From the course: Learning Construction Estimating

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Types of estimates

Types of estimates

- [Lecturer] There are a few types of estimates or levels of estimates, if you will. The most common type is a bid estimate which is used when a company tries to win a project by being the lowest responsible bidder. This type of estimate has a high level of detail and understanding of the project. In some cases, companies are asked to give a rough idea of the cost of construction for planning purposes. This is commonly referred to as a budget estimate or an order of magnitude. Typically, all the details needed to create a bid estimate are not yet available for the budget estimate and it's commonly used in the planning process of a project. These prices are normally within 20% of the actual building price. A detailed estimate is similar to a bid estimate in that it relies on a great detail or takeoff in composition. In addition to being more accurate estimate, this estimate may be used to determine individual pieces,…

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