Sacramento · Placer · El Dorado · Yolo · Solano · Sutter and Yuba
Construction estimating services in Sacramento
Takeoffs and priced estimates for Sacramento-area general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, from the capital to Roseville, Elk Grove, Folsom, Davis and the valley towns.
- Sacramento, Roseville, Elk Grove, Folsom
- Housing, retail, public work
- 24 to 48 hours
In short
Estimating in Sacramento at a glance
MassBid Estimation prepares quantity takeoffs and cost estimates for construction projects in Sacramento and the surrounding area. 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. Work in the region includes drywall for a large retail store's office fit-out in Solano County and a lumber takeoff for a new housing development in the Sacramento Valley.
- Area covered
- Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, Solano, Sutter and Yuba counties
- Recent regional work
- Retail store drywall in Solano County, lumber takeoff for a Sacramento Valley housing development
- Sacramento cost drivers
- State and public work at prevailing wage, flood-zone construction, summer heat, production housing
- Code
- California Building Code with Title 24, Part 6 energy standards
- 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
Sacramento Valley · Bid week
Sacramento builds houses by the hundred and public buildings by the rulebook.
The region is one of California's busiest housing markets, with production builders putting up whole subdivisions in Placer, Sacramento, Sutter and Yuba counties. It is also the state capital, so a large share of commercial work is public.
Those two kinds of work are estimated very differently. Four things decide whether a Sacramento estimate holds.
Four things a Sacramento estimate has to get right
01 · The lumber
Framing by plan and by lot
A subdivision repeats a handful of house plans across many lots, each with elevation options. A count that is slightly wrong on one plan is wrong on every lot it is built on.
What changes
Each plan and elevation is taken off on its own and multiplied by its lot count, with the lumber listed by size and length.
02 · The wages
Prevailing wage on public work
State buildings, schools and other public works carry California prevailing wage rates, far above open-shop housing labor.
What changes
Labor is priced at the wage determination for the job, with fringe benefits added.
03 · The water
Building in the floodplain
Much of the valley floor lies behind levees. Drawings in flood zones can call for raised pads, imported fill and flood-resistant construction.
What changes
Fill and pad quantities are calculated from the grading plan as designed.
04 · The fit-out
Small scopes inside big boxes
A retail store's office and back-of-house area is a small area of partitions inside a very large building. Priced per square foot of store, it looks like nothing.
What changes
Partitions are taken off by wall type and height for the area actually being built.
Sacramento submarkets
Four parts of the Sacramento region, priced separately
Labor and suppliers differ across the region.
Sacramento and the capital core
State offices, healthcare, apartments and renovation in Downtown, Midtown and Natomas.
Placer and El Dorado counties
Roseville, Rocklin, Lincoln, Folsom and El Dorado Hills: housing, retail, medical office and schools.
The south county and Yolo
Elk Grove, West Sacramento, Davis and Woodland: housing, logistics and university work.
Solano, Sutter and Yuba
Vacaville and Fairfield toward the Bay Area, and Yuba City and Marysville to the north: retail and new housing.
Real Sacramento figures
What recent California projects cost, by trade
Trade costs from estimates we delivered in Northern California and elsewhere in the state. The lumber takeoff for the housing development was quantities only, so it has no price to show.
A Sacramento-area project is priced to its own ZIP code, with current local material prices and the labor rates the job requires.
Figures are trade cost before general requirements and markups, from the delivered estimates. Per-square-foot figures are per square foot of building. They are specific to those projects 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.
| Sacramento project and trade | Cost | Per sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Retail store office fit-out, Solano County: drywall | $54,326 | |
| Wastewater treatment plant: coatings and waterproofing | $1,362,902 | |
| Multi-story building, Los Angeles, 8,300 sq ft: concrete | $846,899 | $102.52 |
| Multi-story building, Los Angeles: masonry | $203,474 | $24.63 |
Full sample
Read a full sample, page by page
Electrical, from a finished job: a apartment building, 12,200 sq ft in California. Open it full screen, scroll through all 4 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
Services Sacramento contractors ask for
Lumber takeoff
Framing by plan and elevation, in pieces and board feet.
Lumber takeoffDrywall
Partitions by wall type and height.
Drywall estimatingHomes and apartments
Production housing, custom homes and multifamily.
Residential estimatingSupplier takeoffs
Quantities in the units a supplier sells in.
Supplier material takeoffs
Places around Sacramento we price
- Sacramento
- Elk Grove
- Roseville
- Rocklin
- Lincoln
- Folsom
- Rancho Cordova
- Citrus Heights
- West Sacramento
- Davis
- Woodland
- Vacaville
- Fairfield
- Yuba City
- Auburn
- El Dorado Hills
Pricing data
How a Sacramento 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 Sacramento.
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 Sacramento 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 Sacramento 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.
Sacramento contractors who do not keep a full-time estimator use us for outsourced estimating: send the drawings when a bid comes up and pay per project.
Every job is quoted individually from the drawings, and the quote is free. See all pricing
After delivery
An editable Excel estimate workbook and unlimited 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
Unlimited free revisions
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
Sacramento construction estimating FAQ
Yes. We price projects in Sacramento, Roseville, Elk Grove, Folsom, Davis, Vacaville and Yuba City, each to its own ZIP code.
Yes. Recent work includes drywall for a large retail store's office fit-out in Solano County, at $54,326 in trade cost, and a lumber takeoff for a new housing development in the Sacramento Valley.
Yes. Each house plan and elevation is taken off separately and multiplied by the number of lots it is built on, with lumber listed by size and length, plus sheathing and hardware.
Yes. California public works are priced at the state prevailing wage determination for the trade and county, with fringe benefits added. Federal projects are priced at Davis-Bacon rates.
Raised pads, imported fill and flood-resistant construction are measured from the civil and structural drawings as designed. We price what the engineer drew; we do not set the elevation.
The assemblies and equipment shown in the drawings and energy compliance documents are taken off as specified. We price what is drawn; we do not perform the energy calculations.
Both. General contractors get every trade on the drawings; subcontractors get their own trade isolated and returned in the general contractor's format. Suppliers get quantities only.
Yes. This page shows a full sample from a finished job (electrical, for a apartment building, 12,200 sq ft in California), 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 Sacramento, 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, depending on the size, scope and complexity of the job. The quote is free, usually comes back in about 20 minutes, and states the exact delivery time.
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, and revisions are free.
Bidding a Sacramento project? Send the drawings.
Free quote in about 20 minutes. Takeoffs and estimates typically in 24 to 48 hours, priced to the project's Sacramento ZIP code and built to your format, with free revisions with no limit.