Cost Guides MethodologyFIXR's cost guides are a rigorous, must-have reference for homeowners and potential home buyers. These guides help to assign ballpark figures on home remodeling projects whose costs are not typically standardized (i.e., Cost to install new carpeting vs Cost to remodel a bathroom). MotivationSince 2008, FIXR's mission has been to make the tedious process of home remodeling easier. We strive to provide the best information for consumers and we pride ourselves on being:
SourcesThe information provided by our cost guides comes from a great variety of sources, including specialized books and websites, published cost studies, U.S. associations, websites and reports from the U.S. government, literature reviews of DIY websites, contractors and subcontractors, material suppliers, material price services, and other vendor websites. Here is a full list of all the sources: Books
Association
Government websites
Vendor Websites Specialized Websites Apart from the corresponding sources already cited, FIXR's cost guides are also based on some specialized websites from professionals in the home improvement industry. For example, our "Swimming Pool Maintenance" cost guide contains not only information extracted from the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals and the corresponding craftsman books, but it also comes from a variety of different sources, which include:
If you are interested in knowing all the sources for a specific guide, send us an email at costguides@fixr.com and we will send you the complete list. Contractors Our network of 90,000+ local contractors provides a unique source of information for our cost guides. Our research team and uses their feedback to improve the quality of our cost guides. When contacting contractors and local service providers to ask about prices, we pick cities where the cost of services are in line with the U.S. national average such as: Ithaca, NY; Sarasota, FL; Cincinnati, OH; Dayton, OH; Iowa City, IA; Montgomery, AL; Tyler, TX; Houston, TX; Rochester, NY; Atlanta, GA; Birmingham, AL; Austin, TX; Dallas, TX; Tulsa, OK; Durham, NC; Marietta, GA; and Raleigh, NC. This means that we do not show local costs for sites which are significantly more expensive, e.g., New York City or Boston, or cheaper, e.g., Omaha, NE or Harlingen, TX, than the US national average. Labor Cost by CityInside our cost guides, you will find a section called "Labor cost by city and zip code: Compared to national average". FIXR's cost guides include all associated fees in the labor cost, i.e., basic wages, employer's contribution to welfare and vacation funds, and all tax and insurance charges. However, these costs vary depending on the city and zip code, which is why we use a reliable source containing an accurate estimate of how much the labor costs vary in each city.
The "Area Modification Factors" table within this estimator contains an alphabetized list of states. For each state, the first three digits of all the state's zip codes are listed and assigned a representative city. Some cities are so large they span multiple three-digit zips. For example, Aurora, IL is associated with 605, and Chicago is associated with 606-608. Percentages are based on the average of all data points in the table. Factors listed for each state are the average of all data points in that state. Figures for three-digit zips are the average of all five-digit zips in that area. Cost ResearchersFixr employs a team of cost researchers who are subjected to a rigorous selection process where they prove not only their experience in the home remodeling industry and research and writing skills. Most have worked as contractors, designers, and architects for years. Our research team works with a team of editors at FIXR to help them with the research process, and their work is reviewed before being edited by our proofreaders at the end. During the research process, the researchers use a wide variety of professional resources, which are listed above. Writing Style GuidelinesIn order to make the information easier to read for our users, there are some style guidelines that must be followed in each cost guide:
Feedback and questionsOur cost guides include a question asking if the guide is helpful. If you need to know something that it is not included in any of our guides, please click our "No" button and tell us what the guide is lacking. We will update the guide as soon as we have the answer to your question. Many contractors and users have already used this tool to let us know what they think, and together we are improving our services. Thank you. |