Guide for firms
How to write a quote homeowners trust
Itemise the work in sections, show the total including VAT, mark allowances and what is excluded, and set out payment stages and how long the price holds. Homeowners compare quotes line by line and check the total against a typical range, so a clear quote is easier to choose.
What homeowners do with your quote
Homeowners can check a builder’s total in our free quote checker, which places it below, within or above the typical range for the same job and region. These are the building work ranges they see for common jobs:
| Job | Building work, UK average | Building work, London |
|---|---|---|
| House extension: Single-storey rear, 25 m² | £63,500 to £78,000 | £86,000 to £105,000 |
| Loft conversion: Rear dormer, about 30 m² | £47,000 to £58,000 | £63,500 to £78,500 |
| Garage conversion: Integral or attached single garage | £14,400 to £20,500 | £19,400 to £27,500 |
| Whole-house renovation: Full renovation (rewire, heating, kitchen, bathroom, plaster), 90 m² | £86,500 to £130,000 | £117,000 to £175,000 |
| New kitchen: Supply and fit, medium (typical 3-bed house) | £9,000 to £16,000 | £10,600 to £18,800 |
| Bathroom: Full bathroom refit, same layout | £6,000 to £9,000 | £7,300 to £10,900 |
| House rewire: 3-bed house | £5,400 to £7,200 | £6,900 to £9,200 |
| New roof: Pitched roof, semi-detached house | £10,500 to £14,000 | £13,800 to £18,400 |
A quote above the range isn’t wrong: access, steelwork, a higher specification or more work in the scope all move a price. A quote that says what it covers lets the homeowner see why.
Lay it out in sections
Use sections homeowners will recognise. For an extension, our homeowners’ checklist runs: design and investigations, permissions, site setup, groundworks and drains, structure and envelope, services, fixtures and finishes and external work. Show site setup (scaffolding, skips, welfare and supervision) as its own line: homeowners read what preliminaries are, because different quotes show these costs in different ways.
Show VAT the way homeowners pay it
Homeowners can’t reclaim VAT, so they compare what they will pay. The CMA’s guidance on prices says The total price should normally include any unavoidable or ‘mandatory’ charges.
(source), which include VAT, and Providing them separately will not normally be enough to comply with the law.
(source) So if you’re VAT registered, show the total including VAT and your VAT number.
- A business must register for VAT when its taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000 (GOV.UK). If you aren’t registered, say “no VAT is charged” so the homeowner doesn’t add it.
- Building a new home is usually zero rated, and some conversions qualify for 5%: HMRC sets out the conditions in VAT Notice 708. Say which rate you’ve used and why.
Our homeowners’ guide: do builders’ quotes include VAT?
Mark the allowances
A provisional sum is an allowance for work not yet designed, such as steelwork; a prime cost sum is an allowance for something the homeowner chooses later, such as tiles or a kitchen. Name each one, give the amount, and say how the final cost will be worked out. Homeowners are warned that large allowances can grow, so a realistic allowance reads better than a low one. Plain definitions: renovation words explained.
Say what isn’t included
List what you haven’t priced so the homeowner can price it elsewhere: for example building control fees, a party wall surveyor, decoration or work outside the scope. Our homeowners’ quote checklist asks for a clear list of exclusions, and the cheapest quote is often the one that leaves the most out.
Set out payment stages
Tie each payment to work finished, not to dates. Citizens Advice tells homeowners to pay in stages, to avoid paying everything upfront, and, if a deposit can’t be avoided, not to agree to more than 25% (Citizens Advice). A schedule that already does this removes a reason to hesitate.
Say how long the price holds, and how changes are priced
Give a date the quote is valid until, a start date and how long the work will take. Say how changes will be priced and agreed: in writing, before the work is done. The FMB’s checklist asks homeowners to understand how extra costs, snagging and disputes will be handled.
Cancellation rights when you agree the job at the customer’s home
If the contract is agreed away from your business premises, for example at the customer’s kitchen table, the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 usually give the homeowner 14 days to cancel. For a service contract the cancellation period ends at the end of 14 days after the day on which the contract is entered into
(source) (regulation 30).
- You must give the homeowner the information about their right to cancel. If you don’t, the cancellation period can run on for up to 12 months (regulation 31).
- Don’t start within the 14 days unless the homeowner expressly asks you to; for an off-premises contract the request must be on a durable medium, such as an email or a signed form. If they then cancel, they pay in proportion to the work done (regulation 36).
- Contracts for the construction of new buildings are outside these rules (regulation 6).
What you say about the job is part of the contract
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a service must be performed with reasonable care and skill (section 49), and anything you say or write about the service that the homeowner takes into account when deciding is treated as a term of the contract (section 50). Keep the quote, the specification and your emails consistent.
An outline to work from
- Your business: trading name, address, company number, VAT number if registered, and the registrations your work needs.
- The job: address, drawings or description it is based on, and the date of your visit.
- The price by section, with site setup as its own line.
- Allowances: each provisional sum and prime cost sum, with the amount.
- Exclusions.
- Total, including VAT, or a note that no VAT is charged.
- Payment stages tied to finished work.
- Start date, length of the job, how changes are agreed, and how long the quote is valid.
- Cancellation information, if the contract is agreed off your premises.
Homeowners compare quotes with our quote comparison worksheet. A quote laid out like this fills it in for them.
Sources
- CMA209: providing clear and accurate information about prices (summary), updated 7 January 2026
- GOV.UK: when to register for VAT, read 30 October 2026
- HMRC VAT Notice 708: buildings and construction
- Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30, legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 31, legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36, legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 6, legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49, legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 50, legislation.gov.uk
- Citizens Advice: before you get building work done (England), read 30 October 2026