPs, and the quotes you will reflect the price differences involved.
The second school of thought is that you should get quotes from a broader range of suppliers – some modular and some bespoke. You might get a price for a basic garden office and one with all the bells and whistles. You then have a broad range of prices that you can compare. With this method you might find yourself saying “its worth spending £X more and we will get X feature”. This approach gives you the opportunity to see.
Quotes should be read in conjunction with the specifications
It is really important to read a quote in conjunction with a garden offices specification. This will highlight why one quote might be more expensive than another. You want to pay particular attention to the sections relating to the foundation, walls, roof, internal decoration and the electrics as these will indicate what you would be getting for your money.
If one quote is significantly less than the others this would signal to us that a key element is missing. For instance you may find the foundation is not included in the quote.
Check that the quote includes delivery
Its becoming more common for suppliers to add a delivery charge on to their quote. With suppliers who cover the whole of the UK, we are seeing that they are adding a delivery charge based on the milage between their workshops and your house.
They tend to offer a free zone of say 100 miles and then charge by the mile. Other suppliers don’t offer a free zone and charge delivery no matter where you live. This can add a couple hundred pounds to the price.
Also check for VAT
Some suppliers quote ex-VAT. If one price is much less than the others check to see if VAT has been added.
If you are a VAT registered business you may be able to reclaim the VAT on your office. Talk to your supplier and accountant about this.
What might not be included in the quote
There are a few things that might not be included in your quote:
- Foundations – most suppliers include them in their package, but not all. The foundation makes up a significant part of the price, so check where you stand.
- Electric Connection – your garden office will come pre-wired, but it is very common for the customer to organise and pay for the connection to the mains supply separately to the cost of the building.
- Internal Finish – most garden offices are ready for you to move into once the installation team leave site. There are a handful of budget designs which to keep their prices low don’t include the internal decoration or final floor covering.
So, to conclude we suggest you take the time to get 3 or 4 quotations from garden office suppliers, this will ensure you make an informed final choice – and thats what we want for you!