Our home city · Houston, Texas
Construction estimating services in Houston
We are a Houston estimating company. Takeoffs and priced estimates for Houston general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, measured from your drawings and priced to the ZIP code the job is built in.
- Based in Houston
- Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties
- 24 to 48 hours
In short
Estimating in Houston at a glance
MassBid Estimation is a construction estimating company based in Houston, Texas. It prepares quantity takeoffs and cost estimates for projects across Greater Houston, from Katy and Sugar Land to The Woodlands, Pasadena and Galveston. Every trade on the drawings is measured, priced to the project's ZIP code and checked twice, and the package is typically delivered in 24 to 48 hours. Recent Houston-area work includes a childcare center in Fort Bend County estimated in full at $4.87 million.
- Office
- Houston, Texas. This is our home market.
- Area covered
- Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria and Galveston counties
- Recent Houston-area work
- A 10,100 sq ft childcare center, every trade; a three-story apartment community
- Houston cost drivers
- Flood elevation and detention, gumbo clay, plant-season labor, windstorm near the bay
- Turnaround
- 24 to 48 hours on most projects
- Checked by
- A separate QA team, twice on every job
- Team
- 20+ in-house estimators, typically 7 to 10 years in the trade
- Quote
- Free, usually back in about 20 minutes
Houston · Bid due 2:00 PM
In Houston the site costs as much as some buildings. Miss it and the job is lost before the slab.
Houston is flat, wet and built on clay. That shapes every estimate here. Before a building goes up, the site has to be raised, drained and detained, and the slab has to be designed for soil that swells and shrinks with the weather.
On a childcare center we estimated southwest of the city, site work, paving and utilities came to $1.11 million, nearly a quarter of the job. Four things decide whether a Houston estimate holds.
Four things a Houston estimate has to get right
01 · The water
Flood elevation and detention
Since Hurricane Harvey, Houston and Harris County have required new buildings in the floodplain to sit well above the flood elevation, and most sites must detain their own stormwater. That means fill, a pond or underground storage, and outfall structures.
What changes
Fill, detention and storm drainage are calculated from the civil drawings, not carried as an allowance.
02 · The clay
Gumbo under the slab
Houston's expansive clay moves. Soils reports here commonly call for select fill, a moisture barrier, drilled piers or a stiffened slab with more steel than the same building would need elsewhere.
What changes
The geotechnical report is read with the structural drawings, and its requirements are priced.
03 · The labor
Plant work pulls the trades
Pipefitters, electricians and welders move between commercial jobs and the Ship Channel plants. During turnaround season, rates rise and crews thin out.
What changes
Labor is priced at current Houston rates for the ZIP code, by trade.
04 · The wind
Windstorm requirements near the bay
Galveston County and the part of Harris County east of Highway 146 fall in the state's windstorm area, where openings, roofing and connectors must meet windstorm standards to be insurable.
What changes
Windstorm-rated assemblies on the drawings are taken off as drawn and listed on their own lines.
Houston submarkets
Greater Houston, priced submarket by submarket
Houston covers more ground than some states. Soil, flood rules and labor travel change across it.
Inside the Loop and the Medical Center
Downtown, Midtown, the Heights and the Texas Medical Center: tight sites, healthcare and institutional work, mid-rise apartments and renovation of older buildings.
West Houston and Katy
The Energy Corridor, Memorial, Katy and Cypress: offices, retail, schools and master-planned residential on former rice fields with strict detention.
North: The Woodlands, Spring and Conroe
Corporate campuses, medical, retail and fast residential growth through Montgomery County, on sandier soil than the south side.
Southwest: Sugar Land and Fort Bend County
Sugar Land, Missouri City, Richmond, Rosenberg and Fulshear: schools, childcare, retail and apartment communities. Both sample jobs below are here.
East: the Ship Channel, Pasadena and Baytown
Industrial, warehouse and plant-support buildings, where commercial trades compete with petrochemical work for labor.
South: Pearland, Clear Lake and Galveston
Medical, aerospace and coastal work, with windstorm requirements east of Highway 146 and on the island.
Real Houston-area work
Sample takeoffs from Houston-area projects
Pages from two finished jobs in Fort Bend County, southwest of Houston. Client names, addresses and title blocks are removed; the quantities are as delivered. Click any page to enlarge.
Childcare center
Foundation takeoff for a Houston-area childcare center
Protects you fromA slab priced without its grade beams.
Site work
Cut and fill model for the same Houston-area site
Protects you fromFill estimated from an average depth.
Interior finishes
Wall finish takeoff for the childcare center
Protects you fromPaint priced from floor area.
Apartments
Building wrap takeoff for Houston-area apartments
Protects you fromWrap ordered from floor area.
Every estimate is built to the client's own specification, so yours may be laid out differently. To see a past project in your own trade, ask for an example. Examples are finished work for other projects, not an estimate of yours; for pricing on your own job, send your Houston drawings for a free quote.
Real Houston-area figures
What a Houston-area childcare center cost, by trade
The full estimate we delivered for a new 10,100 sq ft childcare center in Fort Bend County: building, site, playground areas, paving and utilities.
Trade cost came to $4,869,040, about $480 per square foot of building with the site included. Take the site work out and the building alone is about $371.
Figures are trade cost before overhead, profit and contingency, from the delivered estimate. Per-square-foot figures are per square foot of building. They are specific to that project and are not a price guide.
Real jobs, not a price list. Each figure comes from one project, priced for its own ZIP code and that client's wages, overhead and profit. Prices change by region and over time. Yours will be priced for your location.
| Trade | Cost | Per sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Site work, paving and utilities | $1,111,028 | $109.58 |
| Roofing, steel, finishes and specialties | $602,130 | $59.39 |
| HVAC | $594,603 | $58.65 |
| Framing, drywall, doors and windows | $588,190 | $58.01 |
| Plumbing and fire sprinkler | $505,544 | $49.86 |
| Electrical and low voltage | $456,705 | $45.04 |
| Equipment and furniture | $436,589 | $43.06 |
| Concrete | $352,853 | $34.80 |
| General requirements | $221,400 | $21.84 |
| Trade cost | $4,869,040 | $480.23 |
Full sample
Read a full sample, page by page
Earthwork, from a finished job: a childcare center site in Texas. Open it full screen, scroll through all 2 pages and zoom in on any line.
This is one real job, shown as an example. It was built to that client's own specification: their wage rates, labor style, type of pricing, and overhead and profit. Prices also change by region and over time, so yours will be priced for your location.
Want a current sample in your own trade or specialty, or have a question? Use the contact form, email [email protected] or call (832) 356-4237.
Trades and places
What Houston contractors send us most
Whole-building estimates
Every division for a general contractor's bid, like the childcare center above.
GC estimatingSite work and detention
Cut and fill, detention ponds, storm drainage and paving.
Earthwork estimatingConcrete and foundations
Slabs, grade beams, piers and reinforcing, bar by bar.
Concrete estimatingSupplier material takeoffs
Wrap, flashing, sill sealer and hardware in order units.
Supplier takeoffs
Houston-area places we price
- Houston
- Katy
- Sugar Land
- The Woodlands
- Pearland
- Pasadena
- Cypress
- Spring
- Conroe
- Humble
- Baytown
- League City
- Missouri City
- Rosenberg
- Fulshear
- Galveston
Pricing data
How a Houston project is priced
Quantities are priced from our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. The estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of Houston.
Material prices change from region to region and from month to month, so a price book or a national average is out of date before the bid goes in.
Priced by ZIP code
Current local material prices for the place the job is built, not a national average.
Updated by vendors
Local vendors update their prices in the database as they change.
Labor as you bid it
Union, open shop, or Davis-Bacon and prevailing wage rates with fringes.
How it works
From Houston drawings to a finished estimate
Send the drawings
Plans, specifications and addenda, with the project address or ZIP code, the bid date and any bid form or template you have to fill in.
Free quote
We review the set and reply with a quote and a delivery date, usually within about 20 minutes.
Takeoff, pricing and two QA reviews
Quantities are measured on the drawings and priced to the project's ZIP code. A separate QA team checks the quantities against the plans, then the priced estimate.
Delivery and revisions
The package typically arrives within 24 to 48 hours. Addenda and revisions are free, with no limit and no time limit, and are handled on priority.
The work is done in-house by more than 20 estimators, typically with 7 to 10 years of industry experience.
What it costs
Estimating prices for Houston projects
- Single project
- From $199. Simple scopes typically run $100 to $250.
- Larger buildings
- Typically $200 to $500. Large or multi-building projects are quoted individually.
- Monthly plan
- From $1,499 for 10 to 15 projects, for contractors who bid every week.
Every job is quoted individually from the drawings, and the quote is free. See all pricing
After delivery
An editable Excel workbook and free revisions
- Formulas built in
An Excel workbook you can change yourself
The estimate arrives as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change a quantity, a rate or a markup and every total follows. Move overhead and profit from 25% to 30% and the whole bid recalculates on the spot.
- No waiting
Adjust your bid at the last minute
If something changes just before the deadline, you do not have to send the estimate back and wait. Open the workbook, change the number and submit. The control stays with you.
- Priority turnaround
Free revisions, with no limit
Addenda, scope changes and pricing updates are all free, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and typically come back within an hour to a few hours.
Questions
Houston construction estimating FAQ
Yes. Our office is in Houston, Texas, and Houston is our home market. We estimate projects across Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery, Brazoria and Galveston counties, and nationwide from here.
It depends on the building. A 10,100 square foot childcare center we estimated in Fort Bend County came to $4.87 million in trade cost: about $480 per square foot with site work, paving and utilities, or about $371 for the building alone. HVAC was $58.65 per square foot and concrete $34.80.
Often more than contractors from other markets expect. On that childcare center, site work, paving and utilities were $1.11 million, about 23% of trade cost, because of fill, drainage, paving and utility runs.
Yes. Fill to raise the building pad, detention ponds or underground storage, storm pipe and outfall structures are calculated from the civil drawings. We price what the engineer designed; we do not set the elevation.
Yes. Where the soils report calls for select fill, moisture conditioning, piers or a stiffened slab, those are taken off and priced. If no report is provided, the estimate says what was assumed.
Yes. We price projects in every part of Greater Houston, including Katy, Cypress, Sugar Land, Richmond, Rosenberg, The Woodlands, Conroe, Pearland, Pasadena, Baytown and Galveston, each to its own ZIP code.
Yes. Subcontractors get their own trade isolated and returned in the GC's format. Suppliers get material takeoffs in order units, such as the building wrap and sill sealer takeoff shown above.
Tax is its own line. The combined rate in Houston is 8.25%. Because Texas taxes new construction and commercial remodeling differently, the line can be set to match your contract.
Yes. This page shows a full sample from a finished job (earthwork, for a childcare center site in Texas), which you can open full screen and read page by page. It was built to that client's own specification, so the wage rates, pricing and overhead and profit are theirs. Ask us for a current sample in your own trade.
From our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. An estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of Houston, and vendors update their prices as they change. Labor is priced as union or open shop, or at Davis-Bacon rates with fringes on government work.
Yes. The estimate is delivered as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change any quantity, rate or markup and the whole estimate recalculates. If overhead and profit was set at 25% and you want 30%, change that one cell and every total updates, so you can adjust your number minutes before the bid is due without sending it back to us.
As many as you need. Every revision is free, including addenda, scope changes and pricing updates, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and are typically returned within an hour to a few hours, depending on the size of the change.
Most packages are delivered in 24 to 48 hours. The quote is free and usually comes back in about 20 minutes.
A single project starts at $199, and simple scopes typically run $100 to $250. Larger buildings typically run $200 to $500. Every estimate is built to the client's own specification.
Bidding a Houston project? Send the drawings.
Free quote in about 20 minutes. Takeoffs and estimates typically in 24 to 48 hours, priced to the project's Houston ZIP code and built to your format, with free revisions with no limit. Prepared here in Houston.