TENDERS FOR BUILDING.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLV, Issue 284, 4 November 1925, Page 7

TENDERS FOR BUILDING.

CHRISTCHURCH REDUCTION. AYELL UNDER THE ESTIAIATES. CHRISTCHURCH, Oct. 31. Compared with quotations six months ago tenders by builders show a lower scale of prices, the, drop being estimated by several architects at fully 10 per cent. The decline, they say, is due noo so much to cheapening of materials, although the. idea is current that some merchants are giving special terms in some instances, as to the effect of keen competition arising from a falling off in building. Indeed, several large builders who always work on a certain percentage of profit are unable to compete in many instances. It is now the usual tiling for architects to find that their estimates are considerably undercut. Architects gave a number of examples of this variation. In one case where the estimate was £BOOO tlie lowest tender was £5500. Another estimate was £2OOO, and the lowest tender was £ISOO. Still another example was an estimate of £2BOO and a quotation of £2480. In one instance an original estimate was revised in view of tho change in the situation, being reduced to £2550, but still it was overhigh, the builder’s price being £24~40. One architect pointed out that wages in such trades as plastering and bricklaying fluctuate considerably according to the amount of work offering. The rush lias ceased and good men only are now employed. There has been a good deal of speculative building and probably an overbuilding of small shops in suburbs for the requirements of the moment. This architectsaid that although prices had fallen by 10 per cent in six months, ho did not regard this drop as permanent. There had been special discounts given by merchants in building materials, but there had been no general fall in prices. A spurt in building would probably restore prices to the level of six months ago