Prices: any which way but down?

[Quicksilver]

I just placed an order for hardware for my decks.
1/2" x 10" lag bolts. Last year, buying in bulk, they were 73 cents each. Today: $2.25 each.

a single case of 1000 deck screws, 8x3 1/2". LAst year, 50-ish bucks off the shelf at Home Depot. Today, $114.00 buying 50 cases at a time.

Two years ago, a 5/4x6 deck board was $0.75/ft. Now it's a buck 40. a 2x6 was $1.10. Now $2.18

This whole pandemic has been a nightmare for small business. At least I haven't had to shut down umpteen times like restaurants.
How the heck do you give a client a price for a deck when your lead time is a month or more, yet prices change daily?

[Laffs]

I mean, I quote every job individually. Get a quoted material price from supplier(s) for that job that's valid for XX days. Issue my quote to client for that same period. Let client know due to fluctuating materials pricing the quote is only valid for x days (spelled on quote ). Quotes also carry escalation and substitution clauses beyond a certain threshold. Once they give me the go ahead I issue a purchase order to the supplier for those materials to secure them. I've also started carrying more inventory on common items that get used on nearly every job, when I see the price drop down below a threshold stock up and hold. Advantage beyond knowing cost and supply is when prices go up you can be a little more competitive.

My 0.02.

[Quicksilver]

all good advice.
Clients however want fixed prices. They don't see it as their problem if material goes up
Suppliers won't hold prices. Their price to me depends on what they pay.
I'm now checking lumber prices every time I quote a job.

[Laffs]

Find new suppliers especially if your suppliers are big box. Right now I can get a 7 day guarantee on all all materials, used to be 30 but that's the nature of the biz right now. I've always priced every job individually even before the pandemic nightmare, there's always been fluctuation but just not as drastic as now.

As for clients, yet to meet someone who wasn't aware of the situation in the construction industry with respect to materials. If someone really wanted me to price anything involving carpentry RIGHT NOW but doesn't plan to start RIGHT NOW I give them two options. I will price it by carrying the high price for all materials over the last 6 months plus a 20% buffer OR I'll give them my price now, with escalation clauses in effect, and they can pay me materials on site deposit to obtain materials and sit on them until they want to start.

[92redragtop]

Maybe difference between B2B and B2C?

[ZR]

Right now, we are happy to have access to a quality part regardless of price.

[RedSN]

I don’t envy our estimators. Having to price a job when the price of steel changes weekly.

Just finished this job this week. LOL. It’s already gone up in value!

https://photos.smugmug.com/Miscellaneous/i-DCbxzGB/0/8162b817/L/7C07D4A3-40BB-40E2-A775-1F529072790E-L.jpg

[Laffs]

Maybe difference between B2B and B2C?

I deal with both Residential and Commercial/Institutional clients.

[Redfire427]

When I was pricing materials for my new garage, 3/4 spruce plywood hit an all time high of $108 a sheet at Home Depot. I timed things perfectly with my speculation that lumber would bottom out by the end of November which it did, and I bought it for $54 a sheet. I see now, that it has climbed back up to $83. Man, I’m glad I built when I did or the new garage would never have gotten out of the ground.

[ZR]

^ Yet feds are monitoring for price gouging.

[ChickenLips]

Should Canada still be pumping out $$ in foreign aid when citizens here are suffering the effects of inflation?

Money printer go brrrr.