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Noticed a BIG shift in how builders quote foundation work over the last 5 years

I've been tracking bids in the Austin area since 2019 and back then almost every builder just gave a flat price for a slab. Now I'm seeing way more line items for soil prep, rebar inspections, and compaction tests. One builder I talked to said his quotes went from 3 lines to 12 lines because of stricter city codes. Has anyone else seen their foundation quotes get way more detailed like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

shanel131mo ago

Man that is just crazy how fast things have changed. I feel for you having to deal with all that extra stuff on paper. It makes me wonder if the old way was too loose or if the new way is just overkill for no good reason. Honestly it feels like the city is just trying to cover their own butts with all these new codes and tests. More lines on a quote don't always mean a better foundation, you know? I'd rather have a simple price from a builder I trust than a novel of paperwork from someone who's just checking boxes. The warranties are probably about the same either way since they barely cover anything beyond the first couple years. So yeah, I get why you'd be frustrated with the shift. It's a lot of noise for what should be a straightforward job.

miller.avery1mo ago

Wow, that's a wild jump in just five years. I wonder if those extra line items are actually making foundations more reliable, or if it's just adding cost for paperwork. Have you noticed if the newer detailed quotes come with any real guarantee or warranty that the old flat prices didn't?

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