What You Should Understand about Estimates for Hardwood Flooring Costs

When you want to install hardwood floors in your home, you’ll visit a hardwood flooring store. You’ll pick out a style you like and provide details about the size of the room for installation. In some cases, a professional installer may even visit your home to find exact measurements. Before you make the purchase, you’ll be given a cost estimate for the flooring. It’s important to understand what this estimate includes and what it doesn’t.

Generally, a cost estimate has two basic components: materials and labor or services. The key to understanding your estimate is to know what is included under those broad categories and what may be an extra charge. When you know this information ahead of time, it prevents any unnecessary surprises at the end.

The Cost of Hardwood Flooring Materials

The materials will include the actual hardwood planks or boards needed to complete your space. It’s important to allow about 10 percent extra in materials to ensure you have enough. Most stores will do this automatically for you.

Also included is the subfloor or any underlayment needed in the installation. Trims and mouldings are part of materials along with the adhesive and any other items necessary. For the most part, this amount shouldn’t change much if any from the original estimate to the final charges as long as no boards are damaged or any unexpected problems don’t arise.

The Cost of Service

The labor or service cost is where you may notice changes. The reason for the difference between the estimate and final price often comes from included services vs. additional services. Some services that may or may not be automatically included in the labor charge include the following:

Removal of furniture and/or replacement after installation

Removal and/or disposal of previous flooring

Preparation of subfloor

Delivery of flooring materials

Actual installation

The issue with this category often comes from the first two items. Some companies include removing furniture and the old floor as part of their labor or service costs while others label them as add-ons. When they are add-ons, they incur additional charges other than primary labor cost.

To avoid a surprise, you should ask if this is part of the estimate or what the additional cost would be. Also find out if there is a limit on the number of pieces included in the cost of removal or if oversized pieces cost extra.

If you’re looking to save money and plan to do some of the work yourself, such as removing the old floor, you also want to find out if that will reduce the cost or if it’s automatically included regardless. You don’t want to do the extra work and discover you have to pay the charge anyway.

Make sure you understand what is included in your cost estimate for hardwood flooring in Toronto and elsewhere in Canada before you sign the contract for purchase. This way, you’ll avoid any payment shock once the floors have been installed in your home.

Canada’s premier hardwood flooring store. Proudly selling Hardwood Flooring in Toronto since 1977. We have hardwood, laminates, engineered, and exotic flooring; we also provide hardwood flooring installation.

Canada's premier hardwood flooring store. Proudly selling Hardwood Flooring in Toronto since 1977. We have hardwood, laminates, engineered, and exotic flooring; we also provide hardwood flooring ins