Five lines: materials, burdened labor, equipment, subcontractors, then overhead, contingency and margin. Then the deposit, the draw and the gap between them. No calculator widget; the arithmetic is shown in full.
The Job Estimate, Worked by Hand in Five Lines
Illustration only, invented figures, for a Scott County, MN contractor pricing a restaurant patio build-out:
- Materials: $14,200 (pavers, lumber, railings, fasteners, from supplier quotes).
- Labor: 160 crew hours at $42 an hour is $6,720; adding 30% for payroll taxes, insurance and benefits makes $8,736 burdened labor.
- Equipment: $1,800 for a rented skid steer and a compactor.
- Subcontractors: $6,500 for electrical and a gas line to the heaters.
- Overhead, contingency and margin: direct costs total $31,236; 12% overhead adds $3,748 and a 5% contingency $1,562, for a cost of $36,546. Pricing for a 15% margin on the price gives $42,995.
All five lines are our arithmetic on invented inputs. The point of writing them out is that each line can be checked against a quote, a timesheet or last year's books.
Job Estimator Calculator: Inputs Restaurant Owners Already Have
A restaurant owner commissioning that patio already has most of the inputs a contractor needs: the dimensions, the seating plan, the furniture and heaters chosen, and the date the patio should open. Sharing them early makes the estimate tighter.
Owners can run the same exercise in reverse. Asking two contractors for estimates broken into the same five lines makes the bids comparable, and the line items show where a lower price came from.
Reading the Job Estimator Calculator Result Before a Patio Build-Out
For the patio, the estimate of $42,995 is the number the restaurant would bring to a partner if it financed the build-out with a term loan. The restaurant also needs a plan for the weeks the patio is under construction and seats are lost, which may be a short line of credit question rather than part of the loan.
A partner reading a patio request looks at the contractor's bid, the lease (and the landlord's consent if the patio is on leased ground), and the restaurant's sales by season.
Reading the Job Estimator Calculator Result Before a Second Location
A second location is many estimates stacked together: the build-out, the kitchen equipment, signage, opening inventory and pre-opening payroll. Each one can be estimated the same way, line by line, and each can be matched to a funding type: the build-out on a term loan, the kitchen on equipment financing, the opening weeks on working capital.
Add a contingency to the whole project, not only to the construction. An opening can slip past its first planned date, and each week of delay costs rent and payroll.
Keep the estimates in one workbook with a summary tab: each component, its funding type and its expected date. That summary is close to what a partner wants to see for a multi-part request.
Reading the Job Estimator Calculator Result Before Hood Repairs
Hood repairs are a smaller job, but the same five lines apply: parts, labor, any equipment rental, the fire-suppression subcontractor and a margin. Because a failed hood can close a kitchen, the timing matters more than the size, and the funding question is often whether a line of credit is already in place.
If the repair turns into a replacement, the estimate changes category: a new hood is equipment with a long life, and equipment financing may fit it.
Ask the contractor to separate parts from labor on a repair estimate. Parts may carry a manufacturer warranty, and a partner reading the request can see which part of the cost buys something lasting.
From the Estimate to the Draw Schedule to the Cash Gap
Back to the patio. Suppose the restaurant pays a 30% deposit of $12,899 at signing and the rest on completion. The contractor pays materials, the equipment rental and subcontractors up front and carries $8,736 of burdened labor over the job. Before the final payment, the contractor is out about $18,337 beyond the deposit (our arithmetic on the invented figures).
That figure, the gap between what the contractor pays out and what the customer has paid in, is what a business line of credit is sized to. A contractor with several jobs open adds up the gaps on each one.
Call (612) 608-4508 with the estimate and the payment terms, or send the request online.
By Wheatvale Lenders · Updated