Employing a building quantity surveyor to develop an accurate construction budget from the beginning, conceptual phases is essential to a successful build. If it is discovered that you have incorrect or mismanaged financial estimates mid-build, your construction process can grind to a harsh stop until you have amended this issue or worse yet, the entire project could be deemed to be unviable. At Section 94, our team develop a comprehensive and accurate construction budget to avoid lengthening the construction time or contractual disputes, but there are many additional benefits to paying the initial costs for a realistic construction budget.
What is a construction budget?
A clear construction budget is one of the fundamental first steps in planning a construction project. After extensive research and cost estimations for different build elements, the construction budget outlines the cost of all chosen materials, equipment, labour, permits and services in a detailed and informative manner before the build commences.
Quantity surveyors provide accurate and detailed budgets using their expert knowledge of material and asset value to establish construction costs, allotting a clear figure for every individual aspect of the build. This ensures that all parties involved have clear and unified financial expectations for the builds total costs. Building quantity surveyors can also offer additional services in project management to confirm budget regulation at every stage of the build.
Construction budgets help guide critical design choices
If the client is finding it difficult to decide on certain materials or finishes with the architect or builder, an accurate construction cost estimate can help. A realistic budget created by a building quantity surveyor combines the main elemental costs including the internal and external building components, site works and finishes with the sub elemental costs of the individual building components that create the gas services, plumbing, windows and flooring.
A comprehensive construction budget establishes whether a project is feasible, and what design elements fall outside of the financial scope. By creating an accurate construction budget during the early design phases, the client can better consider which materials or features are more crucial to their vision and create the most cost-efficient result.
Avoid surprise additional costs
Typically, owner builders can run into additional costs due to unforeseen expenses and services or an ambitious design. Vague build budgets that have not been produced by a professional building quantity surveyor can have errors that cause mismanagement of resources. Insight into the exact specifications, resources, labour required, and schedule of the project ensures that all materials and contractors are appropriately ordered and scheduled, reducing the risk of stressful delays that cost the client time and money.
Expert building quantity surveyors like the team at Section 94 are also adaptable to the unforeseen issues that can arise during renovations, extensions and custom builds. Small deviations from the budget due to contractor availability, interest rate increases, poor weather, holding costs and material price rises can quickly add up and, if left unchecked, lead to a budget blowout. This is one of the many benefits of having a flexible, third-party service develop the construction budget.
Clearly outline timelines and scope between contractors
Comprehensive construction budgets and management also avoids any scope gap between contractors, with all services and roles coordinated and outlined in the construction budget and schedule. Budget management from the commencement of the project allows transparency between contractors and clients, avoiding disputes and conflicting work. The clarity of roles and build timelines is one of the many values of registered quantity surveyors and comprehensive construction budgets.
The value of a third-party estimator
When planning a build, there are indirect and tangential costs that are outside the knowledge of craftsmen and contractors who have refined their skills to their area of expertise in the construction process. There is also plenty of competition when tendering for a project that can lead to more rough estimates in order to be perceived by the client or investor as the best value bid.
Building quantity surveyors provide proven accuracy and precision, the ability to collect, evaluate and concisely present budget data, and extensive knowledge of every aspect of construction including material costs, worker expenses and permit requirements unique to each site. An accurate and adaptable construction budget from the start of the project is valuable to the client and contractors, making it crucial to employ the trusted services of professional quantity surveyors like the team at Section 94.
Premium quantity surveying services
Section 94 is comprised of premium and experienced building quantity surveyors. This expertise guarantees that our solutions are accurate, comprehensive and quick so you can enjoy our trusted service in an efficient timeframe. With over a decade of industry experience, our qualified building quantity surveyors will assist you with all your construction budget and management services such as providing bank prefunding reports, progress claim invoices and section 94 reports.
Give us a call today on 0413 953 869 or email us at info@section94.com.au to learn more about how we can help you.