Overheard a customer say my quote was 'double the competition'

I was at a supply house in Cleveland picking up some DSC panels and heard a guy telling the counter guy he got a quote for a full hardwire job at $800. I mean, for a 3 bedroom house with 4 doors and 2 motion sensors? That's way under what I'd charge for materials alone. Am I the only one who thinks these lowball guys are hurting the whole trade?

2 comments

2 Comments

joseph_martinez3512d ago

Man I ran into this exact thing last year when I quoted a full hardwire job with six sensors and three keypads for like $1500. Customer came back saying another guy would do it for $900. I told them straight up that my price includes commercial grade stuff and permits, and that $900 guy was probably gonna use cheap wireless stuff that dies in two years. They ended up going with the cheap guy and sure enough their system started having false alarms six months later. I just stick to my numbers and let the work speak for itself.

aaron_gonzalez12d agoTop Commenter

$900 is actually a lot for a basic alarm system if you think about it. I've seen guys charge way less and their stuff works fine for years. Not everyone needs commercial grade stuff for their house. The cheap wireless sensors have gotten way better lately, some of them run on batteries for like 5 years now. Plus wireless means you can move them around if you rearrange furniture or whatever. Hardwiring is a pain if you ever want to change things. And permits are just the city getting their cut, doesn't make the alarm actually work better. Maybe the customer just wanted something simple and basic, and the $900 guy gave them exactly what they asked for. Sometimes false alarms are from bad installation on any system, not just the cheap stuff.