A fee that goes out low stays low

Anyone who prices design work knows this. The estimate drifts between versions: a row added below the total, a formula typed over, hours copied before the staffing plan changed. Nobody rereads every formula the night before submittal, and what goes out is what you're paid.

One case on our Try page: a fee proposal for a roadway and drainage design, checked before submittal. Yesper found a total that stopped above the bottom rows, hours left at the old staffing plan and an amount typed over its formula: $51,800 missing from a $300,960 fee.

You negotiate from the right number. The gap shows up in the review instead of in the margin, month after month. Same for any fee estimate and the rest of the Try page: a design fee from floor plans, a design schedule, key personnel resumes against an RFP.

Try it yourself →