Coastal SD ProsHomeowner toolkit
Tool 02 · free · nothing leaves this browser

The number on the last page is the least useful part of a bid.

Two bids for the same job can be far apart because one of them quietly leaves out the permit, the dumpster, the drywall patch, or the brand of the thing being installed. This tool does not tell you what a job costs. It tells you what your bid never put in writing, and hands you the questions to send back.

Quote gap analyzer

Work down one written bid and see which parts of the job it does not put in writing, then send those back as questions.

How this works, and what it does not tell you

How this works

You tell the tool, line by line, what the written bid actually states. The lines come from a homeowner research corpus of the scope items that bids most often leave out. Anything you mark as not stated or vague becomes a plain question addressed to that contractor. The tool reads nothing about the company and sends nothing anywhere; it runs in this browser.

What it does not tell you

It does not tell you what the job should cost, whether a price is fair, or which bid is better. Coastal SD Pros has not published a local cost dataset, so no price range appears anywhere on this page. It also does not check the license, the bond, or any insurance; it does not read the bid for you; and a bid that states every line can still be the wrong bid.

JavaScript is off, so the tool cannot shorten the list for you or build a copy-ready block. Nothing is hidden by that: every line of the checklist and every question it can send are printed in full below, in order. Work down the page and copy the questions under the lines your bid does not cover.

One bid at a time

Adds the lines that only matter for that kind of job. Seven types are covered so far.

Optional. Whatever you call it — a company name, or just Bid A. It is only used to head your question list.

The tool searches the pasted text for a fixed list of words and reports only which of them do not appear. A word appearing proves nothing — permit can sit in a sentence that pushes the permit onto you. A word missing is just a fast place to start reading. Nothing is uploaded; the text stays in this browser tab.

Words searched for: permit, haul, dispos, debris, protect, patch, model, allowance, subcontract, change order, warranty, insurance, man-hour, cleanup

Lines that apply to any written bid

Mark what the paper actually says, not what you were told on the doorstep. The default on every line is not stated, because a bid states nothing until it states it in writing.

A contractor who asks you to pull the permit yourself is stepping away from responsibility for code compliance. CSLB says the contract needs written direction as to who will get the necessary permits. CSLB home improvement contract guidance · checked Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Who applies for the permits on this job, who pays the fees, and will you be the contractor of record on the permit? Please put that in the written bid.

Disposal, skips and hauling are the classic silent omission — the work that has to happen and can be billed on top afterwards. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this total include debris haul-off and every disposal or dump fee, or are those billed on top? Please state it as a line item.

Floor and furniture protection during the work, and the final site clean, are separately priced by some companies and assumed by others. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

What protection goes down on floors and finishes, who moves furniture and contents out of the work area, and is the final site cleaning inside this price?

On any job that opens a wall or ceiling, closing it back up is real money and is often outside the quoted scope. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

If you open a wall or ceiling, does this bid cover patching, sanding and painting each opening back to the finish it has now? If not, who does that work and when?

Taking the old thing out — every existing layer of it — is a distinct cost from putting the new thing in. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this price include removing and disposing of the old equipment or material, including every existing layer that has to come out?

Without exact brands and models you are not comparing two bids for the same job — you are comparing two prices for two different jobs. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please send a written specification sheet listing the exact brand, model number and finish of every material and every piece of equipment in this bid.

A single lump sum with no line items is the shape a bid takes when scope has been left out of it. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please break this bid into line items by phase or by trade, with labour and materials shown separately, instead of one lump sum.

Specialised crews and manufacturer-trained installers cost more than general labour, so a bid that never names its subs is hiding the part you are actually buying. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Which parts of this job go to subcontractors, what are their company names, and what proof of manufacturer training do they hold for the specific products being installed?

A low bid can be recovered later through change orders once the walls are open. CSLB says a change order is written and signed by both sides before the change. CSLB home improvement contract guidance · checked Jul 25 2026

Question to send

How does a change get priced and approved once work has started? I want every change order in writing and signed by both of us before the work changes.

An allowance is a placeholder, not a price. If allowances are not separated out, you cannot see which parts of the bid are still open. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please list the material allowances separately from the fixed prices, so I can see which items are still open and what happens if I choose something different.

Asking for hours and crew size turns an unexplained labour figure into something you can hold a conversation about. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

How many total man-hours does this bid assume, how many people will be on site, and how many working days do you expect it to take?

A large deposit should be tied to named high-cost materials being ordered immediately. California limits home-improvement down payments; this tool deliberately does not restate the figure, because the current rule belongs to CSLB, not to us — read the rule on the CSLB page . CSLB home improvement contract guidance · checked Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please justify the deposit in writing, including which high-cost materials it pays for and the date they are ordered. Please also show the payment schedule against work completed.

These are two different warranties from two different parties, and a bid that says warranty included has told you neither. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

What is the written warranty on your installation labour, and what is the separate manufacturer warranty on the materials? Please state the length of each and what voids them.

Ask for the certificate of insurance and the licence number as registered, then open the public record yourself rather than taking a screenshot as proof. Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please send a current certificate of insurance and the licence number exactly as it is registered, so I can open the public record myself.

Workers' compensation is not general liability insurance. This line says nothing about whether this business carries general liability cover.

Lines that only apply to certain projects

Choose a project type above and this list narrows to that job. With JavaScript off, all seven are printed below.

HVAC system replacement

Sizing by rule of thumb rather than a load calculation is how a system ends up wrong for the house. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Did you run a Manual J load calculation to size this system, and can you send me the written result it produced?

Duct repair or replacement is a common cost that sits just outside a quoted equipment swap. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Was the existing ductwork inspected, what did you find, and is any duct repair or replacement inside this price or outside it?

Without model numbers there is no way to tell whether two bids are quoting comparable equipment. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please list the exact model number and the efficiency rating of every piece of equipment in this bid, including the indoor and outdoor units.

Roof replacement

Tear-off and the disposal of every existing layer is the part a thin roofing bid leaves for later. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

How many existing roofing layers do you expect to remove, and is the tear-off and disposal of all of them inside this price?

These components raise a bid and extend the life of the roof, which is exactly why a cheaper bid may not list them. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Are flashing, pipe jacks, drip edge, underlayment and ventilation components listed as separate line items in this bid? Please itemise them.

Install new roof is not a specification. Brand and grade decide both the price and the warranty. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Which roofing product brand and grade is this bid based on, and what proof of manufacturer training does the installing crew hold for it?

Whole-home repipe

Pipe material is the biggest single variable in a repipe, and two materials are two different jobs. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Which pipe material is this bid based on, and why that material for this house?

Access drives the price: pipe in a crawlspace is not the same job as pipe behind finished walls or in slab. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

How many wall or ceiling openings do you expect to make, where are they, and is patching and sanding every one of them inside this price?

The count of fixtures and appliances reconnected is a direct driver of both material and labour. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Please list every fixture and appliance this bid reconnects, so I can see whether anything in the house has been left out.

Electrical panel upgrade

Required breakers are a line item that can quietly appear after the panel is on the wall. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this estimate include every AFCI and GFCI breaker the current code requires for this panel, and are they listed individually?

Someone has to book and meet the inspector. The bid should say who, and whether the fee is inside the price. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does the price include the permit fee and coordinating the city inspection, and who meets the inspector on site?

Work the utility has to do is scheduled and paid for separately, and it can hold the whole job. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this job need the utility to change the service line, meter or transformer, who schedules that, and who pays for it?

Kitchen remodel

Whether appliance install is inside the quote is one of the standard questions to ask on a kitchen bid. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Is appliance installation inside this price, or is it delivery and placement only? Please say which appliances you install and which you do not.

Cabinet type is one of the biggest single swings in a kitchen budget. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Are the cabinets custom, semi-custom or prefabricated, and which manufacturer, line and finish is this bid based on?

Relocating services or touching a load-bearing wall changes a kitchen from a finish job into a structural one. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this bid move plumbing, gas lines or any wall? If so, is the structural work and its engineering inside this price?

Bathroom remodel

Full waterproofing is one of the two standard bathroom questions, because it is invisible once the tile is on. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Which waterproofing system goes in behind the tile, and is the complete system inside this price? Please name the product.

A small room holds several trades in sequence, and the sequencing is what the schedule actually is. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Who manages the permits and schedules each trade inspection, and in what order do the trades come through?

Moving a wet wall or adding a fixture is far more expensive than a surface-level update, and the bid should say which one this is. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Does this bid move any fixture or wet wall, or add a fixture? If so, is that plumbing work inside this price?

Home addition

Design and engineering are a real line on an addition and are frequently quoted separately. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

Are architectural plans and structural engineering fees inside this estimate, or billed separately? Who owns the drawings when they are paid for?

Integrating the addition into the existing systems is a standard question and a standard omission. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

How does the new space tie into the existing HVAC and electrical systems, and is that work inside this bid or a later phase?

Excavation and footings are where an addition meets the ground, and the ground is what nobody has seen yet. Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework · read Jul 25 2026

Question to send

What foundation and excavation work does this bid assume, and what is the written process if the ground turns out different from that assumption?

Something else, not listed here

Project-specific lines for your job

Not in the published set

The research behind this tool covers seven project types. Yours is not one of them yet, so the tool has nothing job-specific to add and will not guess. Every line in the first group still applies to any written bid.

If your job is close to one of the seven, choose that one and ignore the lines that do not fit. See the other seven homeowner tools.

Nothing checked yet. The price half of this tool is held — the note in the result says why.

Result

The method ran. The output is held.

This tool was specified as a cost range planner. The gap analysis below runs. The price does not, and no figure appears anywhere on this page — not a range, not an average, not a per-square-foot rate.

  1. Loaded the checklist of scope items that written bids most often leave out, from the homeowner research corpus.
  2. Read the answers you gave for this one bid.
  3. Turned every line you marked not stated or vague into a question addressed to that contractor.
  4. Stopped before any price. There is nothing to divide, average or project.
What is missing
A dated local price set for North County San Diego. Coastal SD Pros has not published one. National medians exist in the research corpus, but a national median is not a North County price, and publishing one under a local heading would be the invention this page exists to avoid.
What has to exist before a range is published here
Written bid figures collected for each project type in the six North County cities, each carrying its collection date and its city.
A recorded count of how many bids sit behind each range, published next to the range, so a reader can see whether it rests on many bids or on one.
A named source for every figure, so any number on the page can be traced back and re-checked.
Owner review and approval of that source set before publication.
Until all four exist, this block stays exactly as it is. There is no partial version of this and no progress to show.

This company's licence, bond and insurance

Not checked by this tool

This tool reads your answers about a piece of paper. It looks up nothing about the business, so it can tell you nothing about whether the licence is current, what classifications it holds, or what cover the company carries.

Workers' compensation is not general liability insurance. This line says nothing about whether this business carries general liability cover.

Open the record yourself: CSLB licence lookup , or read how to read a CSLB record first.

With JavaScript off the tool cannot assemble your shortlist. Nothing is withheld: each question sits under its own line in the checklist above, in the same words it would use here.

Sources

  • Homeowner research corpus, 04-quote-gap-analysis.md · checked Jul 25 2026
  • Homeowner research corpus, 04-cost-framework.md · checked Jul 25 2026
  • CSLB home improvement contract guidance · checked Jul 25 2026

The checklist lines and the wording of the questions come from a homeowner research corpus held in the Coastal SD Pros repository, read on the date stamped above. That corpus is research, not a published dataset — it is the reason this checklist exists and the reason no price appears on this page. The CSLB lines on permits and change orders were read on the official CSLB page linked above.