Breakdown of a $6,120 Real Estate Cleanup Bid For Foreclosure Cleanup Business Owners

A foreclosure cleanup company can get solicitations from realtors, banks and larger property preservation companies to put in bids on various services. For example, as the owner of a foreclosure cleanup company, you may have to bid on lawn care work, tree trimming, gutter cleaning, trash-outs, sheetrock repair, interior cleaning, carpet and vinyl removal and more.

Bidding appropriately can be kind of tricky if you don’t take everything into account. Below is a fast and dirty breakdown of a real estate cleaning and repair estimate completed recently so you can get a peek at how it was bid.

Bid Particulars

Below are the miscellaneous items on which the managing realtor wanted this foreclosure cleanup company to bid:

Miscellaneous Items

–Full interior cleaning of 3966 sq. ft home: including all rooms, kitchen counter-tops/cabinets/sinks, all appliances, (refrigerator, oven, venting hood, dishwasher, etc.), ceiling fans, mirrors, and windows (upper and lower level, inside and out); broom sweep basement and garage areas.

–Re-key doors (front, back and two basement doors).

–Install new garage remote controls for 2 garage doors near back side; repair or replace inoperable garage door remote control held by realtor.

–Fix broken screen door to the rear entry off kitchen.

–Debris Removal: Remove debris, furniture, exercise equipment, bicycles, misc. items from house and dispose of (except the lawn equipment) — including clearly identified basement items. (Note: Realtor will place yellow post-it notes on items and furniture that are to REMAIN.)

–Replace all missing or broken light bulbs.

–Tub caulking as necessary.

Total for Miscellaneous Items Above: $2,865

For the items above, this real estate company bid $2,865.

The bid allocation was as such: $1050 for the trash-out and dumping (large, heavy items); $525 for duties the electrical and handyman duties; $675 for the cleaning; $225 for the appliance surcharge (fridge was stock full of old, rotten food); $300 windows surcharge (3-level home, interior and exterior, tall windows); $90 equipment rental, pickup and delivery.

Note company profit has been built into the above figures, and we did NOT give a bid breakdown to the realtor, other than the painting separation in case they wanted to opt out of hiring for painting. (See painting breakdown portion below.)

Painting Portion of Estimate

–“Touch-up” painting of full home’s interior (APPROX. 2644 SQ. FT. MAIN FINISHED AREA), including water stains on ceiling in living room area off kitchen. Estimate also includes touch-up painting of square footage not included in main finished area, specifically the “hallway areas” leading to basement and/or garage. (Does NOT include any painting within basement and garage.) 2644 sq. ft. x $1.25 sq. ft.

Total for Painting: $3,305

Estimate Subtotal: $6170 (Minus $50 Discount re: Realtor’s affiliation witha local Multiple Lising Service)

Estimate FINAL Total: $6,120.00

Notes Included with Estimate:

–Payment upon completion as outlined in formal terms.

–Owner/realtor will provide and/or reimburse contractor for paint, locks, screens, light bulbs, garage door wall panel(s) and opener(s). As per request, quote is for labor only. However, contractor will provide cleaning supplies and debris removal supplies.

–Upon viewing, there was no exterior debris removal or lawn work needed.

–This Estimate/Bid is good for 7 (Seven) days from date of Estimate/Bid. If Customer is in acceptance of Estimate/Bid, please sign and return per Instructions on Contract attached.

–Days to Complete: 2 Days (Two Days)

Estimate Machine?

In the beginning stages of your foreclosure cleanup business, as discussed in detail in How to Start a Foreclosure Cleanup Business, you will be an estimate machine, but the more estimates you put out, the better you will get at pricing and bidding on real estate and foreclosure cleanup jobs.

Pricing & Bidding

Several in-house profit margin percentages, and several soft and hard pricing factors, influenced this estimate.

For example, geographical distance (home is 50 miles away from office’s home-base); rental property being put back on the market; the scenario was a realtor handling the eviction, repairs and outsourcing of the work for the homeowner; elegant subdivision; large, three-level, executive-type home; several heavy items in debris (exercise equipment, bikes, tools, etc.); and other pertinent factors.

A Word About Painting Estimates

Note this estimate called for “touch-up” painting. Be careful when a client requests touch-up painting, because it’s often easier to paint the whole thing. But in a true touch-up job, you should not have to touch window sills, baseboards, closet interiors, etc.

Note: You can find out the square footage of a home (to include in your painting estimate portion of bid) by going to a county’s property search website.

Good luck with your estimates in your foreclosure cleanup business! And, remember, the more estimates you put out there, the more comfortable you will become at writing them, and the more business you will ultimately get.