What a carpentry proposal is for
Trim is a design choice as much as a carpentry job, and owners find it hard to picture. Three options on the same room, each with its profiles and footage, let them choose by look and budget without a second visit. It also shows the jump in labor that built-up profiles and panel work bring.
What to put on a carpentry proposal
- The same room and footage in each.
- Profiles named for each option.
- Paint or stain grade.
- Who fills, caulks and paints.
- One acceptance line.
A worked example
One dining room, 48 feet of wall. Lines are yours to price.
Option 1: Good: single crown. Paint-grade crown and new door casing.
| Line | Qty | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Install crown molding | 48 | ft | Your price |
| Door casing, both sides | 2 | each | Your price |
Option 2: Better: built-up crown. Two-piece crown with a frieze and colonial casing.
| Line | Qty | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Install built-up crown, two pieces | 48 | ft | Your price |
| Door casing, colonial, both sides | 2 | each | Your price |
Option 3: Best: panel molding and crown. Built-up crown, panel molding below the chair rail and window casing.
| Line | Qty | Unit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Install built-up crown, two pieces | 48 | ft | Your price |
| Panel molding and chair rail | 120 | sq ft | Your price |
| Window casing and stool | 2 | each | Your price |
Attach a photo of each profile. Owners choose trim with their eyes, not the footage.
Line items carpenters use
| Line item | Unit | How to write it |
|---|---|---|
| Install crown molding | ft | Profile, paint or stain grade, and inside and outside corners. |
| Install baseboard | ft | Height and whether shoe molding is included. |
| Door casing, both sides | each | Per door; casing profile and head detail. |
| Hang interior door, prehung | each | Swing, size and hardware. |
| Install kitchen cabinets | ft | Linear feet of run; uppers and bases counted once. |
| Cabinet hardware | each | Pulls and knobs, drilled from a template. |
| Built-in shelving | ft | Shelf depth, material and finish. |
| Wainscoting or panel molding | sq ft | Style and height on the wall. |
| Window casing and stool | each | Per window; apron and stool style. |
| Material, paint-grade trim | ft | From your supplier with markup. |
| Fill, caulk and prep for paint | hour | Say whether painting is yours or the painter's. |
| Haul away old trim and doors | load | Disposal of what comes out. |
Terms and deposit language for carpentry
- Deposit. A deposit at signing pays for the trim, doors or cabinet hardware ordered for this house. Deposit limits for home improvement work are set by each state, so check yours.
- Payment. Balance due when the punch list is walked and signed off, or in stages on larger jobs.
- Warranty. Stand behind joints that open from poor fastening and doors that will not latch because of the install. Seasonal movement in wood and gaps from house settling are not install defects.
- Old houses are rarely square; scribing and shimming are part of the price shown.
- Painting, stain and touch-up are listed when they are included, and are the owner's or painter's otherwise.
- Cabinets and doors supplied by the owner are checked for damage at delivery, not at install.
How to fill it in
- Fill in the customer and the job.
- Check each option's name, its one-line difference and its lines.
- Add your prices; each option totals on its own.
- Set tax, the deposit and the good-until date.
- Print it, download it, or send it from Koira so the customer can pick and sign on the phone.
Free tools for carpentry
The same proposal for other trades: appliance repair, auto detailing, carpet cleaning, chimney, house cleaning, commercial cleaning, concrete, deck, drywall, duct cleaning, electrical, fence, flooring, garage door, general contractor, glass, gutter, handyman, holiday lighting, home inspection, hood cleaning, hvac, insulation, irrigation, junk removal, landscaping, lawn care, locksmith, masonry, moving, painting, pest control, plumbing, pool service, pressure washing, property maintenance, remodeling, restoration, roofing, security system, septic, siding, snow removal, solar, tile, tree service, water treatment, waterproofing, window cleaning, window and door.
More for carpenters: how carpenters run on Koira.