Phoenix metro · Scottsdale · Mesa · Tucson · Flagstaff · Yuma
Construction estimating services in Arizona
Takeoffs and priced estimates for Arizona general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, from the Phoenix metro to Tucson and the north country, priced to the project's ZIP code.
- Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa, Tucson
- Priced by ZIP code
- 24 to 48 hours
In short
Estimating in Arizona at a glance
MassBid Estimation prepares quantity takeoffs and cost estimates for construction projects across Arizona. 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 Arizona work includes structural hardware takeoffs for two custom homes in Scottsdale, prepared for a building supplier.
- Markets
- The Phoenix metro in Maricopa County, Tucson and Pima County, Flagstaff and the north, Yuma and the west
- Recent Arizona work
- Structural hardware takeoffs for two Scottsdale custom homes
- Arizona cost drivers
- Summer heat, caliche and expansive soils, monsoon storms, fast housing growth
- Licensing
- Contractors are licensed by the Arizona Registrar of Contractors
- 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
Scottsdale · June, 6 a.m.
In Arizona the schedule is set by the sun, and the soil decides the foundation.
Concrete is poured before dawn in summer, crews stop early, and the same slab costs more in July than in March. Below grade, caliche and expansive clay can turn a simple footing into an excavation problem.
The Phoenix metro is also one of the busiest housing markets in the country, so wood framing and its hardware make up a large share of Arizona takeoffs. Four things decide whether an Arizona estimate holds.
Four things an Arizona estimate has to get right
01 · The heat
Hot-weather concrete and short days
Summer pours need early starts, retarders and curing that hold moisture in. Labor productivity falls in the afternoon heat.
What changes
Concrete is priced with the placement and curing the specification calls for, and labor at the hours crews actually work.
02 · The ground
Caliche and expansive soils
Cemented caliche layers slow excavation, and expansive clay drives deeper or stiffer foundations. The geotechnical report usually decides which.
What changes
Excavation and foundations are measured from the structural drawings and the soils recommendations, not from a standard footing.
03 · The framing
Hardware on every wood-frame house
On a single Scottsdale custom home we counted 58 holdowns and 381 hurricane ties. Miss a schedule note and the supplier order is short.
What changes
Every holdown, hanger, strap and anchor is counted by type from the structural sheets and listed for ordering.
04 · The storms
Monsoon drainage and roofs
Summer monsoons bring short, heavy rain. Site drainage, scuppers and roof details are sized for it.
What changes
Drainage, roofing and flashing are taken off from the civil and roof plans as drawn.
Arizona markets
Four Arizona markets, priced separately
Each prices on its own labor and supplier base.
Phoenix metro
Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Tempe, Glendale and the West Valley: custom and production homes, apartments, industrial and semiconductor-related work.
Tucson and Southern Arizona
Tucson, Marana and Sierra Vista: university, healthcare, defense-related and residential work.
Northern Arizona
Flagstaff and Prescott: higher elevations, snow loads and frost depth that the desert cities do not have.
Western Arizona
Yuma and Lake Havasu City: agricultural, logistics and residential work at long distances from supply houses.
Real Arizona figures
What we counted on recent Arizona jobs
Quantities from two structural hardware takeoffs we delivered for custom homes in Scottsdale, prepared for a building supplier.
Two houses on the same street needed very different hardware. That is why a supplier order is counted from each set of drawings, not copied from the last one.
Quantities as delivered, counted from the structural drawings. Each job was a quantity-only takeoff for a supplier, so no costs are shown.
| Arizona project and scope | Connectors | Straps |
|---|---|---|
| Custom home, Scottsdale, Maricopa County: structural hardware takeoff | 58 holdowns, 381 hurricane ties | 488 LF MST48, 464 LF CS14 |
| Custom home on a second plan, Scottsdale: structural hardware takeoff | 49 holdowns, 360 framing angles | 212 LF CS14, 204 LF MST48 |
Full sample
Read a full sample, page by page
We do not have a sample for exactly this scope online yet. This is the closest one. Supplier takeoff: structural hardware, from a finished job: a nursing home in Texas. Open it full screen, scroll through the page 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 info@massbidestimation.com or call (832) 356-4237.
Trades and cities
Services for Arizona contractors
Structural hardware takeoffs
Holdowns, hangers, straps and anchors counted by type, as on the Scottsdale homes.
Structural hardware takeoffsLumber and framing
Framing lumber, sheathing and trusses for production and custom homes.
Lumber takeoffMasonry
Block walls, stucco backup and site walls by course and by core fill.
Masonry estimatingResidential estimating
Every trade on a custom home or a production plan, priced to the ZIP code.
Residential estimating
Arizona cities we price
- Phoenix
- Scottsdale
- Mesa
- Chandler
- Gilbert
- Tempe
- Glendale
- Peoria
- Surprise
- Goodyear
- Buckeye
- Queen Creek
- Tucson
- Marana
- Casa Grande
- Flagstaff
- Prescott
- Yuma
- Lake Havasu City
- Sierra Vista
Pricing data
How a Arizona 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 Arizona.
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 one line item is priced
- 01Quantitymeasured from your drawings
- 02× Material pricelocal vendor price for the ZIP code
- 03+ Laborhours × the rate you bid with
- 04= Line totalrolled up by CSI division
How it works
From Arizona 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 Arizona 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.
Arizona 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
Arizona construction estimating FAQ
Yes. We estimate projects in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Tucson, Flagstaff, Prescott, Yuma and the rest of the state, each priced to the project's ZIP code.
Yes. Recent Arizona work includes structural hardware takeoffs for two custom homes in Scottsdale. On one we counted 58 holdowns, 381 hurricane ties, 488 feet of MST48 strap and 464 feet of CS14 strap.
Yes. Concrete block walls are counted by size and course, with grout, reinforcing and core fill measured from the structural drawings, and priced to the project's ZIP code.
A standard 8 by 16 inch block covers 0.889 square feet of wall face, so there are 1.125 blocks per square foot, before waste. A 6-foot site wall 200 feet long is 1,200 square feet, or 1,350 blocks, plus 5 to 10 percent waste, plus the grout, bars and cap block from the drawings. Our masonry takeoff guide has the formulas and a calculator.
Yes. Federally funded projects carry Davis-Bacon wage determinations, which we price with fringes. Arizona has no state prevailing wage law for other public work, so those jobs are priced at market labor rates.
The Arizona Registrar of Contractors. The license class depends on the type of work, such as commercial, residential or a specialty trade. It does not change the estimate, but it shapes who can bid the job.
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 (supplier takeoff: structural hardware, for a nursing home in Texas), which you can open full screen and read page by page. It is the closest sample we have online for this scope. 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 Arizona, 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.
Other service areas and services
Bidding an Arizona project? Send the drawings.
Free quote in about 20 minutes. Takeoffs and estimates typically in 24 to 48 hours, priced to the project's Arizona ZIP code and built to your format, with free revisions with no limit.